A recently published article on some surprising SEO statistics for 2020 may have some organic search strategy implications. So what’s behind the numbers? Below, we dive into the e-commerce insights to be had.

Organic Search and Multichannel Marketing

Organic search doesn’t exist in a void, and there is a noteworthy connection between organic and paid search. But when almost 70% of online experiences start on a search engine and 53.3% of all website traffic can be traced back to organic search, it’s clear that you have to optimize your webpages for organic performance.

After all, a relevant search will influence 39% of buyers. And what does that mean? Simply put, the right search result will sway a browser’s decision to buy anywhere in the purchase funnel. The only aspect that changes is what they search for based on where they are in the funnel. Someone with the query “top 10 best bicycles” is researching products, and what they find will influence what they ultimately purchase. At the same time, someone searching “where to buy a bicycle” is ready to buy right now and they’ll make their decision based on their results.

You might find yourself thinking, why bother with anything that isn’t organic? Statistics showing that SEO as a whole leads to 1000%+ more traffic when compared to organic social media performance only cements that. What you should be thinking is ‘don’t keep all your eggs in one basket’. Every company has the perfect mix of channels that will get the results they want, whether it’s brand awareness, new customer leads or conversions, and no SEO strategy should rely completely on a single marketing channel. Google and social media platforms are constantly making changes to their features and algorithms, so they all have something to offer that shouldn’t be left on the table for your competitors.

Keyword Research

To rank well in organic search, you need reliable keyword research. You can’t just toss in “bicycles” as often as possible on your category page and call it good. When it comes down to it, you need to find keywords with the search volume and search intent your webpages are for. So, what’s the difference between those?

Search volume is just what it sounds like: how many searches a keyword sees in a month.
Search intent is what the browser on a search engine is looking for. Basically, it’s the reason they started the search in the first place.

If you put keywords on your page that have almost no search volume, you’ve got to have a strategy behind that decision. At the same time, targeting only the high-volume keywords isn’t your best bet either. When you’re looking at 60.67% of all searches coming from the 0.16% most popular keywords, you need to ask yourself if you stand a competitive chance when you’re targeting only those terms. Realistically, no website has that guarantee.

That’s where search intent comes in. If your webpage is tailored to answer a specific search query, you’ll see better SEO performance. Getting those results relies on opening your e-commerce strategy up to targeting relevant long-tail keywords. Like the title implies, these keyword phrases are usually longer because they’re more detailed. They have a smaller search volume, but they also lead to a higher conversion rate on account of matching a specific search intent very closely.

And of course, there are the numbers to prove it. Search queries that have four words or more make up 69.7% of searches, and 70.87% of keywords coming in at over 10,000 monthly searches are just one or two words. Clearly, there’s an interest in searching for longer phrases that don’t have the same heft in search volume as shorter ones do. These specific queries could be anything from “how to install an AC” to “makeup remover for sensitive skin”, but their narrower focus means less competition and a better chance of conversion for the right webpage. Using the makeup example, targeting that long-tail keyword on a page for all your makeup products would likely not even get a website visit. But if you used that keyword in a relevant blog post, product page or category page that will answer that specific query, you’d see the results you’re looking for.

First Place in the SERP

The search engine results page (SERP) is a competitive landscape, and ranking on the first page is a must. Even just the second page of results in Google only sees a paltry 0.78% of browsers clicking on a website listed there. But that doesn’t mean you’ll see immediate, sweeping results in your website ranking and expecting to will only set you up for disappointment at best or failure at worst.

Keep in mind that just 5.7% of webpages reach the top 10 results in the SERP after being live for a year, and the average webpage in those high-ranking results is at least two years old, if not more. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and your website ranking won’t be either. Make sure you set attainable goals and don’t take breaks from SEO, and you’ll get there with consistent effort guided by informed strategies.

Website Content Tips and Other Takeaways

Now that you know some growth opportunities for your website, all that’s left is to put together an SEO plan. Choose your marketing channels based on your goals, and optimize your website for search engines in any way you can.

For example, Google only displays meta descriptions in search results 37.22% of the time, which means there’s no reason to prioritize these in your SEO content calendar. But if you have no meta descriptions, that’s a missed chance to give a searcher more reason to click on your website that shows up almost 40% of the time (and that’s only more true for duplicate meta descriptions). While 25.02% of the top pages in the SERP don’t even have a meta description, so you can still rank well without one, having it can set you apart. When you’re writing them, just remember that 40.61% of webpages have their meta descriptions cut short, so you want the most important information to come first.

To stay on the cutting edge of SEO and e-commerce strategy while you excel in your own field of business, you should consider partnering with a marketing agency leading in the industry. Find out the fastest way to grow your business with a free e-commerce analysis with EXCLUSIVE.

While everyone is home due to COVID-19 and shopping online more than ever, making sure your website is SEO-ready is likely at the top of your list. But how do you go about boosting your SEO performance? This informative webinar helps you answer that question with actionable takeaways for e-commerce strategies you can use during COVID-19. Do you have some content on your website, but you know it’s not optimized as much as it can be? Has your website needed an organizational overhaul even before the pandemic? Both concerns will impact your website’s ranking, and there’s most likely other areas where you can see improved SEO results during the coronavirus.

Discover opportunities to boost your rank on the search engine results page (SERP) during COVID-19 by better understanding SEO best practices based on the current e-commerce climate, website layout and content, search engine algorithms, keyword data research and consumer search behavior — all covered in this webinar.