What Should Be in an E-commerce SEO Audit?
In the ever-evolving world of e-commerce, an effective SEO audit can make all the difference. We’ve gathered insights from founders, CEOs, marketing managers, and an SEO consultant to bring you ten often overlooked aspects, from preserving quality organic links to analyzing site structure and navigation. Dive into these expert tips to ensure your e-commerce SEO audit is comprehensive and effective.
- Preserve Quality Organic Links
- Leverage Product Reviews
- Audit Internal Linking Structure
- Examine the Customer Reviews Section
- Optimize Internal Search Functionality
- Consider Web Architecture and Keyword Mapping
- Focus on Product Page Optimization
- Recognize the Commercial Value of SEO Tasks
- Evaluate Backlinks Thoroughly
- Analyze Site Structure and Navigation
Preserve Quality Organic Links
Quality organic links are hard to come by, and once you get them, you must work to keep them. Links fall off for various reasons, and losing a single backlink can significantly drop your product page traffic. Identifying lost links and reaching out to the contacts at those websites should be a standard operating procedure for e-commerce brands.
Jason Vaught
Founder and CSO, 805SEO
Leverage Product Reviews
There’s one overlooked gem hiding in plain sight—the product reviews! Those little nuggets of customer opinions are a goldmine of SEO potential. Here’s the scoop: search engines adore fresh, user-generated content, and what’s fresher than genuine product reviews?
By optimizing review pages with relevant keywords and encouraging customers to share their experiences, you’ll boost your SEO rankings and build trust with potential buyers. Plus, real-life examples prove the power of reviews. Companies saw a 15% traffic spike after sprucing up their review pages.
So, don’t overlook those little stars—let them shine in your e-commerce SEO audit and watch your rankings soar!
Himanshu Sharma
CEO and Founder, Academy of Digital Marketing
Audit Internal Linking Structure
One often overlooked thing that should be in an e-commerce SEO audit is the site’s internal linking structure. Internal linking is the practice of linking from one page on your site to another. It’s important for SEO because it helps Google understand the relationships between different pages on your site.
A good internal linking structure will help Google find and index all of your pages, and it will also help users navigate your site more easily.
Brenton Thomas
CEO, Twibi
Examine the Customer Reviews Section
A common oversight I’ve noticed in e-commerce SEO audits is examining the “Customer Reviews” section. Now, you might wonder, how does that tie to SEO? Well, it plays a crucial role. Here’s a story to illustrate this.
A client of ours, a small e-commerce business, wasn’t seeing expected organic search traffic despite having an SEO-friendly website. On closer inspection, we noticed a barren customer reviews section. I’ve learned over the years that reviews aren’t just for shopper confidence; they’re a goldmine of user-generated content, often filled with relevant keywords and search terms.
We implemented a post-purchase review solicitation strategy, and within months, saw a significant uptick in organic traffic and search rankings. It showed me that sometimes overlooked aspects, like customer reviews, can hold the keys to your SEO success.
John White
MBA | Sales Manager | Golf Instructor, John Carlton White
Optimize Internal Search Functionality
One often overlooked thing that should be included in an e-commerce SEO audit is an assessment of the site’s internal search functionality. While the focus is often on optimizing for external search engines like Google, internal search plays a crucial role in enhancing user experience and driving conversions.
Evaluate how well the internal search function performs, including its speed, accuracy, and relevance of search results. Check for any technical issues, such as indexing problems or broken search functionality.
Optimize the search bar placement, ensuring it’s easily accessible and prominently displayed. Analyze the search data to identify popular search terms and refine product categorization and keyword targeting accordingly. Improving the internal search experience can lead to increased customer satisfaction, higher engagement, and ultimately, improved conversion rates on an e-commerce website.
Nicholas Robb
Founder, Design Hero
Consider Web Architecture and Keyword Mapping
Web architecture is often overlooked, especially in the field of e-commerce. As an SEO consultant, I have seen hundreds of audits, and it’s incredible how many of them neglect the web structure of keyword mapping.
Every e-commerce business aspiring for a winning SEO strategy needs to go through this process: conduct competitor analysis, perform keyword research, and combine these insights to create a solid keyword map and SEO-optimized web structure.
Marco Genaro Palma
SEO Consultant, Genaro Palma
Focus on Product Page Optimization
One often overlooked thing that should be included in an e-commerce SEO audit is the assessment of product page optimization. While many audits focus on technical SEO aspects, site structure, and content optimization, the individual product pages are crucial for driving organic traffic and conversions in an e-commerce website.
Review the title tags and meta descriptions of product pages to ensure they are descriptive, unique, and optimized with relevant keywords. Make sure they accurately reflect the content of the page and entice users to click through from search results. Check the URL structure of product pages for readability and keyword inclusion. A well-structured URL can provide additional context to search engines and users.
Also, evaluate the quality and uniqueness of product descriptions. Ensure that they are informative, engaging, and optimized with relevant keywords. Avoid using manufacturer-provided descriptions, as they may be duplicated across multiple websites.
Joe Li
Managing Director, CheckYa
Recognize the Commercial Value of SEO Tasks
External contractors or SEO pros can often miss the specific revenue value of a certain action or set of actions that are required from the findings of an audit.
While it’s hard to say how X action will lead to Y increase in revenue, even a direct statement of how a certain task or process can lead to increased revenue (even to justify why the task is required) is very useful for the business owner to see the commercial value on a per-task basis.
Ashley Woodyatt, Marketing Manager, Woodyatt Curtains
Evaluate Backlinks Thoroughly
Marketers these days take shortcuts while SEO auditing, which essentially leaves a few areas. One such area is evaluating backlinks! It’s one of the most important metrics in measuring a site’s off-page SEO.
Overlooking this area, at times could prove to be a costly affair and lose a potential chunk of the audience as well. In case your site is externally linked with a spam site, it confuses the algorithm leading to your downfall. The much-strived credibility of your site shall degrade, and authoritative collaborations might even turn down your invites.
If you’re still missing in this area, it’s high time. Consider any backlink checker, and ensure you’re aware of what’s happening back there. Make adjustments when necessary, and don’t miss out on reaching high authority sites for your own growth in a collaborative manner.
Sean Coffey
Marketing Manager, Regency Fire
Analyze Site Structure and Navigation
One often overlooked thing that should be included in an e-commerce SEO audit is an analysis of the website’s site structure and navigation. While keywords, content, and backlinks are commonly evaluated, the overall organization and accessibility of the website can significantly impact its search engine visibility.
Assessing the site’s hierarchy, URL structure, internal linking, and navigation menu ensures that search engines can easily crawl and index the website’s pages. A well-structured and user-friendly website architecture not only enhances the user experience but also improves search engine rankings by enabling better content discoverability and indexation.
Brian Clark, Founder, United Medical Education
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