The good thing about SEO is that it can significantly increase organic traffic to an online store while improving targeting for conversions.
The bad thing about SEO is that it can be a little bit difficult to understand exactly which optimizations and efforts have a direct impact on any realized gains.
For instance, a search engine optimization company will perform keyword research, external and internal link-building activities, draft category page and product page copy, optimize existing blog posts or publish new ones, and improve technical SEO for a client’s site.
But it can be tough to say which successes, where realized, are attributable to which efforts.
This is one of the reasons that it’s so important to work with an eCommerce SEO services provider that is upfront, transparent, and honest.
But, before you even get there, it behooves you to look into any published eCommerce SEO case studies you can find from the SEO company you’re considering.
These are the things an eCommerce SEO case study can show you – and for which you should be on the lookout.
The Hard Data
The hard data is just that – actual metrical changes associated with user experience and behavior that show you that a given SEO strategy is working.
If you’re looking at an eCommerce SEO case study, these are some of the most important pieces of data to look through.
● Increase in organic traffic and impressions
The most important thing you need to look out for is an increase in impressions among organic search results since this is the only thing SEO can directly affect.
Look for improvements in organic keyword rankings and impressions. Then, you can scan for improvements in organic traffic, since if the keyword research was done properly, targeting should have improved too.
All of this data should be disclosed directly within the eCommerce case study you’re looking at. If it isn’t, move on.
● Changes in time on page
Increased time on page is another indicator that the targeting, by extension of keyword research, has improved.
What you want to see are modest to significant improvements in time on page, signifying either that users are consuming content on the page or that otherwise their attention has been arrested in some way or other.
● Changes in bounce and exit rate
Additionally, you want to be on the lookout for negative movements in bounce rate and exit rate – you want to see these things going down.
Lower bounce and exit rates mean that more traffic coming to the website is actually interested in the eCommerce brand or whatever they’re offering or selling.
● Conversions, transactions, revenue, and page value
Finally, look out for increases in conversions, transactions, and revenue. These are collectively the holy grail of SEO.
SEO strategies can’t force these things to improve, but ultimately, if an SEO agency targets the right keywords, those that are aligned with intent to purchase, conversions, transactions, and revenue should all increase.
Page value is another thing to look out for – if you can follow the user journey from a page with optimized content to a page where a conversion or transaction occurred, that means that the optimized content is encouraging sales, which means SEO is not only doing its job, it’s going above and beyond.
Looking for the Real Deal?
If you’re interested in looking for data in an eCommerce SEO case study that can show you the actual methodologies used by an SEO provider, and what effects they had on Google search rankings, check out Genius eCommerce online at GeniusEcommerce.com.
