1. AI-based URL Optimization:
AI can create optimized URLs by analyzing the keywords' relevance, length, and readability. It can suggest user-friendly URL structures that are up to par with the requirements of search engines. These tools can automatically generate clean and descriptive URLs for various pages of eCommerce sites. This process makes it easier for search engines to crawl and understand the website.
2. AI-Powered Website Speed Optimization:
AI-powered tools can assess the website’s performance and propose enhancements to enhance its loading speed. These tools are proficient in employing sophisticated algorithms, such as WebP, to compress images and reduce CSS and JavaScript code size.
Additionally, they can implement browser caching, enable compression, and suggest asynchronous and deferred loading methods. These optimization techniques work harmoniously to guarantee rapid page loading, improve search engine rankings, and enrich user experiences.
3. Thoroughly reviewing excluded pages:
AI-powered SEO crawlers can scan an e-commerce website and identify excluded pages due to robots.txt rules. It can also provide real-time insights into why certain pages are not being indexed. These tools can suggest and adjust robots.txt files to ensure that search engines thoroughly crawl and index important pages. These processes help improve overall visibility.
4. Adding Schema Markup to the eCommerce Site:
AI can generate structured data based on the product description in Schema markup format. With the help of this tool, SEO experts can automatically create SON-LD scripts. Later, they can seamlessly add these scripts to the website’s HTML to provide search engines with detailed product information. This helps search engines display rich snippets in search results. With a proper description, users can find the information more relevant, which improves the website’s click-through rates.
5. Identifying E-commerce Keywords:
eCommerce SEO experts can use AI-powered keyword research tools to analyze vast amounts of data. These tools are capable of suggesting relevant long-tail keywords and phrases. They can also provide insights into search volume, competition, and the user’s search purpose. With these tools, experts can identify keywords with high conversion potential. AI can process and categorize data efficiently, making keyword research faster and more accurate.
6. Incorporating Keywords Throughout the Website:
AI tools can help SEO professionals craft meta titles and descriptions that effectively incorporate target keywords while adhering to character limits. They can generate blog topics based on keyword research, create outlines for articles, and help generate content that strikes the right balance between natural language and keyword optimization. AI ensures that keywords are strategically placed within the content without resorting to keyword stuffing.
7. Product Page and Category Page Optimization:
AI-powered tools can analyze user behavior and preferences to recommend personalized product suggestions and organize categories more effectively. AI-powered chatbots can assist customers in finding products through voice search commands. It directly results in enhancing the user experience. These tools can optimize page layouts, recommend related products, and provide a more tailored shopping experience.
8. Voice Search Optimization:
AI can identify voice search trends and generate voice search-specific keywords. It can help optimize product descriptions and category pages to match conversational search queries. AI-powered chatbots and voice assistants can engage customers using natural language processing, answering queries, and assisting with shopping. These processes lead to improved customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Search engine optimization is changing. Generative AI is streamlining many SEO-related tasks, and search-result pages are evolving. Yet companies with small-to-medium websites and an SEO-friendly content management system or ecommerce platform can do much SEO work in-house.
Here are my top 10 do-it-yourself SEO tips, including related ChatGPT prompts.
- Research Keywords
Keyword research has dual benefits. First, discovering and organizing relevant search queries reveals the words and phrases consumers use to find goods and services. Merchants can use those keywords in product descriptions, titles, and blog posts — all to improve organic search rankings.
Second, knowing how consumers search for wants and needs uncovers competitors (that rank for those keywords) and generates ideas for new or improved products.
There are quite a few free and freemium keyword research tools. Organizing keywords by a common intent is time-consuming but doable with spreadsheets.
ChatGPT can expand a keyword list. Here’s a prompt:
My primary term is [KEYWORD]. Generate a list of related keywords to capture the attention of those who may not know about [KEYWORD] but can find It helpful. For each related keyword, produce an article title and angle for how it helps. Respond in a table format.
ChatGPT can (i) generate a content strategy based on a keyword list, (ii) identify keywords to include on a page, and (iii) describe a buyer persona for each keyword:
This is my keyword list. [KEYWORD LIST] Create a table organizing the keywords by meaning. For each group, add a target persona and an article title. Include the search volume for each keyword in a separate column.
- Identify Keyword Gaps
A keyword gap is a search query for which two or more competitors rank, but your site does not. Premium tools such as Ahrefs and Semrush can identify those missing keywords, representing opportunities for your brand.
The entire analysis takes no more than 30 minutes. You’ll have new content ideas, new pages to create, and informational queries to address.
- Build Internal Links
Internal linking is key to the organic search visibility of important pages. Google crawls websites using links. Its algorithm assigns equity to each page in part based on how many internal and external links point to it.
Google offers no guidance on internal links or where they should reside. But over the years Google personnel have hinted at the priority:
Main navigation.
In-content, such as the body of blog posts.
Footer.
Above-the-fold (top of page).
Sidebar.
An internal linking strategy should include all those. Show content widgets — such as “Related,” “Top,” and “Popular” — and ensure that your key pages are linked directly from the main navigation or only a click or two away.
You can also create a list of your important pages and prompt ChatGPT to turn the list into internal linking sets to add across your site:
Here’s a list of my important URLs with title tags. [LIST OF URLS, TITLE TAGS] Create HTML from this list that I can add to all of the pages to interlink them. Don’t use the entire title for each link. Make it shorter but easily understood.
- Improve Click-throughs
While keyword research identifies ranking opportunities, click-through optimization generates more traffic from existing positions.
Rich snippets stand out on search results, requiring minimum coding via Schema.org markup or similar. Third-party plugins make the job easier.
Google often enhances search snippets with additional info, such as comparisons, lists, and “pros” and “cons” in product-review snippets.
Arrange content to help Google create more detailed search snippets. ChatGPT can help:
Here’s my article listing tools. [ARTICLE TEXT] For each tool, add “pros” and “cons” as a bulleted list.
Generative AI can also enhance product descriptions using specs and images.
- Optimize Title Tags
Title tags are slowly losing organic ranking power, but they remain important. Including keywords in the title informs Google of the page’s purpose. Moreover, a well-crafted title will likely be the most visible portion of a standard search result snippet. Thus titles impact click-throughs, too.
ChatGPT can generate engaging title tags:
For this article, develop 10 title tags and essential H1 headings in table format. [ARTICLE TEXT] Use different engagement tactics (e.g., questions, impactful words). Explain how each title and heading can attract more clicks.
- Create Useful Content
Knowing a page’s primary keyword and including it in the title (and body, if it makes sense) is a critical component of optimized content. But the most important tactic is creating genuinely useful info for consumers. It’s ultimately impossible to optimize content that no one wants to read or view.
Google now understands searchers’ intent and the relevancy and value of content. But it all starts with helpful content that serves target consumers and answers their questions, as revealed in search queries.
ChatGPT can produce ideas for improving:
This is my article. [ARTICLE TEXT] I want it to rank for [KEYWORD]. How can I improve the article? Which persona am I failing to target?
- Update Old Content
Most content slowly loses organic traffic. Older content produces fewer clicks, mainly due to the date in the search snippet. Moreover, Google strives to surface newer content.
Updating content with fresh info — new references, contemporary descriptions, more — can recover much of the loss.
ChatGPT can help. Consider these three prompts:
Here’s my article. [ARTICLE TEXT] In a table format, generate takeaways, a FAQ section of four to six questions with short answers, and a summary.
Turn this article into a script for a podcast voiceover. [ARTICLE TEXT]
Here are quotes from experts on new trends for [MY INDUSTRY]. Generate subheadings and introductions for each quote. [QUOTES]
- Monitor Analytics
Two Google tools — Analytics and Search Console — are critical for understanding organic search performance. They report pages with the most organic traffic, keywords that drive the traffic, and engagement and conversions from the traffic, among other metrics.
At a minimum, check analytics regularly for traffic declines or site glitches. Both require immediate attention.
- Build Link Equity
Link building is the most challenging SEO task. The job is never done. Google uses backlinks in part to inform whether content is trustworthy. Links from reputable news sources, for example, drive trust.
The good news is link building is doable in-house.
The best link-building tactic is producing quality content that folks want to share. Encourage sharing by participating in niche communities, engaging with like-minded people, and contacting journalists.
Never pay for a link directly or indirectly via a consultant. If it’s easy to obtain, the link is likely useless or worse.
ChatGPT can provide link-building ideas from these prompts:
My business is [PRODUCT DETAILS]. Who should I approach to raise brand awareness, and how?
Which podcasts should I target? Provide an outreach email for each one.
- Educate Yourself
Finally, there’s no substitute for knowledge. Learn SEO. There are many terrific, free resources.
Search Engine Roundtable is my favorite source of curated news and advice. Moz’s blog is a helpful, clutter-free resource. My weekly column here focuses on ecommerce.
Beyond DIY
Every online merchant should perform some level of DIY SEO. It saves money and drives traffic. Yet some tasks likely require professional help. Examples include coding changes, structured data, and site speed.