E-commerce SEO
E-commerce SEO that helps shoppers find your products in search
Online shops face SEO problems that brochure sites rarely see: large numbers of similar product pages, filters that generate endless URLs and stock that changes constantly. Our e-commerce SEO is built around those challenges, from category structure to product markup and free listings on Google.
- Category pages built to compete
- Faceted navigation kept under control
- Product schema and Merchant Center support
01 Overview
Why online shops need a different approach
In most stores, category pages compete for the broad searches and product pages for the specific ones. E-commerce SEO is about making sure each type of page does its job well.
Structure comes first. A clear hierarchy from homepage to categories, subcategories and products helps search engines understand your range and spreads internal authority to the pages that need it. Faceted navigation is where many stores run into trouble. Filters for size, colour, price and brand are useful to shoppers, but each combination can create a new URL, and left unmanaged they can produce thousands of thin, duplicate pages. We decide which filtered views deserve to be indexable landing pages, because people search for them, and keep the rest out with canonicals, noindex or crawl controls.
Category pages usually target the most valuable searches, such as "women's walking boots" rather than one specific model, so they need more than a grid of products. A short, useful introduction, clear headings, helpful filters and links to related categories and buying guides all strengthen them. Product pages need unique descriptions rather than manufacturer copy shared by every other retailer, along with clear specifications, good images with descriptive alt text and customer reviews. We also set rules for out-of-stock and discontinued products, so those URLs do not lose visibility unnecessarily.
Structured data helps search engines read product information accurately. Product markup with Offer details for price, currency and availability can make pages eligible for richer results, and review markup is appropriate where it reflects genuine customer reviews shown on the page. Separately, Google Merchant Center lets you submit a product feed that can make items eligible for free listings across Google, including the Shopping tab. Eligibility does not guarantee placement, but an accurate feed is a sensible extra channel. Our technical SEO work covers the store-specific crawl and speed issues behind all of this.
Content gives a store depth that product listings alone cannot. Buying guides, comparisons and care advice answer the questions shoppers ask before they are ready to buy, and link naturally to the relevant categories. Planned properly with keyword research, this content reaches people earlier in their search and builds the topical relevance that helps category pages compete. It also gives you something genuinely useful to share and to earn links with, which is far harder to do with product pages.
02 Benefits
What a well-optimised store can gain
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01
Category pages that compete
Strengthened category pages give you a realistic chance of ranking for broader, higher-value searches that individual product pages are rarely able to win on their own.
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02
Crawling focused on the right URLs
Controlling filter and parameter URLs means search engines spend their time on the categories and products you want indexed, rather than endless combinations of sort orders and filters.
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03
Richer search listings
Accurate Product and Offer markup can make your pages eligible to show price, availability and review information in search results, helping your listings stand out against other retailers.
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04
Another route through free listings
A well-maintained Merchant Center feed can make products eligible for free listings across Google, adding another way for shoppers to find your range without paying for every click.
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05
Less dependence on marketplaces
Organic traffic to your own store builds over time and carries no commission or cost per click, helping to balance channels such as paid shopping ads and third-party marketplaces.
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06
Content that supports buying decisions
Buying guides and helpful category copy answer pre-purchase questions on your own site, keeping shoppers with you rather than sending them elsewhere to do their research.
03 What is included
What our e-commerce SEO service includes
We work with common platforms such as Shopify, WooCommerce and Adobe Commerce as well as custom builds, adapting recommendations to what each platform allows.
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Store architecture review
Analysis of your category hierarchy, URL structure, navigation and internal linking, with recommendations to make important categories easier to reach and understand.
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Faceted navigation strategy
Rules for which filter combinations should be indexable landing pages and which should be canonicalised, noindexed or kept from crawling, based on real search demand.
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Category page optimisation
Titles, headings, introductory copy, internal links and filter presentation improved on priority categories, written to help shoppers rather than pad the page with keywords.
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Product page optimisation
Templates and priority products reviewed for unique descriptions, titles, specifications, image alt text and review display, plus handling for out-of-stock and discontinued items.
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Product structured data
Product, Offer and review markup implemented or corrected in JSON-LD, validated against Google's requirements and checked against what is visible on each page.
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Merchant Center and feed checks
A review of your Google Merchant Center set-up and product feed for errors, disapprovals and missing attributes, with guidance on keeping feed data aligned with your site.
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Store technical audit
Checks for duplicate product URLs, pagination, parameter handling, internal site search pages, category template speed and indexing of key ranges, tailored to your platform.
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Buying guides and category content
Planning and writing guides, comparisons and supporting content that answer shopper questions and link through to the categories and products they relate to.
04 Process
How we approach e-commerce SEO
Every engagement starts with understanding your goals and the current state of your search presence. No templated packages.
Start with a free audit-
01
Understand the catalogue
We look at your range, margins and seasonal patterns to identify the categories and products that matter most commercially, so effort goes where organic sales would make the biggest difference.
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02
Audit the store
A crawl and Search Console review shows how filters, parameters, pagination and product variants are handled, and which categories and products are indexed, excluded or competing with each other.
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03
Fix structure and indexing
Faceted navigation rules, canonicals, internal links and structured data are corrected first, because page-level optimisation has limited effect while the store is sending mixed signals.
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04
Optimise priority pages
Key categories and best-selling products are improved in batches, starting with those that already have impressions, then rolled out across templates so improvements scale through the catalogue.
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05
Grow content and visibility
Buying guides, seasonal content and feed improvements extend your reach. Monthly reporting tracks organic revenue, category visibility and indexing health, not just rankings, so you can judge the work by sales.
05 Who it is for
Stores that benefit from e-commerce SEO
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Scenario 01
An independent shop selling online
A retailer with a physical shop, perhaps on the Fylde Coast, that also sells online and wants its website to win searches nationally rather than relying on local footfall and seasonal visitors.
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Scenario 02
A store with filters out of control
An online shop where Search Console reports far more indexed or excluded URLs than it has products, a common sign that filter, sort and parameter pages are being crawled unchecked.
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Scenario 03
A retailer using supplier descriptions
A business stocking the same products as many competitors and using supplier copy word for word, which gives search engines very little reason to rank its pages ahead of anyone else's.
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Scenario 04
A store changing platform
A shop migrating from one e-commerce platform to another, which needs careful URL mapping, redirect planning and structured data checks to protect the category and product visibility it has already built up.
FAQ
E-commerce SEO questions, answered
Still have a question? Call +44 20 8686 4577 or send us a message.
For most stores, category pages offer the bigger opportunity because they target broader searches with more demand and stay live as individual products come and go. Product pages matter for specific, high-intent searches such as model numbers. A good e-commerce strategy improves both, but category structure and content usually come first.
If the product is coming back, keep the page live, show it as out of stock in your markup and suggest alternatives. If it is permanently discontinued, redirect it to the closest equivalent product or category where one genuinely exists, or let it return a 404 or 410 if nothing suitable is available. The right choice depends on whether the page has links or traffic worth keeping.
Yes, for products, as long as the reviews are genuine, come from real customers and are visible on the same page as the markup. Google's guidelines do not allow review markup for content that is hidden from shoppers or copied from other websites. The ratings in your markup should always match what visitors can see on the page.
For most online stores they are worth considering. Submitting an accurate product feed through Merchant Center can make your products eligible for free listings across Google, including the Shopping tab. Placement is not guaranteed and depends on Google's systems, but a clean feed is relatively low effort and the same feed can support paid shopping campaigns later.
Ideally for your most important products, yes. Copying manufacturer descriptions means your page says exactly what many other retailers say, which gives search engines little reason to choose yours. For large catalogues, we prioritise best sellers and high-margin lines first, and improve templates so every product page includes some useful unique elements.
Rankings are only part of it. We look at organic revenue and transactions in analytics where tracking allows, alongside organic clicks to category and product pages, the number of products indexed and Merchant Center performance. Tying results to sales rather than traffic alone makes it easier to judge whether the work is worth the investment.
Keep exploring
Related SEO services
Free SEO audit
See your store the way Google does
Start with a free SEO audit of your shop. We will flag indexing, structure and product page issues and suggest the changes most likely to help.
- Speak to an SEO expert+44 20 8686 4577
- Emailhello@telsamedia.com
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