7 replies to this topic

[MidnightRider]

Hello! I hope everyone is well today.

I had a question. I am working on a website relaunch and I was wondering if it is so necessary to re-structure the URL's to include keywords in it.

The current situation is as follows:

A skin care e-commerce company that has been around for 30 years (Not online for 30 years... 15 years online) has the current structure: www.skincarecompanybarandname.com/product-name

The skin care company brand name does not have the keyword "skin care" in it at all. It would be like [Sephora] for example.

So a product name could be [hydrating 8 step mask] or [B-Zone] This would be the current structure URL: www.skincarecompanybarandname.com/b-zone

My question is...

should I re-do the structure and include the following:

www.brandname.com/categoryname/productname OR www.skincarecompanybarandname.com/combination-skin/b-zone

This would be done just to get keywords as the category page in the URL

Does this matter? How important is keywords/phrases in URL for SEO?

I would have to 301 redirect all old pages/traffic to the new URL structure and this would effect the back links to the "old" pages, if we decided to proceed here.

Please let me know your thoughts and experiences.

Do you think this is SO necessary? Can I just keep it as it is and just include KW's in Title Tags/ Meta Tags and build links to that page with the appropriate KW anchors on related skin care sites?

Thanks!

[Jill]

If you can create the URLs so that they are more relevant looking to people, while 301-redirecting all the old URLs to the new ones, then it's often a worthwhile exercise during a website redesign.

We have tons of other threads here on  keywords in urls[/hr] which you may want to browse through as well.

[MidnightRider]

We have tons of other threads here on  keywords in urls[/hr] which you may want to browse through as well.

Thanks Jill, I had a look and could not find anything related to "url structure" in the site:

Can you explain the when/how to use folder directories for SEO. What are the general rule of thumbs?

For example:

www.adidas.com/tennis-shoes/rod-laver-mesh-shoes

Is the folder tennis shoes too broad?
Is this structure correct?
Is it correct to have the product name like so: rod-laver-mesh-shoes
Is it best to have one folder directory then go into product? I know that a URL should contain no unnecessary folders. What is the max/min? What is the best option.

It is confusing because Adidas uses the following structure

www.shopadidas.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2007335&cp=3748172.3769878.3748174.3748184.2039609.2039613.2012803&cid=668701&shopGroup=R

if you look at the above URL, it is dynamic, and has no use of keywords/keyphrases and is not a pretty URL.

All in all I guess what I am asking is what is the best way to structure a url if you are a online retailer with an e-cart.

Thanks!

[Jill]

You're way over thinking things.

There is no one way that's better than any other, as you can see by the Adidas URL you posted.

Remember: URLs and Site Structure have nothing to do with one another in many cases.

Worry about your site structure. Definitely get that right.

Don't worry about your URLs.

I know that a URL should contain no unnecessary folders.

That's incorrect. "Folders" is an old computer term which has nothing to do with today's URLs that can say anything.

[MidnightRider]

Worry about your site structure. Definitely get that right.

Ok Great! So as long as the keyword I am optimizing for is in the URL (preferably at the beginning) I am OK. Right?

And what exactly do you mean by site structure?

Thanks!

[Jill]

Ok Great! So as long as the keyword I am optimizing for is in the URL (preferably at the beginning) I am OK. Right?

Yes. In fact, it doesn't have to be there at all. Most pages are optimized for may keyword phrases, and it would be silly to put them all in the URL. The URL is one (small) signal telling the search engines what a page may be about.

And what exactly do you mean by site structure?

How each page links to the other pages of the site.

Pages that are linked to from more pages within the site, will have more internal link popularity than those that are linked to by fewer pages. (There's a lot more too it than that and that's just the simplistic answer, but hopefully you get the point.)

This video explains more.

[MidnightRider]

Yes. In fact, it doesn't have to be there at all. Most pages are optimized for may keyword phrases, and it would be silly to put them all in the URL. The URL is one (small) signal telling the search engines what a page may be about.
How each page links to the other pages of the site.

Ok. I have a better understanding.

So which URL is better?

www.adidas.com/tennis-shoes-rod-laver-mesh-shoes (www.companyname.com/category-name/product-name)

Or

www.adidas.com/tennis-shoes/rod-laver-mesh-shoes (www.companyname.com/category-name-product-name)

Sorry :-( i am really trying to get this right.

I get confused with regards to permalinks structure on blogs I read...

Thanks!

[Jill]

Ok. I have a better understanding.

Since you are still asking the question which has no answer, I don't think you do.

Neither is better or worse than the other.

(As was already said.)