Disclosure: Some tool links are affiliate links. If you sign up, we earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. We only recommend tools we'd use ourselves.
SEO & Keyword Research
Why This Matters
Every day you operate without SEO, you're paying for traffic that could be free. A well-optimized product page ranks for years and sends you buyers who are actively searching for what you sell — at $0 per click. Meanwhile, Facebook ads cost $1-3 per click and stop the second you pause the campaign.
Keyword research reveals the exact words your customers type into Google when looking for products like yours. Using those words in your titles, descriptions, and URLs is the difference between showing up on page one and being invisible. Long-tail keywords (3-5 word phrases like "organic soy candle for meditation") convert 2-3x better than broad terms because the searcher already knows what they want.
Stop thinking of SEO as a technical skill and start thinking of it as customer research with a search engine. You're discovering the language your buyers actually use, then speaking it back to them. Small stores win on long-tail keywords because big brands don't bother targeting them. That's your advantage.
What You'll Do
Research and document your target keywords for each product page, collection page, and blog topic. Optimize your page titles and meta descriptions.
How To Do It
Keyword Research Workflow: From Seed Words to Content Map
This takes about 90 minutes and creates the SEO foundation for every page on your site.
1. Generate seed keywords (15 min)
Start with 5-10 broad terms that describe your products. If you sell handmade candles, your seeds are: "scented candles," "soy candles," "candle gift set," "aromatherapy candles." Type these into Google and Amazon — the autocomplete suggestions are free keyword research showing what real people search for.
2. Expand to long-tail keywords (20 min)
- 100-10,000 monthly searches (the sweet spot for small stores)
- Competition score under 40 (Ubersuggest calls this "SD")
- Clear purchase intent ("buy soy candles online" beats "how are candles made")
Plug each seed into Ubersuggest or Mangools KWFinder. You're hunting for 3-5 word phrases with:
Export results and collect 30-50 long-tail keywords total. Questions make excellent blog topics ("what is the best soy candle for relaxation?").
3. Group keywords by intent (15 min)
- Product page: High purchase intent like "lavender soy candle 8oz" — goes in product titles and descriptions
- Collection page: Category-level terms like "soy candles for meditation" — becomes collection/category page titles
- Blog: Informational intent like "how to make your home smell amazing" — becomes blog post topics
Sort keywords into three buckets:
4. Map keywords to pages (20 min)
Create a spreadsheet: Keyword, Search Volume, Competition, Target Page. Assign each keyword to one specific page. Every product page gets 1 primary keyword and 2-3 secondary keywords. Never target the same keyword on two pages — that causes cannibalization where your pages compete against each other.
5. Optimize your existing pages (20 min)
- The page title (H1 tag)
- The URL slug
- The meta description (under 155 characters)
- The first 100 words of body copy
- At least one image alt tag
For each page, place your target keyword in:
Write naturally — keyword stuffing hurts rankings. One mention per location is enough.
Deliverables
- A keyword research spreadsheet with 30-50 keywords organized by intent (product, collection, blog) with search volume and competition scores
- Each product and collection page assigned a primary keyword and 2-3 secondary keywords
- Page titles, meta descriptions, and URL slugs optimized for target keywords across your store
Recommended Tools
Ubersuggest
Neil Patel's SEO tool. Great for beginners — shows keyword ideas, search volume, and competition in a simple interface.
3 free searches/day
Try UbersuggestAhrefs
Industry-leading SEO toolset. Keyword research, backlink analysis, competitor tracking. Worth the investment if you're serious.
From $99/mo
Try AhrefsMangools
Affordable SEO toolkit with a beautiful UI. KWFinder makes keyword research actually enjoyable.
From $29/mo
Try MangoolsPro Tips
- 1Target keywords with 100-1,000 monthly searches and competition under 30 in Ubersuggest. 'Organic cotton yoga mat for hot yoga' converts 2-3x better than 'yoga mat' and you can rank for it in weeks instead of years. Stack 20 of these long-tail terms and you've built a traffic engine.
- 2Use Ahrefs' free Site Explorer to see which keywords your top 3 competitors rank for. Export the list, filter for keywords with 100+ volume and under 30 difficulty, and you've got a ready-made keyword target list in 10 minutes.
- 3Write your meta descriptions like ad copy — include your primary keyword, a benefit statement, and a call to action. 'Handmade soy candles that fill your room for 60+ hours. Free shipping on orders over $40. Shop now.' Google bolds the matching keywords, which increases click-through rate by 15-25%.