Category: Business Tips

Like any type of search engine optimization, e-commerce SEO involves a series of techniques designed to increase online visibility. The difference is that e-commerce SEO is centered on organic search results. Specifically, there are three main goals associated with e-commerce optimization: getting more organic traffic to online store product pages, generating organic sales without having to invest in paid ads, and boosting organic brand/product awareness. The San Diego SEO service providers at Saba SEO share some of the best search engine optimization practices for e-commerce businesses in 2018.

Attract Attention with Title Tags

Title tags are the clickable headlines that show up when organic results are displayed on search engine results pages (SERPs). Because title tags are highly visible, you’ll have a better chance of generating clicks back to your site if you optimize your tags with:

• One or two of your primary keywords

• Latent semantic indexing (LSI) keywords, if applicable

• Text limited to 50-60 characters (longer titles are cut off)

• Title tags unique for each product page or category

• A mention of your company’s name at the end to boost brand awareness

Hook Potential Buyers with Meta Description Tags

Meta description tags are positioned just below titles tags on SERPs, and they give you a chance to explain more about your products in a way that’s likely to catch the attention of your target customers. Adding keywords to description tags won’t help you much with SEO, but well-crafted content can give you a decent click-through rate. You can create unique and compelling meta description tags by:

• Using your primary keyword or appropriate keyword variations

• Keeping your descriptions clear, concise, and compelling

• Excluding irrelevant content just to generate clicks (click bait)

Optimize Your URLs

One of the most overlooked e-commerce SEO tactics is to add some SEO power to URLs. Optimizing your URLs also provides another opportunity for searchers to get exposed to your business. To make your URLs SEO-friendly, you may have to:

• Include your main keyword

• Optimize URLs that show the entire address (absolute URLs)

• Be consistent with your URL format for the different pages of your online store

• Keep URLs short and direct

Provide Useful Information in Your Product & Category Pages

You’ve only achieved half of your SEO goals if you’ve managed to effectively direct traffic to your product or category pages. The content on these pages encourages conversions and sales. For optimization purpose, include the same primary keywords or variations you used in your tags and URLs.

When it comes to content, your objective should be to provide sufficient information without overwhelming your visitors. Set up a product page with truncated descriptions that only expand to provide more text when a visitor clicks a specific product.

Embrace Rich Snippets

A rich snippet is structured data markup that enhances existing HTML. For e-commerce SEO, rich snippets include details such as product info, review ratings, pricing, relevant keywords, and images. You can also reference things like availability (e.g. “limited offer”) to further generate interest.

Use Redirects for Expired Product Pages

Product pages can expire for many reasons. For instance, a limited-edition product may no longer be available. However, removing such pages won’t stop them from being linked to another site or showing up on SERPs. Use 301 redirects to take searchers from expired product pages to active ones.

Choose the Right Platform for Your Business

When choosing your e-commerce platform, there are many possibilities. For instance, you could partner with a marketing firm to create an e-commerce site. Another option is to use one of the many e-commerce platforms available for this purpose, like Shopify, Magento, BigCommerce, or the WordPress plugin WooCommerce. Yet another possibility is to sell your products directly via Amazon, which is the world’s largest e-commerce company.

Lastly, determine how well your e-commerce site is optimized for conversions. Take a look at your customer feedback to see why some customers weren’t satisfied with your website. For instance, you might discover visitors are having difficulty with your site’s navigation, or you may not be making shipping costs clear enough. Remember, you’re more likely to get a steady flow of conversions if you’re consistently creating a good user experience.

If you’re managing an e-commerce platform and you need help with any aspect of search engine optimization, turn to Saba SEO. We are the leading San Diego SEO agency. For over ten years, our team has designed focused and results-oriented SEO strategies for businesses all over the globe. With our help, you can boost your search engine ranking, increase your online revenue, and build a strong brand image. To talk to one of our professional SEO Managers, give us a call at 858-277-1717 today.

Negative SEO is a classic black hat SEO tactic that could result in a noticeable dip in online visibility. It’s essentially an assault from a competitor that involves things like directing bad links to your site and crashing your server by sending bogus requests your way. The way to fight negative SEO techniques is to be proactive. Here are five steps you can take to protect your site from negative SEO, brought to you by the experts at Saba SEO, a San Diego SEO company you can trust.

1. Don’t Purchase Backlinks

Unsafe practices can make your site more vulnerable to negative SEO issues, especially when you purchase backlinks. The potential problem is that some of those purchased links may have issues that reflect poorly on your site.

2. Sign Up for Email Alerts

Sign up to receive email alerts from Google Webmaster, and you’ll get a heads-up when you have a penalty or your site is being attacked by malware. Signing up for email alerts also allows you to respond quickly before your site’s ranking is seriously affected.

3. Make Sure Your Backlinks Are Healthy

One way to spot shady links suddenly being directed at your site is to get into the habit of checking your backlinks. Tools like Ahrefs Backlink Checker and SEO SpyGlass can be used to monitor your backlinks. Err on the side of caution and use Google’s Disavow Links tool to block suspicious or poor-quality backlinks.

4. Make Your Website Secure

Any lapses in your website’s security can make it easier for unscrupulous competitors to find their way in and do some serious damage. If you have a WordPress CMS, security plugins or extensions can secure your site. Further secure your website to discourage negative SEO tactics by: • Using free website security tools like Netsparker and SecurityHeaders.io • Switching to HTTPS and keeping software on your site up to date • Not permitting users to upload files • Validating your site from the browser and server side • Checking the security of your website’s passwords

5. Use Software to Check for Plagiarism/Duplicate Content

The purpose of using software like Copyscape is to make sure competitors aren’t duplicating your content in an attempt to devalue the content or get you penalized by Google. SEMRush also has a handy duplicate content tool you can use. On a related note, consider using tools to perform periodic site audits to spot other issues you may not be aware of. Websites susceptible to negative SEO tricks are usually ones in highly competitive fields or industries. Typically, this includes financial-based sites (e.g. insurance, payday loans, bail bonds). Even if you don’t have an especially competitive niche, there’s always the chance an overly-aggressive competitor could resort to negative SEO tactics. In addition to the tips already discussed, further boost your peace of mind by paying attention to your stats to look for any suspicious ranking dips. If you need help protecting your website from negative SEO tactics, turn to Saba SEO. We are one of the best marketing companies San Diego has to offer, with over ten years of experience in search engine optimization, website design, and content development. Our experts utilize a wide variety of white hat tactics to boost your online visibility. Even if your website has been hit with negative SEO, we can help you get back on the right track. To learn about our quality-assured services, give us a call at 858-277-1717 today.

Studies suggest many consumers like brands that don’t take themselves too seriously. Millennials, in particular, feel more comfortable expressing emotions with images. Consumers also tend to appreciate online content with a human touch, and you can’t get more human than using visual expressions known as emojis. The specialists at Saba SEO, one of the best SEO companies San Diego has to offer, share a few tips on how to use emojis to increase click-through rates.

Narrow Down Your Emoji Preferences

There are thousands of emojis available for your consideration, but not all of them can boost your CTRs. A recent study showed that none of the top emojis that contribute to clicks are faces. In fact, emojis in the shape of horses, trains, fruit, and downward pointing fingers tend to get more attention from clickers. Opt for random, less common emojis that still reflect your brand and what you want to express visually.

Include Emojis in Your Email Campaigns

Nearly half of all consumers prefer to be contacted by email. There’s a lot of competition for recipient attention in inboxes these days, so make your emails stand out from the crowd with attention-getting emojis. Two separate studies on emails sent for Valentine’s Day and Father’s Day showed that those with lip and wrench emojis in promotional emails had higher open and read rates. Use emojis in your email campaigns to boost CTRs by:

• Using recognizable emojis to replace one or two words in subject lines
• Placing a relevant emoji at the end of subject lines to emphasize the subject and attract recipient attention
• Including images related to your preferred emoji within the email body to continue the visual theme and encourage clicks back to your website

Get Social with Your Emojis

Social media is a perfect platform for campaigns that include emojis. Facebook users alone exchange more than 50 million emojis daily. Research shows that even something as subtle as including an expressive image next to the call to action at the bottom of a social post can increase click-through rates. Here’s how you can use emojis with your social media content:

• Use available emojis on a particular platform or something that catches your eye on an emoji finder tool to find relevant images that fit your campaign
• Place one or two emojis in your social post headers to grab attention
• Insert emojis where appropriate in the message or near the link back to your site

Put Emojis in Your Meta Info

In early 2017, Google announced they were once again allowing emojis to show up on search results pages. Searchers can even perform searches with a single emoji and receive results related to that image. Take advantage of Google’s embracing of all things emoji-related by:

• Placing a few emojis in the meta titles for your various webpages
• Adding emojis to your meta descriptions
• Inserting the words related to your emojis in meta titles/descriptions to increase your odds of being included in emoji-related search results

Insert Emojis in Your Push Notifications

Use emojis to get the attention of mobile device users by including them in push notifications sent from your app. When used correctly, emojis can boost CTRs and in-app time by encouraging interaction with your business. A study showed that push notifications with emojis performed better than those with images. Here’s how you can include emojis in your push notifications:

• Choose your preferred push notification platform or software
• Add relevant emojis to your messages
• Use emojis to help recipients quickly identify the subject, visually present your message in a way that uses fewer words, or reinforce your message’s content

In the event you’re not sure if emojis will work for your business, do some A/B testing to compare similar content with and without emojis included. If there’s no significant difference with CTRs, emojis may not be right for your brand. In some cases, being more expressive in a casual way may not be appropriate, as may be the case with certain legal or medical content. On the other hand, if you notice a spike in CTRs when emojis are included, continue to look for creative ways to add some personality to your content.

If you need help increasing your conversion and click-through rates, turn to Saba SEO. We are a leading San Diego SEO agency with over ten years of experience in digital marketing. Our experts can create a responsive website for your business and top it with high-quality content and graphics that are sure to result in more clicks. We also specialize in social media marketing to help businesses boost their brand image and interact better with their target audience. To learn about our high-quality internet marketing services, give us a call at 858-951-1717 today.

It can be difficult for small e-commerce stores to compete against massive brands like Amazon. These large retailers usually dominate the search engine results page, and you may not think your small business can beat them. However, it’s possible to outrank Amazon, which could bring you a huge boost in sales. Here are three tips for strengthening your SEO strategy and beating Amazon in the SERPs, brought to you by the team at Saba SEO, one of the leading San Diego SEO companies.

1. Use Long-Tail Keywords

If you only focus on short-tail keywords like “mattresses” or “women’s shoes,” you probably won’t outrank Amazon or other major retailers. There are so many different websites and businesses trying to rank for those keywords, and it’s easy for smaller e-commerce stores to get lost under the larger and more authoritative sites.

Instead, you should utilize unique long-tail keywords to beat your competition. Most large retailers like Amazon don’t use long-tail keywords, so these keywords can increase your ranking. Instead of using “women’s shoes” as your main keyword, you could incorporate keywords like “Nike women’s running shoes” or “women’s red sandals.”

2. Improve Your User Experience

User experience is one of the most important factors in search engine rankings. One of your main priorities should be increasing your visitors’ engagement rates and decreasing bounce rates. Increasing your page speed and making your site mobile-friendly can enhance user experience. Also, every piece of content on each page should be useful for your visitors.

3. Don’t Use Stock Product Descriptions

Sites like Amazon offer thousands or millions of products, and they typically don’t have time to write unique product descriptions. If you can include unique and keyword-rich descriptions for each of your items, you may outrank Amazon in the SERPs. Try to provide as much useful and relevant information as possible. For example, you could use long-tail keywords to create unique content for your products and services that keeps your visitors on your site for longer.

Increasing online visibility can be a challenging task. However, the team at Saba SEO can simplify the SEO process for you. We use various white hat tactics to increase our clients’ search engine rankings without draining their budget. As one of the leading marketing companies in San Diego, we offer customized and high-quality solutions for both small and large businesses all over the world. For over ten years, we have helped several organizations build a solid brand image and attract more clients using the power of the internet. If you want to know how we can boost your business’s online ranking, give us a call at 858-951-1717 today.