An Intro Guide to Ecommerce SEO for Beginners Covid-19 has accelerated digital transformation and the online economy has boomed ever since.
By Terry Tateossian •
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
For many businesses, going digital will be the difference between success and failure. So if you are about to embark on this journey in the unique situation we are in, you need to adopt an SEO strategy that will help you during and post-Covid-19.
Short-term SEO
Your short-term SEO strategy may include creating content related to the impact of Covid-19 on your industry as well as updating your website and listings for local search terms. Offer answers to the questions that people ask amid a social and economic crisis. People are looking for answers about how they can be comfortable at home, take good care of their families and stay safe.
Make sure you target broader terms that can help you boost your traffic. Such words are, for example, "indoors", "DIY", "in-home" and "virtual".
Related: 5 Tips for Choosing Your Next SEO Firm
Long-term SEO
Your long-term SEO strategy may involve creating content that answers the questions people will be asking once the pandemic ends. Many worry about the possibility of long-term teleworking. Is it fair to families with small children? What is my career growth path post-Covid-19? How do I build long-term relationships with customers when interacting digitally? What are the implications on taxes and pay? If I do the same job at home, will I be paid differently? There are plenty of unknowns, and people are looking for answers about how the pandemic will change their lives and societies.
While the pandemic is a major issue for many of us, it will eventually subside. Your long-term SEO strategy should also involve creating evergreen content that is relevant and stays fresh long past its publication. Evergreen content is certainly not statistics reports, news or articles about this year's presidential election or the latest fashion trends or pop culture fads. Evergreen content formats that you may consider creating are how-to-make, how-to-choose, and how-to-use guides, buying guides, help documents and how-to for advanced users. There are also highly searchable keywords that you can use in your title like "list", "tutorial", "tips", "who", "where", "how" and "what".
Keep creating evergreen content because unlike trending topics, it retains relevance and continues to drive traffic over time.
Related: Become an SEO Expert and Make Your Business Stand Out Online
Final words
For your online business to be successful, you need to track and analyze the signals that prospects are sharing across social media, your website and search interactions. While the global pandemic has certainly reshaped consumer behavior and user preferences, retailers that can identify and keep up with trends will win the day.
