SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is crucial for any eCommerce business, including BigCommerce stores. Good SEO helps your store rank higher on search engines like Google, making it easier for customers to find you.
When done right, SEO drives organic traffic—visitors who come to your store without paid ads—and leads to more sales and long-term growth.
Working with a BigCommerce SEO service can take the guesswork out of optimizing your store. From improving your site’s technical performance to crafting keyword-rich content, these services help make your store more visible and user-friendly, giving you an edge in a crowded marketplace.
Let’s explore what a professional BigCommerce SEO service can offer and how it impacts your store’s success.
Initial Website Audit and Analysis
The first step any reputable BigCommerce SEO service will take is a comprehensive SEO audit. This audit looks at every aspect of your store’s current SEO performance to identify what is working, what’s not, and where improvements can be made.
The audit covers three key areas:
Technical SEO: This involves evaluating the backend of your website, including site speed, mobile responsiveness, URL structure, and security (such as HTTPS). These technical elements affect how search engines crawl and index your site.
On-page SEO: Focuses on the content and structure of your product pages, category pages, and blog posts. It involves reviewing elements like meta tags, headings, and internal links to see if they are optimized for relevant keywords.
Off-page SEO: This includes reviewing the quality and quantity of backlinks that are pointing to your site, as well as your store’s online reputation. A strong backlink profile is essential for building domain authority and improving rankings.
Competitor analysis and keyword research
Along with the audit, a thorough competitor analysis is performed. The SEO service will examine your top competitors, looking at their SEO strategies, keyword rankings, and backlink profiles. This analysis helps identify gaps in your own strategy and uncovers opportunities where your store can gain a competitive edge.
Finally, keyword research is a key part of the initial audit. The service will identify high-value keywords specific to your products and industry. These are the search terms your target customers are using, and optimizing for them is critical for attracting the right traffic.
A well-researched keyword strategy ensures that your BigCommerce store ranks for terms that are not only relevant but also capable of driving sales.
Technical SEO Optimization
Once the initial audit is complete, the next step is optimizing your store’s technical SEO. This involves fine-tuning the behind-the-scenes elements that directly impact how search engines view and rank your site.
Here are the key areas a BigCommerce SEO service will focus on:
Site speed optimization
Your store’s load time has a significant impact on both user experience and search rankings. Slow sites not only frustrate visitors but also cause search engines to rank your store lower.
A good SEO service will work on optimizing your site speed by compressing images, reducing unnecessary scripts, and leveraging browser caching. Faster load times lead to better rankings and a smoother customer experience, which can translate into higher sales.
Mobile optimization
With more shoppers using mobile devices, ensuring your BigCommerce store is fully optimized for mobile is essential. Mobile optimization means your store should load quickly and display correctly on smartphones and tablets.
Google’s mobile-first indexing prioritizes sites that perform well on mobile devices, so an SEO service will focus on responsive design and optimizing elements like images, buttons, and menus for smaller screens.
A mobile-optimized store improves both search rankings and customer satisfaction.
URL structure and metadata
URLs and metadata may seem like small details, but they play a big role in SEO. A well-structured URL helps search engines understand the content of each page, while metadata (such as title tags, meta descriptions, and alt texts) improves visibility in search results.
A BigCommerce SEO service will optimize your URLs to be clean and descriptive, using keywords where appropriate. They’ll also craft compelling meta tags and ensure alt text for images is optimized.
Security enhancements
Security is non-negotiable—both for users and search engines. An SEO service will ensure that your BigCommerce store is secure by using HTTPS, which not only protects customer data but is also a confirmed ranking factor for Google.
An HTTPS-enabled site signals trustworthiness to both visitors and search engines, improving your store’s SEO performance and making users more likely to complete purchases.
On-Page BigCommerce SEO Strategies
On-page SEO focuses on optimizing the elements within your BigCommerce store that directly influence how search engines and customers engage with your site.
Here’s what you can expect from a BigCommerce SEO service in this area:
Content optimization
Your store’s existing content—whether it’s product descriptions, category pages, or landing pages—needs to be optimized for target keywords.
An SEO service will ensure that your content is relevant, interesting, and contains the right keywords to help search engines understand what each page is about. This includes not only integrating keywords naturally but also improving the readability and clarity of the content so customers stay on your site longer and are more likely to convert.
Internal linking
Internal links connect different pages within your store, helping users navigate more easily while also signaling to search engines how your content is related.
A well-structured internal linking strategy makes it easier for search engines to crawl your site and helps distribute “link equity” across important pages. SEO providers will audit and optimize internal links to improve site navigation and guide users toward key products or categories, enhancing both user experience and SEO performance.
SEO-friendly product pages
Product pages are at the heart of any eCommerce store, and they need to be optimized to rank well and drive conversions. SEO services focus on improving product page elements like meta tags, product titles, and descriptions by incorporating relevant keywords.
Additionally, they’ll use structured data (also known as schema markup) to help search engines understand important details about your products. This optimization improves visibility in search results and increases the likelihood of users clicking through to your site.
Content creation
Fresh, high-quality content is key to driving organic traffic. A comprehensive SEO service will not only optimize existing content but also create new content designed to attract and engage visitors. This could include blog posts, product guides, how-to articles, or other valuable resources that align with your target audience’s search intent.
Publishing regular, SEO-optimized content gives your store more opportunities to rank for various keywords, which increases traffic and builds authority in your niche.
Off-Page BigCommerce SEO and Link Building
Off-page SEO involves activities outside your website that influence your search rankings. A major component of off-page SEO is building trust and authority for your BigCommerce store through backlinks and social signals.
Here’s what to expect from a BigCommerce SEO service in this area:
Ethical link building
Backlinks—links from other websites pointing to yours—are one of the most important ranking factors for search engines.
However, not all backlinks are created equal. A reputable SEO service will focus on ethical link building, meaning they’ll seek high-quality backlinks from reputable sources relevant to your industry. These links boost your store’s domain authority and signal to search engines that your site is trusted and valuable.
The key here is quality over quantity, as spammy links can hurt your rankings.
Partnerships and outreach
To build those high-quality links, SEO providers often use partnerships and outreach strategies. This involves reaching out to relevant websites, blogs, or influencers in your niche to secure backlinks or guest post opportunities.
For instance, if your BigCommerce store sells eco-friendly products, an SEO provider might collaborate with sustainability blogs to feature your products or write guest posts that link back to your store. This increases your visibility, drives referral traffic, and boosts SEO performance.
Social signals
While not a direct ranking factor, social signals—likes, shares, and mentions on platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter—can complement your SEO efforts. A strong social media presence can drive traffic to your site, and content that is shared widely on social platforms often earns natural backlinks from other sites.
SEO providers will often work with your social media strategy to ensure your content is engaging and shareable, creating a positive feedback loop between SEO and social visibility.
Ongoing Monitoring and Reporting
SEO is not a one-time task—it requires consistent tracking and adjustments to ensure long-term success. A professional BigCommerce SEO service will provide ongoing monitoring and regular reports to keep you informed of your site’s performance and progress. Here’s what you can expect:
Performance tracking
A critical part of any SEO service is performance tracking. Your SEO provider will regularly monitor key metrics such as organic traffic, keyword rankings, conversion rates, and bounce rates.
Regularly keeping an eye on these data points lets them identify which strategies are working and where improvements are needed. For example, if a particular keyword is driving high traffic but low conversions, the SEO team can analyze why and adjust the approach accordingly.
Monthly reports
Expect detailed monthly reports from your SEO provider. These reports will summarize your store’s performance, including changes in keyword rankings, traffic growth, and any shifts in conversions.
Additionally, they will outline the specific work completed that month—such as content optimizations, link-building efforts, or technical improvements—and explain the impact of these changes. The monthly report helps you stay in the loop and see the tangible progress made over time.
Data-driven adjustments
SEO is an ongoing process, and as new data comes in, your provider should make data-driven adjustments. For instance, if keyword rankings stagnate, they might tweak your content strategy or focus on new keyword opportunities.
If organic traffic increases but conversions remain low, they may work with you to optimize product pages or improve calls-to-action. These continuous refinements ensure that your SEO strategy evolves and adapts based on actual performance, driving sustainable growth for your BigCommerce store.
User Experience (UX) and SEO Alignment
A successful BigCommerce SEO strategy goes hand in hand with a strong user experience (UX). Search engines prioritize sites that not only perform well technically but also provide a seamless experience for users.
Here’s how a BigCommerce SEO service aligns SEO efforts with UX improvements:
Site navigation
Effective site navigation is crucial for both users and search engines. A well-organized, easy-to-navigate website helps visitors quickly find what they’re looking for, reducing bounce rates and improving engagement. From an SEO perspective, clear navigation also helps search engines crawl and index your site efficiently.
An SEO provider will optimize your store’s menu structure, internal linking, and category hierarchy to ensure that users and search engines can easily navigate through your content and products.
Page load times
Fast page load times are essential for a smooth user experience and are a direct ranking factor for SEO. Slow-loading pages can frustrate users, leading to higher bounce rates and lost sales.
To keep visitors engaged and improve your rankings, an SEO service will continually optimize your store’s load times by minimizing file sizes, leveraging browser caching, and reducing unnecessary scripts.
Faster load times lead to a better user experience and a stronger SEO performance.
Conversion rate optimization (CRO)
SEO and Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) often overlap, as the ultimate goal of both is to turn visitors into paying customers. While SEO drives traffic to your site, CRO ensures that this traffic converts.
A comprehensive SEO service will analyze your store’s conversion funnel—examining product pages, checkout processes, and calls-to-action—to identify barriers that may be preventing visitors from completing purchases.
Communication and Support
When you hire a BigCommerce SEO service, effective communication and reliable support are just as important as the technical work being done.
Here’s what you should expect in terms of communication and support:
Regular updates
A good SEO provider will offer consistent communication to keep you informed about ongoing efforts and results. This includes regular updates on what actions have been taken, the progress of key metrics, and any new opportunities that have been identified.
Clear communication ensures you stay informed and can make decisions based on up-to-date information.
Strategy adjustments
SEO is a dynamic field, and search engine algorithms change frequently. A proactive BigCommerce SEO service will adjust strategies to keep up with these changes and shifts in market trends.
An agile SEO provider will continuously refine their approach to keep your store competitive.
Customer support
Finally, a reliable BiCommerce SEO provider will offer dedicated customer support to address any questions or issues that arise. Having a responsive support team ensures you’re never left in the dark, whether you need clarification on a report, help troubleshooting an SEO-related problem, or advice on a new initiative.
Strong customer support helps build trust and ensures that your SEO efforts run smoothly, even when challenges come up.
Long-Term Strategy and Results
SEO is not a quick fix; it’s an investment in sustainable growth for your BigCommerce store. Here’s what to expect when looking at SEO as a long-term strategy:
SEO is a long-term game
Unlike paid ads, which can generate immediate traffic but stop as soon as you pull the plug, SEO takes time to show results.
Ranking higher in search engines requires ongoing optimization and consistent effort. It may take months before you see significant improvements in rankings and traffic, but these results are far more durable. Over time, as your site gains authority and relevance, your organic traffic can grow steadily without the ongoing cost of paid campaigns.
Building a foundation for future growth
The most successful SEO strategies focus on building a strong foundation. It is consistently improving technical SEO, creating quality content, and acquiring high-quality backlinks to set your store up for long-term success. This steady work creates a solid foundation that ensures your site is primed to grow, even as algorithms and market conditions change.
As your site’s domain authority increases, it becomes easier to rank for competitive keywords, giving you a strong competitive edge.
Balancing quick wins and long-term gains
While SEO is a long-term investment, there are still immediate wins that can drive quicker results. For instance, optimizing high-traffic pages, improving site speed, and fixing critical technical issues can provide a short-term boost to rankings and traffic.
However, the overall strategy should balance these quick improvements with long-term goals, such as building authority in your niche, targeting broader keyword opportunities, and continuously refining your content strategy. This combination of short-term wins and long-term gains ensures ongoing growth and lasting success.
Don’t Leave Your BigCommerce Growth to Chance
Choosing the right BigCommerce SEO provider is key to ensuring your store’s long-term success. The right partner will deliver consistent growth, improve user experience, and help your business thrive in a competitive market. Investing in a service that understands BigCommerce’s unique needs is the smart move for sustained visibility and sales.
We at Epic specialize in optimizing BigCommerce stores with tailored SEO strategies. Whether you’re looking to drive more traffic, enhance your site’s performance, or boost conversions, we’ve got you covered.
Let’s work together to unlock your store’s full potential—get in touch with Epic today!
