Marketing Strategy Of An E-Shop - Semalt Expert
A good marketing strategy is based on long-term activities aimed at meeting business goals and taking into account various marketing activities. These activities should not take place in isolation, but interpenetrate and complement each other to lead to better results.
An example of such complementarity and support is the relationship between SEO and content marketing. In short, SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is a series of activities aimed at improving visibility in organic search results.
In turn, content marketing is planned activities related to the creation of various types of content regarding the interests and needs of the target group and the subject of the industry in which the company operates.
So, keep reading this guide. Because it will shed light on how to use SEO and content marketing in the marketing strategy of an online store.
What is the difference between the basic goals of SEO and content marketing?
The basic objectives of SEO and content marketing seem to be different. However, if we take a closer look, we will notice that it is really difficult for them to work effectively without each other. The main goal of SEO is to reach people looking to satisfy their needs or solve a problem, while content marketing is mainly designed to attract customers through valuable content.
In order to achieve high positions in the Google search engine, many requirements must be met, which change from time to time. One of such major changes was the better ranking of sites rich in valuable content. Exactly! The emergence of two new algorithms has drawn the attention of positioners and marketers to content marketing. The introduction of these algorithms, the panda and the penguin, was intended to eliminate from the first pages of search results the duplicated low-quality content, usually created as a background for SEO. Their position was to be replaced by websites providing quality content, which would be easily read and shared. This is basically the case today.
You can already see here how content marketing supports building good positions in Google. But how does SEO support content marketing? First of all, it is a channel for distribution and promotion of content, it is a source of inspiration, as well as continuous improvement of once created materials.
Before we go any further, let me just remind you that content marketing is not just writing blog entries. It is a long-term strategy of marketing activities based on the regular creation of high-quality content of various formats (articles, infographics, films, e-books), which is valuable for the recipients and willingly recommended further.
What are the common goals of SEO and Content Marketing?
Summarizing the previous paragraphs, SEO and Content marketing, although they are completely different at first glance, still meet several common goals:
- educating the user by providing content (articles, infographics, films) of a kind, e.g., guidebook;
- increasing traffic on the website thanks to high positions in the Google search engine and the user's interest in the content on the website;
- building brand awareness through the presence in the Google search engine, as well as recommending the content created by other websites or readers;
- increase in conversion in the store thanks to the built trust, creating the image of an expert and satisfying the needs of the consumer.
How does content marketing support SEO in practice and vice versa?
1. Respect the main assumptions of Google's algorithms
You meet the main assumptions of Google algorithms: Panda and Penguin.
That is, creating unique and qualitative content, as I mentioned above.
2. You put your keywords on the page
In the online store, you have limited options for placing key phrases on the website so that it looks natural, both for Google and for customers. Usually, they are placed in product descriptions, however, these descriptions should be as short as possible, but also useful for a potential customer. That is why it is worth supporting yourself with various forms of content, such as infographics, videos, or fragments of longer guide-related content posted on the blog. At the same time, you provide yourself with internal linking, which I will write about in the next point.
3. You provide internal linking
Correct indexation of the store in Google requires such a website architecture and content that will allow the search engine algorithms to reach all subpages. It is possible thanks to the well-planned structure of links between the individual subpages of the store. One of the best forms of internal linking is contextual linking, i.e. links placed in texts. Users are more likely to click on such links, and Google robots treat them as more natural. Of course, if we don't overdo it with the quantity. In addition to linking between entries, it will also be a good practice to link between product pages and thematically matched subpages of a blog or a guide section in the store.
4. You make it easier to get inbound links
Inbound links, also known as external links, are another ranking factor that influences your position on Google. As the name suggests, these links direct users and Google robots from other websites to your store. It is important here, however, that you consider not only the number of external links but also their quality. By "quality links" we mean such links that are placed on popular websites related thematically with the page to which they lead. And how to get such links? The easiest way is through good content that is willingly shared and recommended by others.
5. You can position yourself on long-tail phrases
Positioning for short and general keywords is very difficult. They are popular and the competition is very fierce, because they include not only online stores, but also, among others, thematic websites or blogs. Therefore, it is becoming more and more popular to focus SEO activities on the so-called long-tail phrases, i.e. longer, less popular, and less competitive.
These phrases are also rarely searched, but they are searched by people who know exactly what they want and are more often ready to buy. In e-commerce, these phrases can even generate a significant part of traffic on the website, and according to the latest report prepared by Publicis Groupe, "the (winding) paths of the consumer in e-commerce". Thus, in many shopping categories, it is not the home page, but the product cards that start the most client paths ended with a transaction.
So, you must definitely get serious about keyword research by using the appropriate SEO tools such as the Dedicated SEO Dashboard. Indeed, this tool can help you have a list of relevant keywords to increase traffic to your site. This will save you time and money on promotion.
6. You increase your website time
Good-quality, useful and interesting contents make them readily available. Users do not leave the page immediately after entering it, scrolling down, and also going to other subpages thanks to properly planned internal linking. For Google, this is clear information that this website cares about the content published on it that meets the expectations of users and so, it is worth showing these pages first in search results.
7. You are constantly getting new ideas
Website positioning is based on keywords or key phrases. Because they require constant monitoring: what is their position, what is their competitiveness, whether new potentially attractive phrases have appeared, at the same time you constantly receive inspiration to create content as part of your marketing activities.
8. High positions in Google make it easier to reach the content you create
Even the best content needs promotion. Thanks to positioning, you have a chance to reach new people who will come to your website from a search engine (or from other websites thanks to e.g., link building) with a specific need.
What should be improved in the content on the page to meet Google's requirements?
- improve low-quality content in the store;
- make changes to duplicate content;
- optimize product descriptions if you copied them from manufacturers' websites;
- make sure that the content on the page is not repackaged with keywords;
- position your store on long-tail phrases;
- improve your link profile;
- remove outbound links to spammy looking sites;
- check what links direct to your store and block those from suspicious sites;
- do not get links at any cost;
- link between pages on the site;
- create advisory and useful expert content for customers and readers;
- diversify the forms of content you create;
- do not forget about the promotion of content and its distribution, among others, on social media.
How does the synergy between SEO and Content marketing translate into conversions?
First of all, by meeting the requirements of Google's algorithms, you have a chance to appear higher in search results than your competitors and attract more customers.
Additionally, by creating content that answers potential customers' questions and dispels their objections, you increase the likelihood that they will make a transaction.
The customers themselves will also come back to you if you show them that you keep them informed and that you help them, not just sell. You can also use educational or inspirational content pages as landing pages for social media ads. It is true that you extend the purchase funnel, but you encourage the transaction more gently. And as you know, first impressions always matter.
It is therefore impossible to hide the strong relationship between SEO and content marketing. Therefore, a well-thought-out strategy taking into account this link can bring really good results. This applies to both the implementation of the goals that we set for SEO or content marketing itself, as well as goals related strictly to conversion and revenues in the store.
If you need to learn more about the subject of SEO and website promotion, we invite you to visit our Semalt blog.