Tag: website seo

Does SEO feel more like a four letter word to you than a three letter abbreviation?

Look, I get it. It can seem intimidating at first, especially if you’re more of a creative at heart. It’s probably why you work in fashion, beauty, interior design, or another lifestyle-oriented field. You want your brand’s website to look good and you want the copy to tell a story. The analytical side just isn’t as fun, and that may be why your website has some missed opportunities when it comes to SEO.

The good news? It’s not as scary or hard as you think it might be, and I’m here to explain exactly why. Let’s go!

Glossary: SEO copywriting terms to know

Before I share the juicy details, let’s go over some terms that’ll make the rest of this blog easier to digest.

• Keyword. This one is pretty straightforward. We know that a keyword is another way to describe a search term, especially one that you want your brand or product to be known for, like “waterproof gold vermeil jewelry” or “men’s black corduroy baseball cap”. But I think sometimes we overlook the full context of the keyword. To understand how to best apply keywords and how to adapt them to the copy style, you’ll need to consider the customer’s journey or intent.
  
  Those super straightforward, descriptive keywords I just used? They work perfectly for product pages and descriptions, because they’re the kind of terms someone would input into a search engine when they’re in shopping mode. But if someone is in research mode? That’s when you adapt. Take the root keyword and change it to a related phrase or sentence that someone would likely be searching for, like “can you wear waterproof gold vermeil jewelry in the ocean”, and use that in a FAQ or possibly an ‘about’ page, or turn it into a blog. Maybe I’m oversimplifying it, but that’s really what SEO comes down to: making sure you’re integrating words and phrases that real people would actually search.
• Keyword stuffing. Ok, so you’ve got your keywords. Now you have to make sure you’re using them in a way that makes sense and feels organic. Keyword stuffing is the opposite of that. It’s using the keywords too much — for example, “this men’s black corduroy baseball cap is the perfect casual baseball cap to complement your everyday wardrobe. With its rich texture and timeless colour, this men’s black corduroy baseball cap easily matches any outfit. If you’re looking for your next favourite accessory, look no further than this men’s black corduroy baseball cap.” It just sounds spammy and bad.
  
  Of course, you’ll want your copy or blog content to feature your desired keyword(s) a few times so that search engines can easily find your website. But try to do it in a natural way without unnecessary repetitions.

There are even more technical terms you could research, but for the purpose of this blog we’ll move on. With this information about keywords in mind, consider all the pages and places you can improve your website’s SEO.

Home page

If your home page is mostly visuals, you may want to add a bit of extra copy to subtly squeeze some keywords in.

They don’t have to be super long — it’s understandable if you want your home page to be bold, punchy, and to the point. Consider adding in brief descriptions of every section to bulk up your keyword count and improve user experience. Of course it’s fine and helpful to have separate pages to go over sections more thoroughly, but you can’t assume that every visitor will click through to them.

Having short paragraphs that explain each section of your home page is a win-win: you’ll be able to use the copy as both an SEO opportunity and a way to explain what your brand is all about on just one page. And if you’d rather lead with visuals? All good. You can keep the bolder graphics at the top of the page, and add in copy towards the bottom.

About page

Your ‘about’ page is allowed to be more text-heavy than others. After all, it’s likely where you’re doing the most explaining — sharing your story, vision, mission, materials, etc. Use it as an opportunity to slide in helpful keywords as necessary.

Of course, there will be the general overview of your brand, like “[Brand name] is a zero-waste women’s swimwear brand.” But you can also use subsections and subheadings (as well as body copy) to insert a few extra keywords, like “swimwear made from recycled materials”, “size-inclusive swimwear”, or “full coverage women’s swimwear.”

Again, the copy doesn’t have to be super lengthy, but you really have an opportunity to make it count on an ‘about’ page.

Product pages

You might want to let the visuals do the talking, but taking the extra time to add in a product description is worth it. Online shoppers are looking for products just like yours every single day (more like every single second), so beefing up your product pages with accurate descriptions is important.

Product descriptions can be tricky because they’re so short, making keyword stuffing more obvious. You might only be able to get away with placing the right keyword in the description itself once (repeating ‘pear shaped sapphire ring’ more than once in just a few sentences probably won’t read very well), but you’ll have other opportunities within the product page.

There’s the product title, of course. Then you can add in subsections like “details”, “styling tips”, “designer notes”, and “care tips”, depending on the nature of the product. This creates a more organic way to add in extra keywords while providing value to the customer.

Collection/category descriptions

Ok, so you’ve got your individual product descriptions. But what about descriptions of the collections and/or categories they’re a part of? Whether it’s a collection that’s unique to your brand (for example, the ‘Sicilian Summer’ collection) or general product categories like tops, dresses, jackets, and pants, these blurbs are another great way to sneak in more keywords.

These descriptions are typically longer than an individual product description, but still concise. Those extra few sentences give you ample opportunity to add in products your brand is particularly well-known for (ex. ‘cashmere sweaters’ and ‘merino wool cardigans’ for a knitwear category description), as well as occasions you’d use them for (ex. everyday tote bags for work, spacious backpacks for travel).

And if you don’t want these descriptions to be super obvious? Place them at the bottom of the category page (you can even add in a drop-down function to hide more of the text), where they’ll do the work while being mostly out of sight.

FAQ

Your FAQ doesn’t just have to answer shipping and delivery questions. Use it to answer product-related questions that allow you to organically add in keywords. Things like product care tips, fit questions, and even sustainability/manufacturing questions are all great ways to beef up your FAQ.

Images

Take a look at your media library. What do your image file names look like? A random mix of letters and numbers, or real sentences that integrate keywords?

Images are an often overlooked but super easy way to add in keywords. Simply ensure your file names are strategically named with keywords. You can still use design names, just be sure to follow them up with an SEO-friendly description of what the product is. For example, “Riley halter neck floral midi dress.”

Company blog

And last but certainly not least, a company blog. Blogs are an excellent way to boost your SEO rankings, because they provide a constant stream of fresh content. Plus, you can really focus on a particular topic, allowing you to organically include the keyword several times over.

There are only so many times you can refresh your website copy — and there’s only so much SEO website copy you can write without it feeling fluffy. A blog, on the other hand? You can add a new post every day if you want to!

I’ve done deeper dives on the SEO benefits of blogging for fashion and lifestyle brands here and here, so I’ll let you explore those blogs if you want to learn more.

Essentially, every page and section on your website is a little SEO opportunity. And the more places you can sprinkle in keywords, the better your chances of ranking will be. You don’t need to go over the top — in fact, you shouldn’t. But make sure your bases are covered, and enjoy the benefits of greater visibility.

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