Main on-site SEO problems holding back ecommerce platforms
Ecommerce is set to increase again in 2018, but what are the problems holding certain platforms back?
Short/none or poor product descriptions
Short product descriptions give search engines very little content to work around – why is this a problem? Backlinko conducted research concluding that longer searches perform better, (the average Google first page result is 1890 words long). What’s more, Automated descriptions that swap a few words into a template can result in duplicate content. Of course, writing out product descriptions for your site is an arduous task – instead, focus on making the highest-value product pages into more comprehensive landing pages that include conversion-based copy.
Failing to include user reviews
Yotpo conducted a study that analysed over 30,000 businesses, looking at the user reviews they added measured how this impacted upon organic search traffic. Following 9 months of close study, they found that the Google organic page views per month grew by over a third.
Excessive focus on transactional keywords and not enough time invested in developing informational content
Ranking for ‘money’ terminology/keywords is a very difficult thing to achieve and focusing too much attention on them is generally to fight a losing battle – especially if you are not diverting enough attention to the informational keywords that target customers further up the line. Redivert your attention toward more informational keywords as you can rank for less competitive keywords but also build a stronger reputation with Google and other search engines.
No unbranded keyword optimisation
Many ecommerce product pages are simply not developed with keywords in mind. Most commonly, product pages are build with a model name and brand in mind and though some customers will be searching for these names, they need to be included in the title tag and other significant locations on the page. You will need to include other generic phrases on the page to cater for those who have not gone into Google with a specific brand in mind.
If you would like more information about how to maximise the potential of your SEO, please do not hesitate to contact us.