Mastering the SERPs: The Importance Ranking Product Pages and Category Pages

Broad and Specific Search Terms

Keyword research is an imperative part of the process when it comes to SEO – it’s the work involved with identifying high-intent keywords that potential customers use in their searches. It stands to reason that you would go after keywords that have a high search volume (you can check these numbers with the right SEO tools), however it’s equally important to consider the intent of the user and the competition. What do we mean by that?Well, some search terms are more generic and thus generally have a higher search volume given that they are more broad. Naturally, the more broad and ‘all-encompassing’ a keyword is, the more pages it is relevant for. If it is more relevant for more pages and less specific a term, chances are the competition is higher and is therefore more difficult to rank for.An example is seen above – the search results for ‘shoes for men’ is going to be relevant for all sorts of different websites. Someone searching for this may be looking for information and discussion about shoes on blogs or review sites. But even assuming they are looking to buy shoes, we have no information about the shoes they are looking for, whether they are running shoes, sneakers or boots, whether they are on a budget or looking for something higher end and we have no idea how far down the buying cycle they are. So supposing you start ranking for this term and earn a click from Google, it’s anyone’s guess if the landing page is going to give them what they want. Ranking for this keyword is akin to throwing out an enormous net into the ocean; you don’t know exactly what you are going to catch.In comparison, a search term like ‘air max 95 premium grain’ will not have nearly the search volume as the previous example, but there is evidence that the searcher is much closer to making a purchase, and we know the exact kind of page we need to send them to in order to make the most of the click. To use our previous example, by optimizing for this search term, you are fishing with bait that your target is interested in and in an area where you know they are active.You can see that implementing a strategy that helps you rank for specific, low-volume and long-tail keywords or keywords that are more product-specific, can potentially be more beneficial and impact your revenue in a clearer way.

The Best Approach

The ideal strategy with regard to SEO obviously incorporates both of these strategies. After all, the name of the game is owning as much real estate as you can. You want to be showing up in SERPs for both general and specific searches. Get your brand out there by ranking for general terms related to your products and send users to your category pages or home page. And while you’re doing that, work on your individual product pages to make sure that they are showing up when a user has their heart set on a specific product that you supply.It’s worth noting that Google Ads (particularly shopping ads) can help you show up in SERPs for those specific product searches. Some online retailers will use ads to ensure they are targeting these searches, skew their SEO efforts more toward general terms, and provide information on products in their blogs and other places. The idea here is to appear in SERPs for informational based searches, whether via rich snippets or conventional listings. This, again, is about casting a wide net and capturing more users at the top of the sales funnel, a viable strategy that can be very effective.Understanding Your BrandOften, the best strategy will also depend on your brand and what point of growth it is at, as well as the kinds of products you stock. If you are somewhat established, you may find it easier to rank for competitive general keywords. If you are starting out, going niche and specific is a better option.

• For niche products with specific search queries, focusing on product pages might be more beneficial.
• For stores with a wide range of products, optimizing category pages can attract users at the top of the funnel, guiding them to specific products through internal linking and navigation.

At the end of the day, knowing how your customers intersect with your brand is super important. Here are some things to be mindful of regardless of your strategy for SEO.Understand Your Audience: Use keyword research to understand how your audience searches for your products.Optimise for Intent: Tailor your pages to match the search intent, whether it’s informational (category pages) or transactional (product pages).Use Internal Linking: Strengthen the relationship between category and product pages with strategic internal linking.Content Quality: Ensure both product and category pages have high-quality, unique content that provides value to the user.