SEO Reccomendations

lavster

Free Member
Nov 24, 2014
144
4
42
South Wales
Hello, i run an e-commerce business selling pet supplies on amazon and eBay. we operate on pretty tight profit margins (10%ish). I've setup a webstore that is live using woo-commerce and had some success gaining sales with Google Product ads however the costs are outweighing the sales, rendering it not viable. I'm looking for peoples recommendations on getting an SEO expert in to boost my page to get some more organic traffic. However also if the experienced members here think its not a viable move to spend money on it based on these margins them i'm also happy to take that advise on board.

Thanks
 
N

Ninja Commerce

Hi there.

It certainly should be possible to turn a profit using woocommerce and Google product feed, we generally find that product feed ads work really well, and if you can make a profit on eBay, after fees, you can probably make a profit on your website.

SEO is definitely a viable option and the traffic is free once you get there, but realistically it will take time.

I wouldn't give up on advertising, but you need to work hard to optimize your feed to bring down the costs and increase the revenue.

As a starting point, make sure you have your products categorised correctly and install e-commerce analytics if you haven't already, then you can see which parts of your product feed are performing best. Increase spending on products that sell profitably and decrease your bids on products that are loss making.

Also, you need to work hard to increase the value of each new customer. In a niche with tight margins, you might have to accept that the first sale will not make enough profit to cover advertising fees, but if you can win a repeat customer, you will make that cost back many times over the life time of that customer.

I imagine that your niche is a great one for repeat custom, so focus on starting a newsletter and using promotions to bring customers back time and time again to your shop. Also, do the same with your eBay customers (within eBay's Ts&Cs of course) to encourage them across to your website.

Done correctly, your website business could easily be bigger than your eBay business.

That said, it is certainly worth working with an expert if you're unsure... But I would say that :)
 
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Paul Carmen

Business Member
Business Listing
Jan 27, 2018
870
1
430
Newport Pagnell
insiteweb.co.uk
It depends on your budget & market competition. The initial part of SEO is getting the onsite setup, plus copy & content right. There's a good amount of reasearch & analysis required to do this well.

There is then an element of off site SEO for local rankings; e.g. having a consistent NAP (name, address, phone no) everywhere. Making sure youre listed properly on Google & bing business, plus other strong local directories.

Only after you've done all this should you turn to off site work. How successful you can be with this & any other paid marketing depends on the strength of the competition, whether you're targeting geographically or nationally & your budget.
 
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lavster

Free Member
Nov 24, 2014
144
4
42
South Wales
Thanks for this in depth reply
Hi there.

It certainly should be possible to turn a profit using woocommerce and Google product feed, we generally find that product feed ads work really well, and if you can make a profit on eBay, after fees, you can probably make a profit on your website.

SEO is definitely a viable option and the traffic is free once you get there, but realistically it will take time.

I wouldn't give up on advertising, but you need to work hard to optimize your feed to bring down the costs and increase the revenue.

As a starting point, make sure you have your products categorised correctly and install e-commerce analytics if you haven't already, then you can see which parts of your product feed are performing best. Increase spending on products that sell profitably and decrease your bids on products that are loss making.

Also, you need to work hard to increase the value of each new customer. In a niche with tight margins, you might have to accept that the first sale will not make enough profit to cover advertising fees, but if you can win a repeat customer, you will make that cost back many times over the life time of that customer.

I imagine that your niche is a great one for repeat custom, so focus on starting a newsletter and using promotions to bring customers back time and time again to your shop. Also, do the same with your eBay customers (within eBay's Ts&Cs of course) to encourage them across to your website.

Done correctly, your website business could easily be bigger than your eBay business.

That said, it is certainly worth working with an expert if you're unsure... But I would say that :)

Thanks for the in depth response. Certainly sounds like something for me to look into then! i'll have a go at some of your suggestions and if not i'll be touch :D
 
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fisicx

Moderator
Sep 12, 2006
46,733
8
15,399
Aldershot
www.aerin.co.uk
Sign up for Ray's course. It will teach you everything you need to know about SEO and how to rank your products: https://www.freshbananas.co.uk/

It's not a 5 minutes fix. SEO is a slow methodical process that can take many months. Don't be taken in by the SEO sharks who promise you page one ranking or offer 99 directory links for £10/month type deals.
 
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antropy

Business Member
  • Business Listing
    Aug 2, 2010
    5,317
    1,101
    West Sussex, UK
    www.antropy.co.uk
    I'm looking for peoples recommendations on getting an SEO expert in to boost my page to get some more organic traffic.
    My only recommendation is be very careful to select someone good and ethical.
     
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    antropy

    Business Member
  • Business Listing
    Aug 2, 2010
    5,317
    1,101
    West Sussex, UK
    www.antropy.co.uk
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    fisicx

    Moderator
    Sep 12, 2006
    46,733
    8
    15,399
    Aldershot
    www.aerin.co.uk
    You keep sharing this link but it looks a bit spammy to me. Is it actually good?
    It is very very good. Ray's one of the very few SEO providers I trust to go anywhere near a website.
     
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    SEO changes on a monthly basis, doing a course today and it may have changed by next month.
    Google have now removed right hand side Ads - so organic listings are even less. Google are actively trying to force companies to start advertising with them, so they take more of your money and you start an advertising war with your competitors - bad situation right ?

    Have you done any keyword research ?
    Have you audited your website ?
    Have you got information on where your competitors get their links from ?
    Have you got any information on what social forums your customers talk ?

    You can use a social media monitor or you can a toolset , if you have a budget then send me a PM. It's not a simple task and it involves days / weeks of work - is the honest answer.

    Re your advertising so far - you can easily get hoodwinked and ripped off by google. Do you r keyword research, advertise on exact key phrases only and only on google, not it's other platforms etc or you may as well just give Google your pin No
     
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    Before you turn to often expensive SEO experts, I'd recommend double checking if your SEO basics are covered. There's a great SEO checklist on Brian Dean's website - Backlinko. He's a bit of a legend when it comes to SEO; he puts a ton of work into his research and shares his knowledge for free.
    Neil Patel's website is also worth visiting.
     
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    fisicx

    Moderator
    Sep 12, 2006
    46,733
    8
    15,399
    Aldershot
    www.aerin.co.uk
    That just means you will have a clone of their site for google to ignore.
     
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