SEO Strategies to Add to Your Holiday Marketing List
October 29, 2018
Halloween is done and gone, and this means one thing and one thing only: it’s time for the holidays! Of course, the upcoming festivities are still some time away, but in the world of marketing they might as well be tomorrow. Soon the market will be completely saturated with holly jolly jingles, glitter and red polished packaging, and the sounds of overplayed Christmas music. The shopping season is upon us, and with it comes the pressure to build a sure-fire search engine optimization plan for short-term success.
Short-term success is important during seasonal rushes like the holidays because they drive results quickly, and spike interest in products and traffic to your website. If you haven’t already begun strategizing for the impending winter shop-a-thon that’s soon to ensue, here are some strategies to add to your list of things to do.
Make Snippets Voice Search Friendly
Snippets are already meant to be an easy read, a first glimpse into the article, blog, or update a consumer is about to click. It provides an opportunity to see what type of content is inside the link before opening it. Recently, voice search has become an integral element in the Google world, with more and more mobile users calling out queries to phones, tablets, and smart speakers, rather than typing. This means that key phrases are becoming even shorter. Rather than typing, “what’s the best taco stand in New York?” someone might just say “show me New York tacos?”.
Once the results load, voice searchers aren’t looking to sit back and read through long lists of potential content. They want answers now and they want it to be easy to read on the go or while multitasking. Whether cooking, working, or jogging, consumers want to see snippets that are easy to take in at a glance. Bullet points are a great way to implement this strategy.
Make SERPs Easy to Navigate: The winter shopping season is tricky for search engine optimization. All year long, we focus on the target audience, what do they want to see? What will they type as a keyword to find it? During the holidays these tactics all go out the window because we’re no longer aiming for our target audience, we’re suddenly aiming for their friends and loved ones. Unfortunately, this means you could be selling to somebody who doesn’t understand your product, or even like it. This is a prime opportunity to turn a profit, increase your customer base by introducing someone to something new, and educate somebody on who you are and what you do.
Rather than loading titles and descriptions with product jargon, think about your product the way that someone would if they’d never heard of such a thing. For example, if you sell magnetic can openers and other kitchen gadgets, you wouldn’t want to use a blog title like, “Top 50 Ballers, Peelers, Cork Screws and More for the Holidays!” A 14-year old boy shopping for mom isn’t going to have any idea what any of these items are. However, if you phrase it to read, “Top 10 Kitchen Gadgets Mom Will Love!”, young Timmy shopping for his mother knows that this is exactly what he needs to read to know what the optimal gift would be for Mom.
Create an Evergreen URL or Update an Old One
An evergreen URL differs from a seasonal URL in that it never goes away. You create this URL as a piece of your website’s main structure. While the link stays the same, the content doesn’t need to, and if you don’t have one yet, the holidays are a great time to set one up. This URL is the best place to highlight top selling products or services, especially the ones which are going to make good holiday gifts. Try something like /Top 10 Bath Bombs or /15 Best Selling Laptops. Whatever you specialize in, this is the place to feature it, and because the URL is so versatile you can swap out old information for new products whenever you like without having to create a new page or even a new article.
Format Keywords with Holidays in Mind
This time of year, the keywords and search phrases consumers use completely change. Instead of, “gift ideas”, you’ll see things like, “diy gift ideas for budget shoppers”, “gifts for men over 50”, or “stocking stuffers for preschoolers”. These very specific keywords can work to your advantage if you have products which fit neatly into one niche or another. Think hard about your target market, who might be buying for them, and what types of questions they would ask. Now work these keywords in naturally.
It’s not just about where you rank that counts, but when you rank. Some products and services are appreciated more after the holidays, such as maid services, family vacation packages, and products for New Year’s rather than Christmas.
Don’t get caught up in the oversaturation of your industry and miss out on all the traffic and sales that come with holiday shopping. ‘Tis the season to get on board with short term SEO and reap the rewards in time for your own seasonal festivities. Black Friday will be on us before you know it, making this a better time than ever to ramp up the promotions, get that cozy winter feeling imbedded in your website, and help consumers think about why they need your products this holiday season.