Shopify SEO Checklist
Source: Unsplash
(ARTICLE IN PROGRES; Still needs updating)
Looking to improve your Shopify store's ranking on Google? Here's a simple, effective guide to Shopify SEO that can help you attract more traffic and boost sales.
Shopify is a powerful platform for e-commerce, but to stand out, your store needs to be visible and that’s where SEO comes in.
This guide will make you familiar with some easy steps in order to optimize your Shopify store for search engines, improving both your ranking and visibility to potential customers.
To streamline the process, I've put together a comprehensive Shopify SEO Checklist to ensure your pages are fully optimized and perform at their best.
This checklist covers all the key elements you need to monitor, so you can consistently enhance your site’s visibility and drive more traffic to your Shopify Store.
You can also find this Shopify SEO Checklist (make a copy)
Now, let's explain this one up!
Table of Contents
- Let's get started!
- On-Page SEO Optimization
- Technical SEO Enhancements
- Off-Page SEO Strategies
- Learnings Recap
1. Let's get started!
Let’s take a moment before getting into the technical, on-page, and off-page SEO for your Shopify store. Starting with a solid foundation is really important. These initial steps will make it much smoother when you begin optimizing your site for search engines.
First, think about getting a custom domain. I get that it might be tempting to stick with the default myshopify.com subdomain because it’s convenient, but having your own domain can truly make a difference. A short and catchy domain not only helps your store stand out but also boosts your branding and improves your SEO.
Next, let’s get Google Analytics up and running. This useful tool shows you who’s visiting your site and what they’re doing. It’s fantastic for understanding what’s working well and what might need a little adjustment. You can find plenty of simple guides online to help you get started!
Another great resource is Google Search Console. This tool gives you insight into how your site is performing in Google search results. It’s a wonderful way to see how your store is doing online and can really assist you in making informed decisions for your business. You’ll find out which pages rank for what searches and what terms are bringing traffic to your store.
Choosing a responsive theme is really important for your store, as it helps ensure a smooth experience on different devices. The Dawn theme is a great option, but you’ll find plenty of themes on Shopify—both free and paid—that can match your unique style! If you want to check how mobile-friendly your theme is, Google’s Lighthouse tool is a great option!
And if you’re still working on getting your store ready, no worries at all! You can keep it private until you feel ready to launch. Just remember to update the settings on any password-protected pages before you launch. If those pages stay locked, search engines won’t be able to see your content, and that could affect how well your site ranks.
Shopify SEO Apps
I'd love to tell you about the best Shopify apps, but it really depends on what you need for your store. Regardless, I'll break it down for you some fantastic options that can help you take your Shopify game to the next level.
For marketing and conversion, Klaviyo is a great email marketing tool that works seamlessly with Shopify. You can easily build your email list, set up automated campaigns, and keep track of how your customers engage with your content.
Then there’s Judge.me, which helps build trust by displaying product reviews and ratings right on your product pages. It’s a great way to boost customer confidence while shopping. If you’ve ever had a customer ask about a product that’s out of stock, Notify!
Back in Stock is a lifesaver. It notifies customers when their favorite items are available again, helping you snag those sales and keep customers happy.
Conjured Referrals is another awesome app that encourages customers to share your store with friends and family by creating referral programs, driving new sales your way.
And don’t forget about LoyaltyLion, which offers rewards and loyalty programs to keep your customers coming back for more.
Now, if you’re looking to enhance your store's design and management, Bloggle makes it super easy to create a blog for your store with its drag-and-drop features, allowing you to customize it to match your brand effortlessly.
Booster SEO is a comprehensive SEO tool that helps you optimize your store for search engines, giving your visibility a nice boost.
If you need to manage your data, Matrixify lets you import, export, and manage all your store data without the hassle.
Wisepops is great for creating eye-catching pop-ups that capture email addresses, promote products, or offer discounts.
And if you’re considering subscriptions, Recharge makes managing recurring payments for products or services a breeze, keeping customers engaged.
If you want good customer support, try using Gorgias. It helps you manage customer questions easily, so you can focus on what's really important: to provide great service.
Polar Analytics is also helpful because it shows you what your customers want, making it easier to improve your store.
For shipping and fulfillment, ShipStation is a great choice. It makes shipping tasks easier, helping you get orders out faster.
AfterShip keeps your customers updated on their order status, which improves their shopping experience.
If you're doing local deliveries, EasyRoutes Delivery helps you find the fastest routes, saving you time and money.
For creating shipping labels, Locksmith is simple to use and takes away the stress of that process.
With these tools, you’re on a good path to success!
2. On-Page SEO Optimization
On-page SEO is the process of optimizing your website's appearance and structure so people can find it easily. You don’t have to tackle everything at once; focus on key elements step by step. It improves how search engines like Google rank and display your pages and this involves things like improving site speed, using relevant keywords, structuring content clearly, and keeping your code clean.
Now let's talk about the basic on-page SEO aspects that you should always keep an eye on.
Keyword research
One of the first things you want to tackle on your Shopify store is the keywords you want to target.
So, start with some keyword research. Basically, you have to figure out how people are searching for your products.
There are some cool exercises you can try, other than using the right tools.
First, try to think like your customer. I know that sounds obvious, but really, put yourself in their shoes. What would you search for if you were looking for your product? Brainstorm some less obvious terms or ways people describe what you’re selling in everyday language.
Also, not everyone searches the same way, so covering variations of your keywords can help you show up more often.
Then you can check out what keywords your competitors are using and what's working well so that you can try them out too. Yes, tools like SEMrush can help, but you can also just do some manual checking yourself.
Another thing, focus on the intent behind keywords. You have to understand if someone is searching to buy, or just to get more info on a topic or product.
Of course, never forget that seasonal events or trendy topics might be a good business opportunity so keep an eye on Google Trends to be up to date.
Title Tags and Meta Descriptions
A title tag is an HTML element that gives a title for your webpage, which search engines and browsers use to display and understand what your page is about. You’ll see it in search results, browser tabs, and when your page is shared on social media.
Let’s use “How to Gain Topical Authority” as an example. Not only does it show up in the browser tab to help users keep track of their open pages but it also appears as the clickable headline in Google’s search results. And finally, it can show up in link previews on social media, encouraging more clicks.
You want to keep it between 50 and 60 characters so it doesn’t get cut off and the fact that it's optimized, it makes the visibility better.
Make sure the title tag matches your H1 on the page for consistency. Avoid stuffing too many keywords or using the same title tag on multiple pages. Just keep it clear, relevant, and easy for users (and Google) to understand!
A meta description is a short summary of your webpage that shows up under the title and URL in Google search results. While it doesn’t directly impact your rankings, a good meta description can help convince people to click on your link, which can boost your click-through rate and, ultimately, your visibility.
To write a strong meta description, keep it clear and concise—around 105 characters for mobile and slightly longer for desktop. Make sure it aligns with the searcher’s intent and includes the target keyword, as Google often highlights it in the search results, making it stand out more.
Adding a call to action like “Shop Now,” “Learn More,” or “Sign Up Today” makes it even more engaging and inviting for users. Just remember to make each meta description unique for every page to avoid confusion and maximize the effectiveness of your SEO.
URLs
Think of URLs as the addresses to your content, and by keeping them short and organized, you’re helping both users and search engines find their way around.
Shorter URLs don’t just rank better, they’re easier to share and spread, which means more eyes on your page. And when you organize similar content into directories, like putting all your policies in one folder and promotions in another, Google notices. It crawls the parts of your site that change more frequently, keeping everything up to date.
Content Quality
Creating content that’s valuable and relevant is the key to connecting with your audience. When you’re writing, always think about what your readers are truly searching for. If they have questions, your job is to give them the most complete and helpful answers.
Also, always keep your content fresh. Google loves updated content, and so do your readers. Regular updates show you’re staying ahead of trends and keep your audience engaged. So, don’t just create once—let your content evolve along with your readers’ needs.
For instance, someone looking for “quick SEO tips” probably also wants tools, examples, and strategies to apply those tips successfully. The more helpful and in-depth you are, the more your readers will trust you and keep coming back.
3. Technical SEO
When we talk about technical SEO for your Shopify store, we talk about how you help Google and other search engines understand your site, but it's also about making things easier for your visitors.
First, organizing your site’s navigation is crucial. Imagine going to a store where nothing’s in the right place—it’s frustrating, right? Well, the same goes for your online store. Creating logical menus and internal links, like what Gymshark does with their simple “Men’s” and “Women’s” categories, helps visitors find what they’re looking for easily, and it also tells search engines which pages are most important.
Then there’s your sitemap. Submitting it to Google Search Console is like handing Google a map to your store. It ensures the search engine knows how to index your pages properly. Shopify makes this part easy because it automatically generates the sitemap for you. You just need to submit it and check Google Search Console regularly to catch any issues.
Now... images. You know how slow-loading pages can really kill the user experience? That’s often due to large images. Shopify does some of the heavy lifting by using WebP to compress images, but it’s still good practice to resize your images to keep load times fast. Plus, adding descriptive file names and alt text helps both your users (especially those with visual impairments) and search engines understand what the images are about.
I genuinely care about making this all click for you because once you get these basics down, everything else starts to fall into place. It’s not just about making Google happy—it’s about creating a better experience for the people visiting your store. So, take it step by step, and soon you'll see the difference it makes in how your site performs and how visitors interact with it. You're building a foundation that’ll set your store up for success!
While on-page SEO focuses on what users see, technical SEO improves the backend structure of your Shopify store, ensuring better crawlability and performance.
Site Speed Optimization
Let's be honest, whenever a website takes forever to load, most of us just leaves it before we even take a look. So that's why site speed is a big thing when it comes to SEO, basically it affects the user's experience. And once Google notices this, it will most likely affect your ranking. Plus, a speedy site keeps visitors around, and that’s the whole goal, right?
So, how do you optimize for speed? One big factor is your images. Compress them! Large, high-resolution images look great but can drag down your load times. Tools like Shopify’s built-in image optimization (using WebP) or other plugins can help reduce the size without sacrificing quality. Also, implement lazy loading—this basically means images only load when they’re needed (like when someone scrolls down to them), which helps speed up the initial page load.
Then, you have minifying CSS and JavaScript files. It sounds technical, but it’s just a way of cutting out unnecessary characters in your code that make it bulkier and slower. Most Shopify themes are already optimized for this, but you can always use apps to help or manually check that everything is trimmed down. In short, the faster your site, the better your SEO and user experience.
A fast website improves both user experience and rankings. Compress images, use lazy loading, and minify CSS/JavaScript files.
Mobile Optimization
Most people browse the web on their phones these days, so if your Shopify store doesn’t work well on mobile, you’re going to lose out. Google also uses mobile-first indexing, which means it prioritizes the mobile version of your site when ranking it. Make sure your store looks great and runs smoothly on phones by testing it using Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test. If it doesn’t pass, consider using a mobile-optimized theme or making small tweaks to simplify your design for smaller screens.
Schema Markup
Schema markup essentially speeds up the process for search engines by giving them specific, structured information, rather than leaving them to figure it out on their own through natural language processing (which can be hit or miss). It’s a way to organize your website’s content into clear entities like people, places and products, so that search engines don’t have to guess what’s on your page.
JSON-LD is the most popular method and allows you to add a block of schema code to your website without cluttering up your HTML. If you do this, you're following Google preferences because this format is neat.
But the real magic happens with visibility. When Google can better understand your page, it can serve up your content more accurately for the right search queries. Plus, with features like voice search growing, schema helps search engines quickly pull out relevant information for those instant answers people expect.
Incorporating schema isn’t just about improving your ranking—it’s about providing a better experience for users and making your content more accessible to search engines. It’s one of those small, behind-the-scenes steps that can have a big impact over time, especially when paired with other SEO strategies. So, if you want to boost your site's visibility and enhance how your content is presented, schema markup is a must-have in your SEO toolkit.
4. Off-Page SEO Strategies: Building Authority Beyond Your Store
Off-page SEO focuses on signals that build credibility and trust, such as backlinks from high-authority domains.
Digital PR and Outreach
Digital PR is a way to help your brand grow its online presence and connect with people in a more meaningful way. It’s not just about getting attention, it’s about building trust and making sure your brand stands out for all the right reasons.
The main idea is to get your brand mentioned in blogs, news sites, or even by influencers.
A big part of digital PR is earning what are called backlinks,this is when other websites link back to yours. We'll talk about them next chapter. But beyond links, digital PR is about shaping the way your brand is perceived online. It’s about telling your brand’s story, engaging with your audience on social media, and managing your reputation so people see your brand in the best light.
Outreach is a key part of growing your Shopify business, and I want to make sure you really understand how it can make a difference. It’s all about building genuine relationships with bloggers, influencers, and industry experts who already have a strong following. When you reach out to them, and they mention or link to your store, it takes your name and business to a whole new audience who might take interest in you. But it not only helps put your brand in front of new customers but also builds trust and credibility. People are more likely to check out your products when they hear about them from someone they already trust.
Link Building
To put it simply, we call link building to the process of getting other websites to link to your site. And this is great because it's interpreted by search engines that your site is more valuable the more sites are linked to you and you will rank higher!
Looking at your competitors helps you understand what’s working for them. If they’re getting links from other websites, it means they’re probably doing something right. By figuring out where they’re getting those links, you can learn strategies that might work for you too. You can also reach out to the sites linking to your competitors and explain why they should link to your content. Maybe you have unique insights or fresh information that their audience would find valuable.
It’s like checking out the competition to see how you can improve your game!
Next, guest posting is still a great way to get links. But don't just write anything. Find a website that your audience would like and write something that will help them. A personalized approach shows that you care and makes you stand out.
Another fun way to get links is to create content that people can't resist: do research, make cool infographics, or write in-depth reports. This kind of stuff is so much more likely to catch the attention of bloggers and journalists who are always looking for new stuff to share!!
Don't just ask for links! Building relationships is also super important, especially when you get the chance to show how you can help other websites, for example, by mentioning their work in your articles or include them in a list of helpful resources. When you build genuine connections, people are more likely to link to you without even being asked.
Finally, keep track of when people mention your brand online but don’t link to you. You can use tools like Google Alerts for this. If you find a mention, send a friendly message asking them to add a link.
Social Media Integration
These days everyone is familiar with platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok. These are used by millions every day, whether it’s sharing updates with friends or discovering new trends.
If you’re running a business, it’s crucial to be where your customers are, and these days, that’s on social media.
When you set up your Shopify store, think of it as your online shop. But to really thrive, you need to connect with your audience where they spend their time. Social media is a perfect bridge for that connection.
When your customers see the real you on social media, they start to trust you more. Always show yourself available and open to their questions and show that you’re listening. This kind of honesty builds a loyal community that genuinely believes in what you’re doing.
Their feedback can guide you in ways you might not even realize. When they share their thoughts, it helps you understand what’s going well and where you might need to make some changes.
Each time you post, it’s a chance to shine a light on your fantastic products and special deals. Invite your followers to explore what you have to offer and show them what makes your brand unique.
If there's any opportunity, work with other brands and influencers. It helps you reach more people and builds trust in a genuine way.
Learnings Recap
Let’s recap what we talked about.
Start with your title tags, meta descriptions, and URLs. Think of these as friendly signs that help visitors and search engines know what your pages are about. The simpler, the better!
Content is really important. Create unique, high-quality pieces that your audience will find helpful. What questions do they have? How can you answer them? Keeping your content fresh shows Google you’re on top of things and keeps your readers interested.
Speed matters too. We all know how annoying it is to wait for a page to load, right? Try optimizing your images and cleaning up any extra code to make your site run faster. Little things like compressing images can really help your visitors and boost your search rankings.
Don’t forget about mobile optimization. With so many people shopping on their phones, it’s crucial that your store looks good and works well on smaller screens. Google checks the mobile version of your site for rankings, so making it mobile-friendly is a must. You’re doing great by focusing on these areas!
Structured data is something to keep in mind. It helps search engines understand your content better, which can make a real difference in how your site appears in search results.
When it comes to backlinks, remember that quality matters more than quantity. Getting links from reliable sites can really boost your credibility and rankings. It might take some time, but it’s definitely worth it. Consider reaching out to other site owners, writing guest posts, or creating awesome content that others want to link to.
Take advantage of the cool SEO tools Shopify offers. They can help with keyword research, on-page optimization, and all that stuff that’ll improve your site’s performance. And don’t forget—SEO is an ongoing process. Keep checking your strategy and making adjustments as needed.
I know it can feel like a lot, but taking these steps one at a time will really help. You’re going to see your store’s visibility grow, and your visitors will have a better experience. I’m here cheering you on, so let’s make this happen together!
