Secret SEO Strategy For Recurring E-commerce Events, Seasonal Sales, & Pop-Store

If, as an e-commerce store owner, you are struggling to get traffic on your site or are not ranking higher on search results during the holiday season, then you are not alone.

We have noticed many store owners are trying to improve their SEO during the sales season but have not seen much luck, and if you are one of them, leave your worries as we have a helpful resource for you. 🎉

The SEO approach during seasonal sales is different from doing SEO during normal days. You will need to put a little more effort into your strategy and execute them to make the most out of the high-demand period. And ignoring SEO during this time can be the biggest mistake ever for an E-commerce owner.

With the help of our E-commerce SEO experts, we have created a guide on SEO Strategy For Recurring E-commerce Events, Seasonal Sales, & Pop-Store that will give you actionable steps to attract the right audience to your store and improve your visibility during these busy hours. We highly recommend you to keep reading our guide till the very end and get a clear idea on:

• Understanding Recurring eCommerce Events
• Preparing an Effective SEO Strategy for Recurring eCommerce Events
• Leveraging Seasonal Sales for SEO Success
• Tips for Nailing SEO During Seasonal Sales
• Unveiling the Power of Pop-Up Stores
• Enhancing SEO for Pop-Up Stores: Best Practices

Understanding Recurring eCommerce Events

Every shopper, including us, waits for recurring e-commerce events. They are events that happen regularly and are widely popular in the market. User engagement is very high during this time, and the shoppers are actively looking to make purchases that fit their box.

Black Friday and Cyber Monday, Prime Day, Anniversary, and Flash sales are good examples of recurring e-commerce events. As an E-commerce store owner, you can’t miss out on promoting your brand during this time as there are maximum possibilities of selling more items than any other time of the month.

Your SEO strategy also needs to be quite powerful during this time as there are many e-commerce store owners like you trying to rank higher and get capture the shopper’s interest.

Preparing an Effective SEO Strategy for Recurring eCommerce Events

1. Setting clear goals and objectives

Setting a clear goal and objective is essential to carry out the entire campaign effectively and successfully. When you are moving with a specific goal in mind you can make decisions based on the end goal instead of taking any decision in haste.

Here your goal definitely is to have more sales and sell more items from your store. Some other goals which you can keep in mind are:

• Set a goal to acquire X number of new customers.
• Aim to improve customer engagement on your social media platforms.
• Try to increase your customer retention rate.

2. Conducting thorough keyword research and analysis

Your keyword research and analysis are a very critical part of your planning process. Based on your keyword research you can easily plan your content strategy mindfully.

Start with listing down the seed keyword and refine the process of finding the focus keyword based on volume, relevance, keyword difficulty, and more. We recommend using tools like Ahrefs or Semrush while conducting your analysis.

These tools are power-packed with information about a particular keyword and other keywords surrounding it. Let’s do a small activity using Semrush’s keyword overview feature.  Here we have entered our seed keyword as cat food. 

 

In the first fold of the result, we get information about the volume, keyword intent, and ads cost.  As we scroll down, there is a goldmine waiting there. Here, you will find different variations for your keyword that you can sprinkle while writing your product description.

 

 

And furthermore, you can do a SERP analysis based on the keyword you have entered and see how other pages are ranking for it.

We have just touched the surface of this tool, as you big deeper and deeper you can get perfect keywords that can help you bring the needed traffic to your site.

3. Optimizing website structure and navigation

Here offering smooth navigation is extremely important because if your shoppers find even a little inconvenience while scrolling through your site they will instantly leave and find other sites.

Good page navigation is a must for shoppers to have a positive user experience. 38% of consumers go through the page layout and other navigational links when they land on the website for the first time.

The better the navigation on your site, the more time your shoppers would like to spend on your site. Carefully plan your page’s hierarchy, keeping flexibility in mind.

Image source 

A visual representation, like this, will help you see and analyze ways you can hold your shopper’s attention for longer. And areas of losing them in the journey. You can also use tools like Hotjar to analyze how your shoppers are communicating with your site and make changes as needed.

4. Creating compelling and SEO-friendly landing pages

Your landing page is your online salesperson that not only communicates your offer but also encourages your shoppers to make a purchase. Creating SEO-friendly landing pages helps to drive relevant traffic and maximize your conversion rate. Here are some best practices while SEO-friendly landing pages.

• Don’t use too many CTAs: When they are too many CTAs involved, your shoppers might get confused about what action should they take. One or two clear CTA buttons are enough to encourage them to take action.

• Avoid creating duplicate pages and content: Duplicate pages and duplicate content will not only affect your shopper’s experience but can do serious harm to your SEO. Since there will be multiple similar URLs, it will be hard for search engines to rank the one with maximum relevance. At times, the search engine can also penalize your page for using duplicate content.

• Include social proofs: Social proofs are a great way to build authentic relationships with your shoppers. You can use the power of social proof by creating testimonials, sharing product reviews, and rating to win the trust of your shoppers.

• Write well-optimized product descriptions: Get fun and creative while writing your product description and highlight the key factors of your product. It is a good practice of including your keyword here (please avoid stuffing keywords).

5. Leveraging customer reviews and testimonials for SEO

You can use your customer reviews and testimonials to your full advantage. Each review can add new relevance to your site, which even the search engines love. You can encourage your customers to leave detailed reviews about your product or service.

You can dedicate a section on your website for reviews or send emails asking for the customer’s feedback.

Your customer reviews can also help you analyze the language and tone of your customer. You can see the keywords they use and the emotions they express while purchasing your product. And if it is a positive one, you can definitely implement it in your content.

6. Monitoring and measuring SEO performance during recurring events

Analyze your SEO performance to know if your efforts are moving in the right direction or not. On a weekly basis, you can monitor your activities and see if the efforts are getting you results. Some of the key metrics to consider are:

• Conversion rate
• New Users
• CTR (Click-Through-Rate)
• Traffic on site

Leveraging Seasonal Sales for SEO Success

Seasonal sale is a golden opportunity to turn a few months of efforts into a profitable year. As the name suggests, seasonal sales are the ones that are available once or twice a year with good discounts and deals that a shopper wouldn’t like to miss. Holiday sales, Back-to-school, or even summer sales are good examples of seasonal sales.

Here, even the shoppers are looking for discounts and offers from various e-commerce owners. This makes it essential for you to build and implement a powerful SEO to rank higher than the other players.

Here are a handful of SEO strategies to maximize your visibility during seasonal sales.

1. Keyword research and optimization

Conducting in-depth keyword research should be your first focus while optimizing your store for better SEO. In SEO for E-commerce, your goal should be to pick keywords with transactional intent instead of informational keywords. Not sure what transactional intent is?

Here is our complete guide for you: What is search intent?

Just to give you an idea of transactional intent. A transactional intent is where the shoppers are directly looking to buy a product. For example – Coffee cups

 

Here the shopper’s intent is pretty clear they want to buy coffee cups, and the search results are completely satisfying the search queries. We recommend you have a quick rundown on which keywords you are targeting and align your efforts accordingly.

Ranking for the wrong keyword becomes futile after a point, as it will not help to convert the traffic into paid customers.

Also, keep your eyes fixed on your competitors and see which keywords they are targeting that you might have missed. Or if they have missed a certain keyword and you can get that competitive advantage. Either way, it will be a win for you.

2. Content creation and promotion

Based on your keyword research, create your content resources. Keep your focus keyword in mind while creating any content material. We are not saying to stuff keywords anywhere in your content, but keep your intent in mind.

And after creating your content, you can move ahead with promoting it on the desired platform and especially on channels that bring you the maximum traffic. You can use Google Analytics to know the high-performing channels for you.

3. On-page SEO techniques

You can’t miss on-page optimization even during any seasonal sales. The search engines stay alert, taking on-page activities seriously with or without any sale or discount. Here are some on-page SEO techniques you need to work on.

• Analyze your page content: Scroll through your store’s page and see if there is any piece of content that is old that your shoppers might not find relevant. Also, look for opportunities to refine your content as per your latest offer.
• Title: Carefully check if you have added the focus keyword in your title without extending the character limit.
• Meta description: We recommend keeping your meta description crisp and direct without beating around the brush. Ensure your focus keyword is present here, too.
• Internal & external links: If you have added any internal or external links, ensure the links are correct with proper anchor text. Also, there are no broken links.
• Schema Markups: Schema markups are a way to help search engines access the extra information on your site, which can help to improve your ranking. Based on the content pieces available, add the schema accordingly. You can add FAQ schema, video schema, and more.

4. Link-building strategies

Creating successful link-building strategies helps to create sustainable results. A clear strategy can be a roadmap during the seasonal sale period to keep your focus on the much-needed task. Here are a few ways you can build an impactful link-building strategy.

• Analyze your audience: Understanding your audience will help you understand their liking and preference, telling you the kind of sites they like to visit regularly.
• Analyze your competitor’s links: Competitors are like friends who speak in silence. All you need to do is understand them. You can analyze your competitor’s link using tools like Semrush or Ahrefs and know the kind of sites they are targeting and how their approach differs from yours.
• Target-specific pages: You can list down the site you found in your research and study them carefully to know the areas where you can place your content based on different anchors or share your expertise via a guest post.
• Conduct outreach: Outreaches are the most effective way to exchange links. But do make sure while conducting your outreach you are offering valuable exchange in return to make it ideal for both parties.

5. Social media integration

Shoppers are most active during sale season on their favorite social media platforms. You can grab their attention and increase the visibility of your store. Social media is also a great way to interact with loyal customers who follow your brand for a long time. Here are a few things you can do to leverage your social media during seasonal sales:

• Create theme-based posts to create a buzz about your sale. You can also use specific hashtags to make your offer much more exclusive.
• Build an online community to bring like-minded shoppers together. You can keep rolling out updates about your new store or about new stock.
• Use key social media features to keep communication going. For example, Instagram stories, Instagram Reel, Facebook stories, tweets, and more.
• Optimize your personal social media accounts. Shoppers like to know about the owner and know a little about the brand they are buying from.

Tips for Nailing SEO During Seasonal Sales

1. Creating seasonal landing pages and optimizing their content

Creating a separate landing page helps to turn your visitors into customers. Many store owners specially design such pages during seasonal sales to capture the traffic and turn them into customers. Creating a landing page is different from creating a product page. Here the focus is to promote your offer as much as possible. Here are some effective tips while creating a landing page.

• Make your landing page stand out from the rest of the pages in terms of design, content, and structure.
• Keep your communication clear and direct.
• Display your offer prominently on your landing page. The most common places to display the offer are banner images, the header of your page, and also create interactive pop-ups.
• Use strong and action-driven CTAs.

2. Targeting long-tail keywords specific to seasonal sales

A long-tail keyword is a little longer (3 to 4 words long) than a normal keyword. They have a lower search volume, less competition, and are very specific to the shoppers’ needs. For example, white sneakers without lace keyword is more specific to just white sneakers, which helps you to know what the shopper has in mind while shopping online. The simple way to find long-tail keywords is by using Google auto-suggest. Just start typing your focus keywords, and you will see different variations there.

 

Here you can also check the end-of-the-page results.

 

3. Optimizing website speed and mobile responsiveness

Website speed is a prominent ranking factor. Slow website speed can significantly lower your ranking on the search results. Therefore, you must optimize your landing page to load faster when a visitor clicks on your store. Make a powerful ultimate checklist for your landing page optimization to increase conversion rate.

While working on the website speed, don’t forget to optimize for your mobile devices. 48% of searches are happening using mobile in the retail section. You would not like to miss out on the shoppers coming to your site from these mobile devices.

You can use Google’s PageSpeed Insights to know if your site has good speed and also check your mobile speed. If the speed is not up to the mark, you can implement the changes suggested by them.

4. Utilizing email marketing campaigns for SEO benefits

Email marketing may seem like a traditional marketing technique, but it is still an effective one. It might seem like email marketing doesn’t have a direct relationship with SEO, but it can help to strengthen your off-page SEO. You can encourage your subscribers or shoppers to share about your brand on social media platforms to spread the word. And connect with link-builders to get quality backlinks to your site.

Unveiling the Power of Pop-Up Stores

Pop-up stores (also called pop-up shops) are stores that appear for a limited time with offers and discounts. Pop-up shops are mostly physical stores that allow store owners to test their brand in the market without any purchase or commitment.

As times are changing, pop-up shops are also raising in the form of a website, landing pages, and even on social media platforms. Considering the nature of these stores, your SEO approach needs to be a little different from the normal one. Here are some best SEO practices for your pop-up store.

1. Local SEO optimization

Optimize your store for local SEO to capture the attention of the local shoppers in the area. In local SEO, you focus on improving your online visibility for local search results. Search engines highly rely on local content, social media profile, and links to rank local brands.

2. Creating dedicated landing pages

As we mentioned above creating a dedicated landing page helps attract shoppers to your store and enjoy the total benefits a landing page can yield than a general product page.

3. Utilizing Google My Business

Completely optimize your Google My Business page from top to bottom. An incomplete business profile will not communicate complete information about your store to your shoppers and leave them with unclear information. It might also make your brand look unprofessional.

 

Image source: Wordstream

4. Leveraging influencer marketing

Influencer marketing is a popular way of interacting with local shoppers. Connect with influencers in your market and promote your brand by working with influencers and personalities that your shoppers love, and attract more shoppers to your store. The best part about influencer marketing is that they can promote your brand in a unique and creative way. Bringing out the best ideas for your products.

5. Encouraging user-generated content

Using user-generated content for your pop-up store can be the best content marketing strategy that you can adopt. UGC is content created by your customers that can be useful to build trust among other shoppers. The content can be in the following formats, videos, images, reviews, testimonials, and more.

Enhancing SEO for Pop-Up Stores: Best Practices

1. Conducting local keyword research and optimization

Check the keywords you are targeting for your pop-up store based on your geographical location.  Based on your keyword research and optimization develop content that serves the needs of the local audience. You can create blog posts, articles, and even guides in nearby landmarks making it easier for them to find you.

2. Ensuring consistent NAP (name, address, phone number) information across platforms

Make sure your information is constant across different platforms like Name, Address, and Phone number to avoid any confusion in the mind of your shoppers. Try to only keep a single phone number, as it can not only confuse your shoppers but also search engines.

3. Implementing schema markup for local businesses

Including a schema markup is one of the most effective ways to communicate with search engines and pass quality information about your store. The different types of schema markup you can add for your local businesses are Review rich results schema, Breadcrumb rich results schema, Sitelink Rich Results schema, FAQ schema, and more.

4. Leveraging Google My Business features effectively

This can be an effective step to win your customer’s trust while they scroll through your profile on social profiles. Some key features that you must focus on are claiming and verifying your listing, adding appealing visuals, encouraging and responding to reviews, utilize Google posts. Provide frequently asked questions (FAQs), Utilize booking and appointment features.

5. Promoting pop-up stores through social media and local directories

Improve the popularity of your local store by connecting with local directories and link-builder. You can run local ads targeting specific areas.

6. Measuring and analyzing SEO performance for pop-up stores

Measure the performance of your store will take you a long way, and help you make more data-driven decisions.

Conclusion

And with this, we have come to the end of this guide. Now you have a clear idea of SEO strategy for recurring E-commerce events, seasonal sales & pop-store. You can instantly put them into action and start noticing changes in your store’s performance. If you get stuck anywhere in this process, share your questions/doubts in the comment section, and our e-commerce store experts will be here to guide you.

We hope this guide helped. Thank you for reading!