Companies flocked to Shopify in 2020 to help get them online and selling fast. As eCommerce was one of the only sectors unaffected by the pandemic and lockdown, it quickly became clear that companies would have to adapt to stay afloat.
Shopify is popular thanks to its easy-to-use interface and quick setup. You can have an online store up-and-running in an afternoon without much of a headache. If you already have an engaged online audience, pushing them in the direction of an online store won’t present too many problems.
But if you’re starting from scratch with no audience, the saying “if you build it, they will come” might not apply to you.
You need to be able to compete in the rankings in order to drive organic traffic to your online store.
If you’re ready to ramp up your Shopify SEO, read on to discover how to optimise for search engines in 2021.
What Shopify SEO factors do you need to think about?
Google and other search engines like websites that are fast, offer a good user experience and quality content. In the context of a Shopify store this means:
- Quick loading time
- Logical structure
- Simple user experience
- Informative product descriptions
Let’s explore each optimisation step in more detail…
Speed up your Shopify store
The Shopify platform is designed to allow you to create streamlined online experiences, but that doesn’t mean you can’t bloat your website. Your choice of theme will have a huge impact on your website speed. Choose a professional theme to ensure minimal bloat.
You should also consider compressing your images and uploading the smallest possible image size to help speed up your online store. Head to Google’s PageSpeed Insights to find out if your store is running fast enough.
Shopify website structure for SEO
Your Shopify website should follow a logical structure to make it easier for users to navigate. This means you should have a home page, category pages and then product pages. Don’t get carried away with categories and tags, as this can confuse users and increase the risk of broken links.
There’s another reason that this logical structure is so successful. It also makes it simpler for Google’s bots to crawl your website. By ensuring that all products can be reached within 2-3 clicks from the home page, you increase the chances of users being able to find your products in search.
Improving the Shopify user experience
Try to approach your website as a first-time visitor. Imagine you know nothing about the company. Can you find the information you need? Using the header and footer to your benefit, you can vastly improve the user experience without making drastic changes to your website.
Don’t bother trying to reinvent the wheel, follow design norms to make it simpler for your website visitors to find their way around. Your header is the main navigation for your website, so it should link to pages such as categories, about and contact. Your footer can include shipping and returns information, quick links to popular pages or product categories and contact information. A well-designed footer can make it much easier to access your online shop.
Crafting product descriptions that sell
You wouldn’t buy something without all of the information, so don’t leave your users in the dark. Product information is about more than just the words; it also includes product imagery and video. This is all about building trust through honest, helpful and informative media.
Your product descriptions will also help to signpost your content for Google and other search engines. Keyword research will allow you to optimise your content for the words and phrases your potential customers are searching for.
Remember that Google ranks pages, not websites. This means you need to optimise every category and product page with the intention of getting it noticed.
Get in touch with Auburn if you need help ranking your Shopify store.