One of the most stressful parts of running an e-commerce business is experimenting with the processes and systems you already have in place. As a small business owner, you know that a small change can have a dramatic effect on your traffic and revenue and not always for the better. However, it can be just as harmful for your company if you don’t adapt and change when necessary. One particular area Etsy shop owners seem to have trouble with is:

Refreshing Listings for Etsy SEO

We all know that having an optimized and visually beautiful listing will make or break your Etsy shop, but there are times when it’s important to refresh listings for growth. Even if you have consistent sales, a listing refresh may be right for you. Read below to find out how you should shake up your listings, how often, and what to avoid.

Is There a Formula for Writing Headings/Titles That Will Improve SEO?

Your Etsy SEO is extremely important for consistent traffic and increased revenue. In fact, one of the largest drivers of sales for most Etsy handmade shops is ‘search’ whether on Google or directly through Etsy search. So, keeping your listings optimized is extremely important even if it means changing them.

Your titles and headings on Etsy should be at the top of your “what’s most important for my online business” list, especially when we are talking about search engine optimization. That being said, it’s not an exact science.

There is no one-size-fits-all formula for writing high converting and optimized titles for your listings. Instead, here are good practices to keep in mind when writing your headings or titles for improved SEO:

1. Include Keywords

Obvious but true, nonetheless. Think strategically about your keywords and how they’ll fit into your overall title.

Imagine that you are a customer searching the web: how would you search? What language would you use? Are there certain phrases that will help you better find what you are looking for? Start there!

2. Keep It Short

Your titles or headings are not descriptions! Please repeat that in your head. Not everything about your product or service should be in your Etsy listing title.

Ideally, your titles will be around 8 words long, but you can go as high as 15.

3. Add Numbers

Numbers are catchy and memorable; they also rank well. If you can add a number in your heading or title, then go for it!

That being said, don’t force it. If your product or service doesn’t naturally warrant having numbers in its title, then don’t forget to include them.

4. Use Emotion and Powerful Adjectives

Sparking some sort of emotional response is a great way to write better Etsy titles. Words that reflect love, nostalgia, beauty, anger, or even sadness can work to your benefit!

If you sell Halloween costumes, then spooky adjectives are the way to go or if you sell wedding dresses then the language of love will suit your title best!

Where you want to be careful is by potentially misleading your customer. You should never fluff up your Etsy titles for the sake of getting traffic but then not deliver with your product or Etsy store. This will only lead to a high bounce rate which is ultimately not good for SEO.

These tips are a great starting point! If you need professional help with Etsy SEO and keywords for listings, contact us today.

When It Comes to Updating Your Keywords, How Often is Too Often?

Great question! Updating your listings will most likely result in a slight and short-term drop in traffic. Still, the upside is huge so it’s worth it!

Search engines will need time to go through your website so you should only refresh your listings at most once every quarter but at least twice a year. If you plan on launching a new product or doing a rebrand then you should update your keywords three months prior to the launch.

How Long Should It Take For SEO Modifications To Show Up In Google Search Results?

On average, SEO takes between four months to a year; however, based on your SEO strategy it could take longer.

If you are able to identify and target low-competition keywords, then you could start seeing results in 4 to 6 months. With these keywords you should see some level of success after 6 months and if not it’s time to change your Etsy SEO strategy.

For high-competition keywords, it could take up to 4 years for noticeable results.

How Unique Do Unique Descriptions Have to Be?

Let’s cut to the chase: very unique! Why not? After all, you are trying to improve your Etsy ranking and always appear on the front page of any search engine including Etsy search. So why wouldn’t you focus on creating original and unique content?

Your Etsy product or service descriptions are a key part of your internal SEO. When you write descriptions think about how a customer would search for a product online. Stand out from the competition and use keywords that aren’t so competitive.

This could involve having an SEO strategy where you refresh your listings every six months to incorporate phrases that are commonly searched in your niche but never targeted by the competition.

Is My Google Ranking Being Harmed by Duplicate Information (Copy and Paste)?

Duplicate content is something even the most seasoned SEO pros often struggle with. Sometimes it can seem productive to rinse and repeat a working system or niche in such that it requires the same language across a variety of products and pages. The question is, is this bad, and will Google penalize you?

Well yes. Yes, because if a search engine determines that you have intentionally ‘copy and pasted’ information for the purpose of misleading the consumer or the search engine then you could be flagged and penalized.

If you do so unintentionally just know that you are not doing your SEO any favors. Search engines may not know which version of the same content to rank in search results and indices.

If you feel you have duplicate content on your Etsy listings, then it may be time for a revamp.

For more information visit the official Google Guidelines for Duplicate Content.

Is It Bad For Your SEO If You Copy a Section of Text From a Listing and Use it in a Facebook Post?

Absolutely not! How could it be? Your Etsy website is like the head of an octopus that controls a dozen hands around the internet and in real life, whether it be your Facebook page or physical shop.

Outside of your website, smart content duplication can help spread your brand!

Think about this and the previous question in terms of external and internal. Your internal Etsy content should be original and varied while your external content that exists on social can and often should be multiple variations and duplications of your existing foundation.

Set yourself up for success for the rest of the year with optimized and refreshed listings on Etsy! Having optimized listings on Etsy is not an easy task. You can scour the web and be left disappointed by the sheer amount of contradicting information which is why our solutions are data-driven and focused on providing you with massive Etsy growth. Contact us today!