Getting the most out of Shopify and SEO optimization is frequently a confusing mess of misunderstandings, mistakes and outright mistruths about the process. Will Lynch, of the UK Shopify strategy firm Underwater Pistol, helps to demystify the SEO experience with some tips and tricks to keep you out of the quagmire, and get your shop noticed without any unnecessary hassle.
Myth: “SEO optimization on Shopify takes too long, it’s easier and cheaper to work around it myself for faster results”
Fact: Shopify is built to be robust, not for speed of SEO spread. When millions of customers try to use the system at once, it will maintain and thrive, rather than collapsing under the weight and traffic. Having a safe and stable marketplace is more important than getting your brand out there at a pace that matches your expectations. As well, don’t try to do SEO optimization yourself, as we mentioned in previous episodes, optimization in an incredibly complex process that requires more time and attention than you have. Hire professionals, and trust in their campaigns.
Myth: “Images should be as small as possible to work on all devices, and never use video, they won’t load quickly for customers”
Fact: You should be targeting your multimedia based only on what your traffic analytics are telling you. Don’t assume who you viewers and audience are, check the data, and tailor it around their activity. If they seem to only interact with your smallest quality static images on mobile platforms, then go small, if they’re watching videos on desktops, go big.
Myth: “An image is an image, it’ll look good regardless”
Fact: you have to put the time into resizing and standardizing everything if you want to put your best foot forward. Don’t waste the data you are constantly gathering about how your brand is performing online, integrate as much of its lessons as you can, and stick to it once you’ve developed a personal standard.
Myth: “We don’t cater to disabled consumers, we don’t need alt-text or specific image names”
Fact: Google traffic works with far more details than just the buzzwords you use in posts or hashtags; even the very names of images you upload can increase your search results via strategic keywords, and including alt-text tags on images not only allows your brand to be more progressive ad helpful to those who are visually impaired, but also increase the number of SEO-vectors for those online to come across your store.
Myth: “I sell a product, I’m not a blogger, I don’t need to be posting articles or comments”
Fact: Every post associating your store, brand or product will increase your traffic, even if just by a few hits. Talk about great ways to use your products, stories of why you enjoy them yourself, talk about where they come from, their history as an item, or where you sourced them. This will not only engage your consumers with your brand, but every searchable instance mentioned will act to increase your traffic flow.
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