In order to successfully sell a product online, it is crucial to develop an effective SEO strategy that caters not only to Google but also to Amazon. Many people make the mistake of creating an SEO plan solely for Google and then attempting to apply the same techniques to Amazon. However, this approach rarely works due to the distinct differences between these two platforms in terms of their SEO requirements and ranking algorithms.
Here we will explore the similarities and unique characteristics of both Google and Amazon. Additionally, I will provide you with a customized strategy that will enable you to thrive on both platforms and attract customers at every stage of the buying cycle.
Whether you are a beginner with limited SEO experience, someone with moderate knowledge of Google SEO, or an SEO expert well-versed in Google’s intricacies but struggling with Amazon’s SEO, this content is designed for you. The strategies I will share are applicable to both platforms and will drive customers to your web page, whether it is your own website or your Amazon listing.
Mistakes are often made in SEO by assuming that expertise in Google SEO alone is sufficient. While mastering Google SEO is essential for success on the search engine, it may not necessarily translate into effective product sales on Amazon. This platform tends to attract customers who are further along in the buying cycle. We will delve deeper into this later.
If your goal is to succeed in selling products online, this course is exactly what you need. By implementing the strategies I teach, you will be able to attract customers throughout every stage of the buying cycle. Let’s get started!
Similarities Between Google and Amazon SEO
Let’s discuss the similarities between Google SEO and Amazon SEO. Regardless of the platform, the end goal is to get customers to purchase your product.
Goal of Both Platforms
While Google and Amazon have different goals as platforms, their focus remains on getting the customer to purchase. Google aims to provide interesting content to its users, while Amazon focuses on providing products that users will purchase.
User Actions
Both platforms follow user actions to determine relevance and rankings. Google pays attention to the conversion rate, which measures how many times a web page shows up in search results compared to how many times it is clicked on. Higher conversion rates indicate more interesting content. Similarly, Amazon looks at which products are purchased the most, as this influences rankings.
Importance of Keywords
Keywords play a crucial role in both Google and Amazon SEO strategies. Short tail keywords (e.g., “SEO”) and long tail keywords (e.g., “black reclining office chair”) are important factors for visibility and relevance.
Differences in Algorithms
The implementation of algorithms differs between Google and Amazon. It is essential to focus on the right keywords based on your business size, number of products, and website visitors.
The Need for Strong SEO Strategy
A strong SEO strategy is vital for success on both platforms. To attract new people organically, you must optimize your content and products using effective SEO techniques.
Purchasing Ads
Purchasing ads is an option on both Google and Amazon. However, it is important to have compelling content that achieves your desired goals before investing in ads.
Note: This course focuses on free methods to optimize your SEO strategies, but purchasing ads may become necessary as you expand your presence.
Differences Between Google and Amazon SEO
Now let’s discuss some of the key differences between Google and Amazon and how their algorithms work to determine SEO on their platforms. They both rely on different metrics to determine what ranks higher or lower.
Google’s Algorithm:
One important factor that Google considers is the number of links leading to a web page or domain. Building a lot of external links can help improve rankings in Google’s search results.
Amazon’s Algorithm:
In contrast, Amazon does not take external links into account when determining rankings for its web pages. External links do not affect Amazon SEO. Instead, Amazon focuses on collecting data about the conversion rate, specifically how many people visit a web page and make a purchase.
While Google aims to provide interesting content, Amazon’s goal is to sell products by ranking those with higher conversion rates higher.
Key Differences in Data Collection
Google collects data on click-through rates (CTR), measuring how often users click on a link in search results. It also considers bounce rates, which indicate whether users quickly return to Google after clicking on a link.
In contrast, Amazon collects data on the conversion rate, measuring how many visitors make purchases after visiting a web page. This is possible because Amazon has access to information about customer purchases.
Customers’ Intent and Buying Cycle
Users searching on Google are typically in the early stages of the buying cycle, seeking information or considering a purchase. On the other hand, users searching on Amazon have clear product intent and are closer to making a purchase decision.
Keyword Strategy for Google and Amazon
For effective SEO strategies, it is crucial to consider different keyword strategies for Google and Amazon.
On Google, short tail keywords (1-2 words) and long tail keywords (phrases) both play a role. However, depending on the size of your online presence, you may need to focus more on one over the other.
On Amazon, it is best to prioritize hyper-targeted long tail keywords to attract customers who are likely to make a purchase and improve conversion rates.
In conclusion, the key difference between SEO on Google and Amazon lies in their goals, data collection methods, and customer intent. Understanding these differences is crucial for implementing effective SEO strategies on each platform.
Elements of a Successful Amazon SEO Strategy
Understanding Amazon SEO
Many people who claim to be knowledgeable about SEO actually only understand Google and other search engine optimization techniques. However, Amazon SEO is a completely different animal. The strategies that work for Google do not necessarily translate to success on Amazon.
One key difference is that Amazon is primarily an e-commerce platform where customers go to make purchases, rather than seeking general information. This fundamental distinction means that Amazon relies on a unique set of metrics that Google and other search engines do not consider.
While Google cannot collect data on customer purchases, Amazon has access to extensive information about what people buy. This data plays a crucial role in determining product rankings on the platform.
The Buying Cycle and Customer Intent
Customers who visit Amazon are typically at the end of the buying cycle. They are either ready to make a purchase or actively seeking information that will guide their purchasing decision. As an Amazon seller, it is essential to attract visitors who are interested in buying your product.
Amazon rewards sellers whose product pages convert visitors into purchasers by ranking them higher. Unlike Google, which focuses on driving traffic to content, Amazon prioritizes conversions and actual sales.
To effectively entice potential customers on your page, you must accurately describe your product and understand precisely what they are looking for. By knowing your target audience’s preferences and needs, you can guide them towards choosing your product as the right solution for them.
The Role of Traditional Sales Skills
Amazon SEO incorporates many aspects of traditional sales and marketing skills since understanding your customer’s mindset is crucial. Short-tail keywords, which generate high search volume but attract visitors seeking general information rather than making purchases, hold little value on Amazon.
In contrast, long-tail keywords that precisely align with your product and its features attract high-quality traffic. These keywords help you reach potential customers who are ready to buy, resulting in better conversion rates.
By thinking like your customer, predicting their search intent, and identifying accurate long-tail keywords, you can drive the highest quality traffic to your Amazon page.
Focusing on Quality over Quantity
Amazon SEO is not about lead generation but rather about attracting customers at the bottom of the sales funnel who are prepared to make a purchase. Amazon aims to sell as many products as possible and promotes those with the highest conversion rates.
While quantity of visitors can be beneficial if they convert into purchasers, having a large number of visitors who do not make purchases negatively impacts your Amazon SEO ranking. Therefore, it is essential to refine your SEO strategy to capture customers at the end of the buying cycle and prioritize quality over quantity.
In conclusion, understanding Amazon SEO requires a different approach from Google SEO. By focusing on customer intent, accurately describing your product, and using targeted long-tail keywords, you can optimize your Amazon page for success.
Elements of a Successful Google SEO Strategy
Understanding the Buying Cycle as a Funnel
I know I’ve been talking a lot about the buying cycle in this course, but now let’s think about the buying cycle as a funnel. And you do oftentimes hear marketers talk about sales funnels. So let’s think about it as a funnel in terms of how it’s going to relate to both your Google and your Amazon SEO strategies.
So as we talked about in the last slide, customers on Google, maybe not even necessarily customers, but people who you want to be customers are at an early stage of the buying cycle. So they’re at the top of that funnel where it’s very wide and they’re just looking for general information and they aren’t really that close to getting to the bottom of the funnel, which is where somebody would be purchasing. But they’re looking for general information which may lead them down the funnel and lead them towards a purchase.
Google SEO Strategy
With your Google SEO strategy, you’re looking to capture customers who are at that early stage of the buying cycle, the top of the funnel. These people go to Google and not Amazon when they’re looking for just basic information about maybe a product that they want to buy or if they’re unsure whether or not they need to buy a product, they’re going to go to Google because Google is much more likely to answer any questions they have, whereas Amazon is just going to recommend them products, although at this point they may not even be sure they want to make a purchase.
So because of that, when you’re creating your Google content or any content that you want to rank highly on Google (for example, blog posts, social media posts, videos, images, graphics), anything that you want people to see as it relates to what you’re producing online or your product or your website or whatever you’re trying to market. You want to create content that will appeal to a large number of people who are just looking for general information.
Because most of the people who find anything related to your product through Google are not going to end up purchasing it. Your conversion rate is going to be much lower for somebody who interacts with content they found from Google as it relates to your product or service versus people who found your product or service via Amazon. So when somebody finds it through Google, you want to create content that’s going to appear appealing to a large number of people.
And that’s because you need to get as many people as possible from Google, since fewer of them are going to end up becoming customers. And not only does your content need to appeal to a large number of people, but it also needs to be content that’s going to hook a customer in at the beginning of the buying cycle. So get them into the top of the funnel and start moving them down.
You don’t want to create content that’s just something they’re going to look at for five seconds and then move on. You want to create content that they’re going to interact with for a longer amount of time, and that way they’re going to be getting more information, which while it probably will be relevant information to them, if they’re interacting with it for a long time, it’s also going to be information about your product or which will encourage them, whether directly or indirectly, to purchase your product.
And to be more specific here, the content that you need to produce that you hope will rank highly on Google is content which will give people general information about the category your product or service is in, not necessarily information directly about your product or service, but just something that will answer questions that somebody who may be interested in purchasing your product or a similar product would have before making that purchase.
So you want it to be something that’s useful to people, even if those people are not likely to become customers. So, for example, let’s say I want to sell hiking boots. I could write, let’s say top five hiking boots for summertime in Florida. If the boots I’m selling will appeal to somebody who’s looking for boots to hike in summertime in Florida. And then I just write top five recommended hiking boots for summertime in Florida. That would be the name of the blog post.
Here I may recommend my product first and I may describe in great detail about my product, but I won’t do it in a way that’s clearly an advertisement. I would do it in a way that’s just somebody making a serious recommendation about what is the best hiking boot for summertime in Florida.
So, for example, you know, I would write a paragraph or two about my boots and then I would put a link to the Amazon link or a link to my website (since this course is about Amazon and Google SEO).
Link Building Strategy
Now, another thing that you should also be doing as part of your general Google SEO strategy is link building. Google finds websites that have a lot of links leading to them and ranks them higher. So naturally, you want your website and your social media to have a lot of links from other websites leading to it.
A link building strategy involves mentioning popular blogs or authoritative websites in your niche and reaching out to them with an offer to write an article for their website. In exchange, you can include a link back to your website within the article. This helps you get high-quality backlinks from reputable websites, which will improve your website’s reputation and ranking on Google.
Keyword Strategy
I mentioned earlier in this course the importance of keywords for both Google and Amazon SEO strategies. Keywords can be classified as short tail or long tail.
Short tail keywords are more general and competitive, but they attract a larger volume of traffic. Long tail keywords are more specific and less competitive, but they attract a smaller volume of highly targeted traffic.
In order to be successful on Google, you need to focus on a mixture of short and long tail keywords. Short tail keywords help capture customers at the top of the funnel who are looking for general information, while long tail keywords capture customers further down the funnel who are closer to making a purchase.
Creating Engaging Content
The content you create for Google needs to be interesting, useful, and relevant to your target audience. It should have a low bounce rate (people staying on your website after clicking) and a high click-through rate (people clicking on your website from search results).
To achieve a low bounce rate, create content that is interesting and useful to the person who clicked the link. Avoid misleading titles that may result in quick exits from your website. Instead, use relevant titles that accurately represent the content you’ve produced.
To achieve a high click-through rate, create engaging titles that are relevant to the keywords you’re targeting. The meta description (a brief summary displayed in search results) should also be captivating and descriptive.
Creating a Successful Strategy for Google SEO and Amazon SEO
Now that we’ve discussed the intricacies of Google SEO and Amazon SEO, as well as the need for different strategies on both platforms, it’s time to connect the dots and develop a strategy that can be effective on both. Google SEO focuses on attracting customers at the top of the sales funnel who are seeking general information, while Amazon SEO targets customers ready to make a purchase.
Using Google to Generate Leads for Amazon
To generate leads for your Amazon product, utilize the strategies discussed for Google SEO. For example, create content such as an article titled “Top Five Hiking Boots Recommended for Summertime in Florida” and aim for high rankings on Google. At the end of this content, include a mention of your Amazon product and suggest it as a good fit for the reader. Encourage them to go purchase your product.
If someone has fully interacted with your content (e.g., watched a video or read a blog post), they are likely more interested in purchasing your product. Seize this opportunity at the end of the content to ask them to check out your Amazon page and make a purchase. This way, you filter out people who are not ready to buy.
Creating High Volume of Quality Content
To maximize results from Google, focus on creating a high volume of quality content across various mediums such as blog posts, videos, images, graphics, and social media posts. Good titles, meta descriptions, and lots of content help attract clicks from Google users. Remember that generating leads is crucial through Google in order to boost sales on Amazon.
The Importance of Quality Content
Create interesting and useful content that appeals to potential customers who may not have been interested in purchasing before. Once someone clicks your Amazon link, ensure they are ready to make a purchase. Low-quality content can damage your Amazon SEO.
Keyword Strategy
Google:
Focus on both short and long tail keywords. If your website’s SEO is still weak, prioritize long tail keywords as ranking for short tail keywords may be challenging. However, as your SEO improves over time, start targeting short tail keywords to tap into the larger search volume they offer.
Amazon:
For Amazon, concentrate solely on long tail keywords. This approach ensures that people clicking on your product page are highly focused and closer to making a purchase.
Using Google and Amazon Together
Use Google to generate leads and direct them to your Amazon page where the sale can be closed. Remember, traffic alone is not beneficial on Amazon if it doesn’t result in purchases. Use Google for lead generation and focus on quality traffic through hyper-focused long tail keywords on Amazon.
The Importance of Engaging Content
Create content that is interesting, useful, engaging, and convincing for your target audience. The goal is to encourage viewers to click on your Amazon link and complete the purchase. Avoid content that attracts clicks but fails to convert, as this will harm your Amazon SEO.
Optimizing Your Amazon Product Page
To optimize your Amazon product page for conversions:
-
- Be concise, direct, and descriptive in presenting your product.
-
- Focused on using long tail keywords that align with what you are selling.
-
- Aim to attract organic traffic through relevant long tail keyword searches on Amazon.
By following these strategies, you can maintain a high conversion rate on Amazon and ensure that the traffic driven from Google leads to successful sales.
Understanding the Difference between Google SEO and Amazon SEO
It is crucial to understand that Google SEO primarily focuses on lead generation. The goal is to attract potential customers from Google search results at the initial stage of their purchasing journey when they are seeking general information.
On the other hand, Amazon SEO aims to capture customers who are ready to make a purchase. Unlike Google, Amazon has access to data regarding customer purchases, allowing them to prioritize conversion rate in their rankings.
When optimizing for Google, factors like click-through rate and various metrics play a significant role in determining rankings. On the contrary, with Amazon, quality takes precedence over quantity, as they focus more on ensuring high conversion rates.
Remember these distinctions as you develop your SEO strategy to thrive and successfully sell your products on Amazon.