10 replies to this topic

[ThingsAtHome]

I'm overhauling all my existing product listings one-by-one, partly to improve their individual SEO, but also to improve the overall site SEO to make the keyword phrases for the whole site more accurately representative.

I've plenty of keyword phrases ready to use for each product, but can anyone suggest whether I should be using, say, one or two good keyword phrases and repeating them as much as is possible without it sounding unnatural, or whether I should be using a range of several good keyword phrases once or twice only on each page?

Any and all advice much appreciated!

Charlee

[Jill]

3-5 phrases per page can work, depending on how many words you have.

You may want to watch my Lynda.com SEO Course which goes into more detail.

[ThingsAtHome]

3-5 phrases per page can work, depending on how many words you have.

You may want to watch my Lynda.com SEO Course which goes into more detail.

I've done that. It was awesome, thanks!

[ThingsAtHome]

I probably wasn't very clear. What I actually meant was, will the SEO only work if the phrases are used repeatedly on the page, or is it better form just to use the phrases once each (i.e. broader range of possible search terms, but less repetition)? My thinking was that although a broad range of phrases used only once on each page would make for better overall site SEO and higher rankings for the site as a whole, it probably isn't going to optimise any of my individual products which is, after all, what people will be searching for for me to make any sales.

[chrishirst]

What I actually meant was, will the SEO only work if the phrases are used repeatedly on the page, or is it better form just to use the phrases once each

If you were talking to a customer and telling them about a product while persuading them to buy it, would you mention the product once, or several times?

[Jill]

Check out our copywriting forum for more on that. (Or the copywriting videos from the Lynda Course.)

[ThingsAtHome]

Thanks both for the replies. I will, of course, continue checking out the copywriting articles (I have already started on them, but there is a problem with the site at the moment and none of the articles will load).

However, I did also post here hoping that someone would offer a succinct answer to my straightforward question. Is the fuzziness of answers here because there are differing opinions, or because no-one knows, or something else? I have watched - and not in a cavalier way, I made notes and everything, like at school - the entire SEO course on lynda.com, but I still didn't pick up information specific to product pages, and whether one keyword phrase repeated a lot over the page (examples below) would be more likely to rank the page well in Google than using a variety of keyword phrases identified as pertaining to that product.

Here are two examples (yes, the copywriting is dreadful; it's just a quickie example to illustrate my point).

Example 1 (repeated use of the words in the main keyword phrase):
<h1>Silicone Baking Cases</h1>
<h2>Colourful silicone cases for baking</h2>
<p>These pretty little baking cases are perfect for all kinds of cakes and home baking. Made from durable, heat-proof silicone, the cases are suitable for baking in an oven up to 300C, and the silicone will even remain cool to the touch!</p>

Example 2 (wide range of related keyword phrases):
<h1> Silicone Baking Cases</h1>
<h2>Colourful silicone muffin cups</h2>
<p>These pretty little muffin moulds are perfect for all kinds of cupcakes, muffins and home baking. Made from durable, heat-proof rubber silicone, the cupcake moulds are suitable for cooking in an oven up to 300C and will even remain cool to the touch!</p>

Finding the answer to this specific question is pretty much crucial to the success or failure of my website, because if my individual products aren't reasonably well optimised, then how great the site as a whole is won't matter.

@chrishirst - If I were talking to a customer, I would use option two from the examples above, describing the product in as many ways as possible. But that doesn't really answer my question about how it would work online in terms of SEO.

[Jill]

but I still didn't pick up information specific to product pages, and whether one keyword phrase repeated a lot over the page (examples below) would be more likely to rank the page well in Google than using a variety of keyword phrases identified as pertaining to that product.

It's because there is no one right or wrong answer.

Try different things for yourself on different pages and see which work best for you. You'll learn a lot more that way than asking for specific answers where there are none.

There are so many factors at play that you just have to do it and adjust accordingly.

[ThingsAtHome]

Okay, many thanks. I know SEO isn't an exact science (which drives me nuts, since I'm kind of an exact type of person!). So far I have done half of the listings one way, and half the other, and I figure I'll give it a few months and see which ones do best, and that should give me an idea of how to go in the future. Thanks again for your help.

[Jill]

Don't be surprised if you find they all do well (or not) or some do and some don't from each type.

[Catz]

It is important to remember that everyone will use different terms to find the same thing.

I would think the second option would do best because it would open up the page to those searching for muffin cups as well as silicone cases.

Here in America, we might search for silicone pans, muffin tins, muffin pans, cupcake pans, silicone bakewear or molds (notice we spell it differently too), they might even be called silicone liners. There are so many options to describe the same thing.

It is important to remember this when creating your product pages. Silicone is your main keyword, the rest are just possible options potential visitors might use to find a product such as yours.

As Jill mentioned, you want to play around with different terminology to see what works best in bringing in the visitors. That's what really matters most. Focusing on one particular term can sometimes be restricting. You want to show up in as many visitor searches as possible, increasing the chances surfers will find your pages in the first place.