Shopify SEO – Setting Up Your Store for SEO Success

Shopify is a powerful eCommerce platform, empowering individuals and businesses to effortlessly create and manage online stores. Yet, having a Shopify store doesn’t guarantee success. In today’s fiercely competitive online landscape, being discovered by your target audience is crucial. That’s where optimizing your Shopify SEO becomes pivotal, significantly enhancing your store’s visibility on Google and attracting high-intent buyers.

What is Shopify SEO?

Shopify Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the linchpin for improving your online store’s visibility in Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs) and attracting more organic traffic. Without it, your store risks drowning in a sea of competitors.

Fortunately, Shopify doesn’t leave you adrift; it offers a suite of built-in SEO features and options to simplify the optimization process, catering even to non-SEO experts.

The ultimate goal of Shopify SEO is to drive organic traffic, attract potential customers, and boost sales. As you climb the search engine rankings, your online store becomes more accessible to high-intent buyers actively seeking the products or services you provide. In the following sections, we’ll delve deeper into how you can master the art of Shopify SEO and ensure your eCommerce venture thrives in the digital world.

Benefits of Shopify SEO

Increased organic traffic

Optimising your Shopify store for search engines leads to increased organic traffic. When your store ranks higher in search results, more potential customers will find their way to your site. This means more visitors who are actively looking for products or services like yours. Not only this, but organic traffic from SEO is an extremely cost-effective way to attract visitors, reducing the need for expensive advertising campaigns.

Improved user experience

Shopify SEO doesn’t just benefit search engines; it also enhances the user experience. By making your site more search engine-friendly, you’re also making it more user-friendly. This can lead to longer visitor sessions, lower bounce rates, and higher engagement, ultimately improving your site’s conversion rates.

Increased sales and revenue

At the end of the day, the goal of every e-commerce business is to generate sales and revenue. Effective Shopify SEO can have a direct impact on your bottom line. Higher rankings lead to more visibility, which, in turn, can result in increased sales and revenue for your business as targeted traffic is more likely to convert into customers.

Common mistakes by shop owners

Before we dive into our Shopify SEO tips, it’s good to understand the common mistakes that many e-commerce business owners make when it comes to their store’s SEO. By being aware of these pitfalls, you can avoid them and set your store on the path to success.

• Neglecting Keyword Research: Failing to understand your target audience’s search behaviour and preferences can result in ineffective keyword usage.
• Ignoring Technical SEO: Technical aspects like site speed, mobile-friendliness, and URL structure are often overlooked but play a critical role in SEO.
• Duplicate Content: Using duplicate product descriptions or meta tags can lead to penalties from search engines.
• Neglecting Local SEO: For businesses with physical locations, not optimising for local search can mean missing out on a significant customer base.
• Lack of Quality Content: High-quality, informative content is essential for SEO success. Poorly written or generic content can deter users.
• Inadequate Backlink Building: Neglecting link-building strategies can hinder your website’s authority and rankings.

Overall, effective SEO requires both mastery of technical SEO and a deep understanding of your buyers’ psychology and shopping behaviour.

6 SEO Tips to Rank Higher

Now, the moment you’ve been waiting for—the six best SEO tips to help you skyrocket your Shopify ranking:

1. Keyword research:

Keyword research stands as the cornerstone of SEO success in any comprehensive Shopify guide. But how can you identify the keywords that will genuinely drive traffic to your online store?

Tools such as ‘Google Keyword Planner’ are a great help in simplifying keyword research. This tool offers two crucial functions: “Discover new keywords” and “Get search volume and forecasts.”

For a fresh batch of keyword ideas, “Discover new keywords” is your go-to. Begin by entering a seed keyword, like ‘waterproof’, specify your target criteria, and click “Get Results.” You should have a list of keyword options and their ranking.

From this list, identify the top three keywords that best align with your content. Prioritise those with high average monthly searches to maximise visibility and reach. Armed with your refined keyword list, you’re ready to optimise your store’s pages and aim for a high ranking on search engines.

Remember, while digital tools are valuable, they’re not the sole solution. You can conduct your own research by examining competitors’ metadata on Google, exploring industry-specific hashtags, and empathising with your buyers to anticipate the search terms they might use to find your product.

2. Keyword optimisation

Now that you’ve got your list of keywords, the next step is to optimise your Shopify store’s pages using these recognised keywords consistently throughout. We recommend choosing a primary keyword and the following 2 secondary keywords.

Kick off by focusing on your key pages, with priority given to your homepage, primary product collections, and best-selling product pages. We’re talking about the pages that bring in the most revenue and boast the highest conversion rates.

Start by optimising your collection pages by editing the following information with your keywords: Title, Text, Meta Title and Meta Description, and finally remember to make changes to your URL towards the bottom.

To find collection pages go to Products > Collections

Follow a similar approach for optimising your product pages with one minor adjustment… ‘Alt Text’ for Images.

Alt text is the text description of the image on your site and holds immense sway over your site’s ranking. This is due to search engines being unable to verify what an image is, and so needs your description to be able to rank it.

Click on the image in the product page editor > Edit Alt Text

Here you can provide a descriptive alt text for each image with your targeted keywords included. Ensure that both the keyword and image content are matching. Create unique alt text for each product image to prevent duplicate content.

3. High-Quality Content:

Consistently updating your Shopify store with fresh, high-quality content is pivotal for SEO success. Search engines reward active, up-to-date websites.

One effective approach is to create monthly blog posts, incorporating your target keywords. This keeps your site engaging and relevant while enhancing your search engine ranking. Ensuring that these keywords also appear in your meta descriptions further boosts your SEO efforts.

4. Site Speed and Performance

A fast-loading site ensures easy accessibility and a frustration-free journey for your visitors, leading to extended time spent on your platform and increased opportunities for conversion.

To enhance your Shopify store’s performance and boost its speed, consider the following strategies:

1. Opt for a responsive theme designed for quick loading, especially on mobile devices.
2. Choose smaller, optimised images that maintain quality while reducing loading times.
3. Avoid the use of image sliders, which can be a common culprit in slowing down page load times.

5. Update Shopify store generally

Ensure that your store is accurately named and features the correct homepage description.

Online Store” > Preferences > Edit the homepage title (ensuring it matches the title tag on other pages) incorporating relevant keywords.

TIP: Include a compelling Call to Action (CTA) in these descriptions, as it encourages users to click through to your website when they encounter your listings in search results.

 

6. Technical SEO

Site maps and verifications are two ways in which you can improve your store’s technical SEO.

When you verify your site with Google you prove to Google that you own the site.

Go to the Google Search Console webpage > Login > Domain (use when you have a third party domain that hasn’t been transferred to Shopify) / URL prefix (use if you have a domain purchased through Shopify, include ‘https://’ when entering URL) > HTML tag > Copy meta tag >

Go to Shopify admin page > Online store > Live theme > Actions > Edit code > Click ‘theme.liquid’ > Find ‘’ in the code > Paste the meta tag directly beneath > Click save

Back on Google Search Console > Click verify > If your site was verified successfully you will see a pop up stating ‘Ownership verified’ > Click Go to property in order to see your Google Search Console dashboard (keep this open for the following steps)

Now, let’s submit your sitemap. Submitting a sitemap to Google Search Console helps Google crawl and index valuable pages on your store, helping customers to find your store more easily.

Open your Google Search Console dashboard > Sitemaps > Add a new sitemap > Enter sitemap.xml > Click submit

If any errors pop up click the arrow to see further information about the error and use the link in the description to use Google Search Console help, here you can troubleshoot any errors

By dedicating time to implement SEO across your site, you’re laying a strong foundation for your eCommerce store, ensuring it stands out and garners attention in the online world.

Why use an agency for Shopify SEO?

While these tips can significantly boost your Shopify page visibility, in a dynamic arena marked by continually shifting trends and algorithm updates, seeking expert guidance ensures that your eCommerce store not only stays ahead of the curve but also thrives. So, whether you’re just starting or seeking to enhance your existing Shopify SEO, you should consider the benefits of consulting with professionals for sustained success.

Final Thoughts

Neglecting Shopify SEO is a missed opportunity for e-commerce businesses. By understanding what Shopify SEO is, the benefits it offers, common mistakes to avoid, and implementing our top six SEO tips, you can improve your store’s search rankings and attract high-intent buyers.