SEO for E-Commerce Websites in Kenya

Online presence has become extremely competitive. New business and platforms have entered the market and this is no different for online selling sites. SEO for eCommerce websites in Kenya, is an immediate goal for all entrepreneurs selling online.

You want to get on the first page of Google as first as possible to maximize your returns.  It all makes sense why we all want to get there.

With nearly 85% of sales processes beginning with a Google search, and nearly 75% of click being on page one of Google, who doesn’t want to be there?

while the well established online selling platform in Kenya such as Jumia, Kilimall have created their brands, the question your ask yourself is how are going to get a share of their pie to your small eCommerce site in Kenya?

you probably don’t have the financial might to promote your brand to their level. SEO for eCommerce websites in Kenya is what you should look to embrace.

Why is SEO for eCommerce significant then?

The first thing you should seek to understand is to learn what is Search Engine Optimization and why it’s important.

Your products need to rank higher than that local competitor with a similar shop besides you, for the users to see them online and get in touch.

While you can get online and understand some few SEO tactics, sometimes you’ll need the skills of Search Engine Optimization Agency in Kenya

SEO for eCommerce Websites in Kenya Strategies 

we cover some of the strategies that will work best to improve your SEO ranking on the long run. Having a good website is the first place to start. Make sure to source for top website design & development agency in Kenya.

so what should we look out for?

1. Keyword Research

To best reach your client, you must start with the right keyword. What are your customers likely to search online in order to get your products out there?

It’s a standard practice in Search Engine Optimization, and SEO for eCommerce Website is neither different.  So how do you start with keywords research?

The best and easiest way to make a list of all the pages in your site and map keywords related to each page, category, tag, product.

You need to understand all your products and the buyers intent while sourcing for such products online.

secondly you need to use keyword research tools i.e Google Keyword Planner, Semrush, Ahref, and also search suggest such as google search suggest or amazon search suggest.

source: backlinko (example of amazon suggest)

2. On-page SEO

On-page SEO involves  everything that you can do on your site to improve it’s SEO. make sure to check our Comprehensive Guide to On-site SEO post, where we discuss it in details.

This is where you optimize your product category and product pages, this is one of the most crucial parts of SEO for eCommerce websites in Kenya.

This pages tend to generate the lion share of traffic  and also sales, so how do you go about it? below we list 3 most important strategies for onpage SEO

• Title Tags
• Description Tag
• Product and Category page content

Title Tags

use click magnet words to boost the click through ration (CTR) words search as “X % off, or cheap X” e.g. you can use a title tag search as “15% off Nike Airmax sneakers” or even “cheap bag pack for laptops”

search titles always prompt the user click on the products just to view them and see the offer.

Meta Tags/Description Tags

Includes words search as free delivery within CBD, free shipping to describe the product and enhance the click through ratio.

Product Category/Page Content

This is the place where you describe your product and also categories. Make sure to write more content about the product including features, design, color.

also use your keyword at not more that 3 times on the page content to avoid keyword stuffing which is punished by google

3. Technical SEO for eCommerce Sites

Using audit tools for SEO is the most efficient way to get Technical SEO results for your page. Technical SEO can make the difference between you outdoing you competitor next door online

Tools such as semrush, ubersuggest, ahref, offer the best platforms to run your website Technical SEO. The image below is a shot from semrush technical SEO.

source: semrush

with technical SEO you get to cover issues such as;

• Duplicate content
• duplicate title
• site speed
• broken links
• heavy images
• unoptimized scripts/codes
• low wordcounts
• Links with HTTP/HTTPS
• sitemap submission

The list is much greater but those are some of the items covered under Technical SEO

4. Link Building for eCommerce Website

one of the top SEO for eCommerce websites in Kenya technique is link building. Link building involves building the authority of your website by getting other website to link back to your site. below we list a few techniques to go about link building

• Find broken links on your page
• find sites linking to your competitors and not yours
• source backlinks from your suppliers and distributors
• Make use of paid campaign such as Facebook Ads
• Guest posting

5. Local SEO for eCommerce Site

Local SEO means optimizing your website for local location. Make sure to read out post on Guide to Local SEO for small business in Kenya.

People search for products within their vicinity e.g. best tv dealers in Nairobi, or Best laptop sellers in Mombasa.

Below are some way you can build your Local SEO;

Create a Google my Business. This can be done by visiting Google my business page and starting.

In conclusion,

remember SEO is a long-term process and result do not come immediately, while the returns are more rewarding, the patient that is need to see result takes time.  If you need quick result, you should invest in Paid Ads but the long-term cost super cedes the long term result of SEO.

If looking for SEO services in Kenya, check out our Search Engine Optimization Services in Kenya.