Imagine your ecommerce website being buried on the tenth page of search results—it’s unlikely you’ll get any clicks and traffic. People just don’t scroll that far. 75% of them never scroll past first page. [1] But ranking on the first page isn’t always enough as the first result usually gets the most clicks with an average click-through rate of 27.6%. [2]
To help you achieve these results and get the most out of high rankings, we’ve prepared an ecommerce SEO checklist. It will walk you through simple yet effective steps to optimize your site, covering on-page and off-page SEO, technical improvements, and content strategies you can leverage.
This ecommerce website SEO checklist has two goals in mind: to help you drive more organic traffic and increase your sales.
On-Page Ecommerce SEO Checklist: 7 Tips
On-page SEO is all about optimizing elements on individual pages on your website to rank higher and get RELEVANT traffic. But what are those elements you need to optimize? Let’s go through our on-page ecommerce SEO checklist.
1. Title Tags and Meta Descriptions
To get relevant traffic and rank higher, you need to craft unique and descriptive title tags for each page while including the primary keyword. Preferably, you’ll include a keyword at the beginning of the title. You shouldn’t, under any circumstances, write the same title tag as your competitors in the SERPs.
You should also aim for the title tag to be between 50-60 characters to avoid it being cut off. While it’s important to be concise, your title tag should still clearly convey what the page is about.
You shouldn’t copy the title tags of your competitors, but you shouldn’t copy it from your other pages as well. If you have similar products or pages, find unique angles or features to highlight in the title tag.
Think of your title tag as a mini advertisement. It should not only include keywords but also entice users to click. To achieve that, use action words or phrases that imply value, such as “Shop,” “Discover,” “Top,” or “Best.”
When it comes to meta descriptions, besides including primary keywords, you need to write them in a way that entices readers to click and keep them under 160 characters with spaces.
This length ensures that your entire description is visible in search results without being truncated.
While keywords in meta descriptions don’t directly affect rankings, they are bolded in search results, making your listing more noticeable.
Tools like Yoast SEO or All in One SEO Pack allow you to easily edit title tags and meta descriptions.
Example
Let’s consider one of the page of your ecommerce website one selling running shoes”:
Title Tag: “Buy Running Shoes Online – Top Brands at Best Prices”
Meta Description: “Discover our wide range of running shoes from top brands. Free shipping on all orders. Shop now and get the best deals on running shoes!”
2. Heading Tags (H1, H2, H3, H4, H5 & H6)
Heading tags help readers navigate the content on your website and also help search engines understand what your content is all about. That’s why your heading tags need to be in logical and hierarchical order—to avoid confusion.
What most ecommerce websites overlook is that heading tags aren’t there for design and style purposes—your heading tags are HTML code that organizes the content.
So don’t use heading tags to stylize the content and use flowery words. Rather create descriptive tags with primary and secondary keywords.
There should always be only ONE H1 tag for the main title, and as many H2, H3, H4, etc tags as you like. It’s only important to keep hierarchy in mind when creating them.
Headings (H1, H2, H3, etc.) should reflect the structure of your content, breaking it into sections and subsections that are easy to follow. For example, use H2 tags for major sections within the page, and H3 tags for subsections under those H2 sections. Continue down the hierarchy with H4, H5, etc., as needed.
Use secondary keywords in H2 and H3 tags where relevant, but make sure they fit naturally into the context.
Pro tips:
- Avoid keyword stuffing; headings should still be readable and helpful to the user.
- Avoid vague or generic headings like “Introduction” or “Conclusion.” Instead, use headings that give a preview of the content’s value.
- Well-structured headings can increase your chances of being featured in Google’s snippets, where content is highlighted at the top of search results.
- Create clear, concise headings that directly answer common questions or summarize key points
Example
- H1: “Men’s Running Shoes”
- H2: “Why Choose Our Running Shoes?”
- H3: “Top Brands We Offer”
3. URL Structure
When it comes to URL structure, the most important thing you need to keep in mind is CLARITY.
URL’s are hardly not important. A well-optimized URL structure can improve your site’s crawlability, make your content more understandable to search engines, and enhance user experience
When it comes to SEO, you should place the primary keyword near the beginning of the URL if possible, as search engines give more weight to the first few words in the URL.
Other things to keep in mind are to stick to the lowercase letters in the URLs and avoid special characters as they unnecessarily complicate the structure.
DO: Create clean, short, and descriptive URLs that have primary keyword. Keep them as concise as possible.
DON’T: Create long, complex URLs.
However, you also want to keep the URLs consistent across your site, not just on individual pages. There are two ways to achieve this:
- Structure your URLs to reflect the hierarchy of your site. This makes it easier for users to navigate and for search engines to crawl.
- Use subdirectories to indicate the relationship between different sections of your site.
For a website selling running gear, you might structure the URL as www.example.com/running-gear/mens-running-shoes rather than just www.example.com/mens-running-shoes.
Another thing many ecommerce stores often overlook is 301 redirects. If you need to change a URL, always implement a 301 redirect from the old URL to the new one. This preserves SEO value and ensures users who bookmarked the old URL or find it in search results are directed to the correct page.
Pro tips:
- While not strictly necessary, omitting common stop words like “and,” “or,” “the,” “of” can make your URLs shorter and more focused.
- Use breadcrumbs in URLs as they reflect the URL structure and help users understand where they are within the site.
Example
- Instead of: www.example.com/products/item12345
- Use: www.example.com/mens-running-shoes
4. Internal Linking
Where most ecommerce websites make mistakes when it comes to internal linking is doing it without any logic behind it.
You can’t just link for the sake of it; instead, link to relevant pages within your site to improve navigation and spread link equity.
Anchor (link) texts are also important and “Check it out”, “Click Here”, and similar non-descriptive anchor texts just don’t cut it anymore. You need to use descriptive anchor text and include primary or secondary keywords of the target pages.
To truly dominate ecommerce SEO with internal linking, start by organizing your website into a clear hierarchy, where the homepage links to category pages, category pages link to subcategory or product pages, and so on.
Every important page on your website needs to be available in no more than 3 clicks. This logical structure helps both users and search engines navigate your site.
When creating internal links, the linked content has to berelevant to the context of the current page. This not only improves user experience but also signals to search engines the relationship between different pages on your site.
The more you link to one page, the better it will rank. Identify your most important pages—such as high-converting product pages, cornerstone content, or pages targeting crucial keywords and make sure they receive plenty of internal links.
While internal linking is beneficial, too many links on a single page can overwhelm users and dilute the value of each link. Aim for a balanced number of internal links, focusing on quality and relevance rather than quantity.
Pro tip: Don’t ever use the “nofollow” attribute on your internal links.
Example
“Check out our latest collection of women’s running shoes to find the perfect pair for you.”
5. Image Optimization
Who knows the importance of high-quality images better than ecommerce websites? Images are elements that can influence your conversion rate greatly, and when it comes to ecommerce SEO, you need to pay attention to the following aspects:
- Use high-quality images in WebP format and compress them to improve load times.
- Include descriptive alt text for all images and use keywords.
- Rename the file into the primary keyword.
There are many tools online you can use to convert images into WebP format, such as WebP Express for WordPress or CloudConvert for browsers. These converters successfully compress images without losing quality.
Example
- Alt Text: “Air Jordan 6 Retro “Pearl” Women’s Shoe”
- Image Title: “Air Jordan 6 Women’s Shoe”
6. Product Descriptions
What’s more important for an ecommerce store than product pages? Hardly anything and that’s why you need to make sure they rank high and convert traffic into paying customers. To achieve that, you need to:
- Write unique, detailed product descriptions that answer all potential customer questions.
- Avoid duplicate content by ensuring each product has its own distinctive description.
- Incorporate keywords and their variations naturally throughout the content.
- Highlight the features and benefits of the product.
- Highlight the benefits and features of your products. Avoid generic descriptions and focus on what makes each product special.
Example
“The Nike Air Zoom Pegasus running shoes feature responsive cushioning and a durable outsole, making them perfect for long-distance runs. Available in multiple sizes and colors.”
7. Schema Markup
What language does Google speak? We haven’t asked it, but what Google understands best is Schema Markup.
Implementing schema markup helps Google to understand your content better.
For example, you can use product schema to display rich snippets like product prices and availability in search results.
The tools that will help you most are Google’s Structured Data Markup Helper and various schema generators and validators.
Example
Add structured data for product price, availability, and reviews to your product pages to create rich snippets in search results.
8. Keyword Research
Conducting keyword research is the first step in this ecommerce website SEO checklist for a reason. Without it, you’ll wander in the dark.
Tools like Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, or Semrush allow you to discover high-volume, low-competition keywords.
For example, if you sell running shoes, look for keywords like “best running shoes for marathon” or “lightweight running shoes for women.”
9. Blog Content
Blog content is one of the main drivers of traffic and authority in your niche. You can’t focus solely on product pages because informative blog posts are what provides the most value to your audience.
For example, write a blog post titled “How to Choose the Right Running Shoes for Your Foot Type” or “Top 10 Running Tips for Beginners.”
10. User Intent
Not all searches are created equal. Some people want information; some are ready to buy immediately. You need to capitalize on user intent and satisfy user queries if you want to rank high and reap the benefits of those long-term rankings.
Your content needs to provide the best information or solution that users are looking for.
For example, if someone searches for “best running shoes for flat feet,” your content should provide detailed reviews and recommendations specifically for that condition.
11. Boost Product Pages with Blog Content
Some people searching for educational content will read the info they need and leave. However, some of them will come back when they are ready to buy. The quality of the information you’ve provided determines whether they’ll buy from you.
But some people who land on your blog will get interested, and because of that, you need to write blog posts that naturally lead readers to your products by addressing common questions or providing valuable information related to your offerings.
For instance, a blog post on “The Best Running Shoes for Different Types of Terrain” can link to various product pages with anchor text like “check out our trail running shoes.”
Don’t forget to use call-to-action buttons within your blog posts to guide readers to your product pages!
If you’re looking for more advanced strategies to boost your site’s SEO, consider focusing on a SaaS link-building approach, which is highly effective for scaling organic traffic in competitive niches.
12. Categorize Product Pages for Ecommerce SEO
Organizing your product pages into clear, logical categories helps both users and search engines navigate your site more efficiently.
What you need to do is create broad categories based on product types, and use subcategories for more specific groupings.
For example, categorize running shoes into “Men’s Running Shoes,” “Women’s Running Shoes,” and “Trail Running Shoes.” Within each category, use descriptive URLs and consistent naming conventions to improve SEO.
Pro tip: Implement breadcrumb navigation to improve user experience and allow search engines to understand the structure of your site better.
We’ve all heard it—high-quality, optimized content drives traffic, increases engagement rate and boosts your rankings. But which steps do you need to take to make sure your content ticks all the boxes?
We’ve covered the most important concepts in this blog, but we also advise you to watch the video, where we dive even deeper into the topic and provide some secret tips you won’t find anywhere else.
Off-Page SEO Ecommerce Checklist
You have to understand that your website isn’t a standalone product. It coexists with millions of other websites and while some of them are your competitors, others can help you beat them. That’s why the SEO ecommerce checklist wouldn’t be complete without off-page SEO for marketplaces.
The sole focus of off-page SEO is activities outside your website that can influence your search engine rankings.
1. Build Quality Backlinks
Backlinks are important because they tell the story of your ecommerce site’s authority.
It’s simple.
Other high-quality websites link to your content = Google thinks it’s credible and worthy of ranking.
To speed up the process, you can reach out to industry influencers and bloggers for guest posting opportunities.
Tools like Ahrefs and Semrush will help you identify sites linking to your competitors and you can reach out to them to ask for backlinks.
For example, collaborate with a fitness blogger to write a guest post about “The Best Running Shoes for Marathon Training,” including a link to your product page or a blog.
But you want your backlink profile to strengthen your site’s authority and drive relevant traffic, and having that in mind, there are some metrics and strategic considerations you need to take care of.
Domain Authority
Domain Authority (DA) is a metric developed by Moz that predicts how well a website will rank on search engine result pages (SERPs).
Aim for backlinks from sites with a DA or DR of 50 or higher, as these sites are typically more authoritative and pass on more SEO value. However, don’t discount lower DA/DR sites if they are highly relevant to your niche, as relevance can sometimes outweigh sheer authority.
Relevance
Search engines prioritize links from sites that are thematically related to your ecommerce niche. Focus on acquiring links from websites that are directly related to your industry.
For instance, if you sell athletic gear, backlinks from fitness blogs, sports news sites, or athletic training forums will be more valuable than those from unrelated sites, even if those unrelated sites have higher DA/DR.
Spam Score
Moz’s Spam Score is a metric that assesses the likelihood of a domain being penalized by search engines. A high spam score indicates a higher risk of associating with potentially harmful or low-quality sites.
Avoid backlinks from sites with a spam score above 5%, as these can harm your SEO rather than help it.
2. Content Distribution
While content marketing is on-page SEO, creating valuable and shareable content can attract backlinks and social shares.
To achieve that, you have to develop unique blog posts, infographics and reports that appeal to a wider audience and are link-worthy.
For example, create an infographic on “How to Choose the Right Running Shoes for Your Foot Type” and share it on Pinterest and fitness forums.
But there are also platforms designed for ecommerce stores where your content can get the reach it deserves.
- Share your product content on popular ecommerce platforms like Amazon, eBay, and Etsy.
- Optimize your product listings for Google Shopping. This platform allows users to search for, compare, and shop for products across different retailers, driving highly targeted traffic to your site.
- Use Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and TikTok to distribute content related to your products. Each platform offers unique opportunities for visual storytelling and direct-to-consumer marketing. For example, use Instagram’s shopping feature to link directly to product pages.
- Leverage video content by posting product demonstrations, unboxing videos, and tutorials on YouTube. Embed these videos on your product pages and share them on social media to increase engagement.
- Join affiliate networks that allow bloggers and influencers to promote your products. They create content around your products and earn commissions on sales, which can significantly expand your reach.
3. Forums & Communities
Being active in forums and online communities can help you build authority and drive traffic.
Join forums related to your niche and contribute valuable insights, linking back to your site where relevant.
For example, join a Reddit community focused on running and participate in discussions, linking to your product pages when someone asks for shoe recommendations.
But instead of merely dropping links to your products, contribute substantial insights based on real expertise. For example, if someone asks for advice on choosing the right running shoes for flat feet, provide a detailed response that includes your brand’s expertise on foot biomechanics, the materials used in your products, and how they cater to specific needs. You could then link to a well-researched blog post on your site that covers the topic in depth, rather than directly linking to a product page.
5. PR and Media Outreach
Gaining media coverage through PR efforts helps with visibility and backlinks, which will improve your rankings and ecommerce SEO. Sometimes, you have to pay for media coverage, and sometimes, you can work on building PR relationships and take it from there.
What’s the right course of action?
- Send press releases to relevant media outlets about new product launches or significant updates.
- Use PR tools like HARO (Help A Reporter Out) to find opportunities for media coverage.
For instance, send a press release to fitness magazines and online publications about your new eco-friendly running shoe line, highlighting unique features and linking back to your site.
Technical SEO for Ecommerce
Technical SEO involves optimizing your website’s infrastructure to ensure that search engines can crawl and index your pages effectively. You can’t rank without Google discovering your content and indexing it, so technical SEO is the foundation. Having said that, here is the ultimate technical SEO checklist for ecommerce websites. To further understand how technical SEO can elevate your site’s performance, check out our comprehensive technical SEO services that help ensure your ecommerce site is fully optimized for search engines.
1. XML Sitemap
An XML sitemap is a file that lists all the important pages of your website in a structured format, making it easier for search engines like Google to crawl and index your site. By providing a roadmap of your site’s content, an XML sitemap helps search engines discover and understand your site’s structure, even if some pages are not well-linked internally.
The primary function of an XML sitemap is to list the URLs of all significant pages on your website, such as:
- Homepage
- Key category and subcategory pages
- Important product or service pages
- Blog posts and articles
- Other essential content pages (e.g., about, contact, FAQ)
So, what should you do?
Create an XML sitemap and submit it to Google Search Console, ensuring it includes all important pages and is updated regularly. This will help Google to index and rank them. How high depends on other factors, some of which we’ve already mentioned. But there are technical SEO aspects that also influence rankings besides indexability.
There are two ways to create XML sitemap:
- Ask your developer to do it.
- Depending on your website’s CMS, you can use tools like Yoast SEO (for WordPress) that automatically create and update your sitemap.
By default, your sitemap is stored on the link https://yourwebsite.com/sitemap_index.xml. To submit it to Google Search Console, you need to navigate to Sitemaps in the left menu and paste the URL of your sitemap.
2. Robots.txt File
Chances are, you have tons of product and category pages. If you don’t want to spread your crawling budget thin, you need a robot.txt file.
Properly configuring your robots.txt file is essential to control which pages search engines can crawl. Besides controlling crawling, you also need to check that the robot.txt file isn’t blocking important pages from indexing. For example, you might not want Google to crawl some pages like the checkout page.
Key Components
- User-agent: Applies the rules to all web crawlers.
- Disallow: Specifies directories or pages that search engines should not crawl, such as private or duplicate content (e.g., /checkout/, /cart/, /user-profile/).
- Allow: Specifies directories or files that should be crawled, particularly useful if a subdirectory within a disallowed directory should be crawled (e.g., /blog/, /category/, /product/).
- Sitemap: Indicates the location of your XML sitemap to help search engines find and index your site’s pages more effectively.
3. Canonical Tags
Simply put, canonical tags help avoid duplicate content issues by specifying the preferred version of a page. When you add a canonical tag to the HTML of a page, you prevent duplicate content issues by telling search engines which version of a page is the “preferred” or “canonical” version.
You don’t want to create countless variations of identical pages without canonical tags. Not all variations of your product need original content, and that’s where canonical tags play an important role.
For example, adding a canonical tag to variant product pages (e.g., different colors or sizes) prevents duplicate content issues and consolidates SEO value to the main product page.
On the duplicate pages, add a canonical link element within the <head> section of the HTML code. Use the following format:
- <link rel=”canonical” href=”https://www.example.com/preferred-page-url” />
4. Broken Links and Redirects
What happens when the product goes out of stock? How do you handle it from an ecommerce SEO perspective?
Instead of deleting the page and creating a 404 error, it’s better to implement an “Out of Stock” tag on product pages that aren’t available currently.
However, if it’s permanent, you’ll need to delete the page and redirect to a page with a similar product.
When a page is deleted or a user encounters a 404 error (Page Not Found), it’s important to handle the situation carefully to minimize any negative impact on your site’s SEO.
What can you do to achieve this? If a 301 redirect isn’t appropriate (e.g., if the page was unique and there’s no direct replacement), create a custom 404 error page. This page should help users navigate back to relevant content, improving their experience and reducing bounce rates.
After deleting a page, review all internal links on your site to ensure none of them point to the deleted page. And more importantly, remove it from your XML sitemap.
Regularly checking for and fixing broken links is vital for maintaining a smooth user experience and preserving SEO value.
Pro tip: Use tools like Screaming Frog or Ahrefs to identify broken links and implement 301 redirects for any pages that have been moved or deleted.
Technical SEO Audit Checklist
But where do you stand now? With our ecommerce SEO audit checklist, you’ll find areas that need immediate attention and easily prioritize SEO issues. But we’ve also prepared technical SEO audit checklist to help you take action immediately.
Technical SEO Audit
| Check Site Speed | Use tools like Google PageSpeed Insights, GTmetrix, or Pingdom to analyze your site’s load speed. Aim for a load time of under 3 seconds..Compress images without sacrificing quality using tools like TinyPNG or ImageOptim. Implement lazy loading for images below the fold.Enable browser caching to store static files locally in users’ browsers, speeding up page load times on return visits.Reduce file sizes by minifying your code. Tools like UglifyJS (for JavaScript) and CSSNano (for CSS) can help. |
| XML Sitemap | Check that your XML sitemap is up-to-date and submitted to Google Search Console.Ensure your XML sitemap includes all important pages (products, categories, etc.) and excludes pages with “noindex” tags or those irrelevant to search engines. |
| Robots.txt File | Review your robots.txt file to ensure it is correctly configure at https://yourwebsite.com/robots.txtEnsure that your robots.txt file is correctly configured to allow search engines to crawl your essential pages while blocking access to private or irrelevant areas (e.g., admin pages, internal search results). |
| Canonical Tags | Verify that canonical tags are correctly implemented to prevent duplicate content issues.Use Google Search Console or Screaming Frog to verify that canonical tags are implemented correctly and point to the appropriate URLs. |
| Schema Markup | Check that structured data markup is properly implemented using Google’s Structured Data Testing Tool.Ensure product schema is in place for key product pages. |
| Broken Links and Redirects | Use tools like Screaming Frog or Ahrefs to find and fix broken links.Implement 301 redirects for any moved or deleted pages. |
Ecommerce SEO: Key Takeaways & Results You Can Expect
Ecommerce SEO requires a comprehensive approach that includes on-page, off-page, technical, and content optimization.
At its core, effective SEO is about understanding and meeting user intent. By optimizing your site for the needs of your target audience, you enhance both the user experience and your site’s relevance in search engines.
But remember that SEO is not a one-time effort, but an ongoing process. Regular audits, updates, and adaptations to algorithm changes are essential to maintaining and improving your rankings over time.
But what kind of results can you expect from this e-commerce SEO checklist, and will SEO work for your business? We’ve prepared case studies to help you align your expectations:
The Bleuet
Bleuet, an e-commerce brand had challenges with driving organic traffic and ranking for desired keywords.
To address these issues, Nuoptima implemented a strategic content marketing plan for Bleuet. We took care of on-page optimization, content, category pages and blog posts targeting their audience.
We also secured monthly backlinks on high-authority sites with a minimum of 40 domain authority. We developed both educational and transactional content such as specific blog posts like guides for moms on buying training bras.
The content marketing efforts led to a 5,107.1% increase in website visitors and a 9,109.02% increase in conversions from organic traffic. The comprehensive approach also improved Bleuet’s keyword rankings.
Hidden Botanics
Hidden Botanics, a company specializing in sustainable dried and preserved wedding flowers, struggled with underperformance in SEO compared to their competitors.
Our content strategy was what transformed Hidden Botanics from underdogs to leaders in the industry. This included creating high-quality blog posts, optimizing meta tags, and linking to educational content from product pages.
The content marketing efforts resulted in a 165.71% increase in organic traffic, a 139.78% increase in total revenue, and improved keyword rankings
RC Visions
RC Visions, a retailer of RC hobby vehicles, experienced slow growth in online performance and needed to increase revenue while maintaining a high return on ad spend (ROAS).
What they really needed was a comprehensive audit and that’s what we provided them with at Nuoptima. With a combination of ecommerce SEO and Google Ads, we achieved a staggering 15,543.34% increase in total revenue, 745.20% ROAS, and significantly improved organic visibility and keyword rankings.
Wanna Get Similar Results?
Do you want SEO services that drive conversions, not just traffic?
We specialize in delivering high-impact SEO strategies to your doorstep. Our expert team conducts thorough audits, implements content strategies that drive traffic and conversions and builds high-quality backlinks to build your authority in the long run.
With proven ecommerce success stories like Bleuet, Hidden Botanics, and RC Visions, we’ve consistently helped businesses achieve remarkable growth in terms of traffic, rankings and revenue.
All you have to do to achieve similar results is to book a call with our SEO experts, get a free on-call audit and we’ll take it from there!
FAQ
To achieve SEO results for ecommerce, focus on optimizing your product pages with relevant keywords, creating high-quality content, improving site speed, ensuring mobile-friendliness, and building quality backlinks.
Yes, SEO is worth it for ecommerce as it drives organic traffic, increases visibility, enhances user experience, and ultimately leads to higher conversions and sales.
Yes, ecommerce SEO is different because it requires specific strategies such as optimizing product descriptions, handling large volumes of product pages, and focusing on technical aspects like site structure and speed.