internal site search can give you a competitive edge in enterprise SEO

Most large sites ignore the power of internal searches and behavior data.

Internal search can provide crucial insight into what customers want. It’s a must-have tool for any SEO campaign.

SEO success is based on context

Internal search data and behavioral data can provide context to unlock the “why” of the “what”.

This helps you go beyond the keyword to a deeper understanding of your customer’s needs and intentions.

• Where are your users located?
• What are they doing?
• Are they more likely to search, refine and discover, or browse, discover, and get inspired?
• What kind of content is engaging to them?
• Where can they be dropped off?
• What types of searches are most likely to occur in the same session?
• Is there a clear pattern of site use, seasonality or demographics?

It’s like a treasure-hunt.

You can improve your SEO by modifying search queries to include refinements, sorting and location.

Internal search: Unlocking the business value

Smaller sites that are looking to grow can benefit from many third-party tools.

External tools are rarely able to match the behavioral patterns left by customers on a website that is well-established.

Search data from within your company will give you more accurate, relevant and up-to date information that can be used to improve your SEO and business goals.

Although it’s appealing to focus on a few keywords with high volume, and to rank higher than the competition in areas of high visibility, this is not sufficient to create a successful SEO strategy.

In the long run, it is more beneficial to focus on different aspects of search behavior in order to better understand what users want.

Google searches include a large number of brand new, never before seen queries, which present many opportunities.

Drive business value

Search engine optimization (SEO) is all about achieving top rankings on search engines and maximizing traffic.

There are many beginner case studies on the web that show screenshots of Google Analytics showing increases in organic session numbers. These results are presented as unquestionable wins without any further comment about the quality or relevance.

The seasoned SEO professional knows that the real challenge lies in capturing the eyeballs and clickings that will drive value to your business.

If your site is fantastic, it is also worth determining which clicks are not valuable and deciding whether to reduce this unwanted traffic.

Understanding your audience, their clicks and the value they bring to you is essential for building an SEO strategy that will help you achieve your business goals and maximize profits.

A data-driven strategy must consider the trifecta of demand, supply and location. You’re halfway there if you know what your users need and where they want it.

Location, location,location

Location information is useful for determining search behavior, purchasing trends, and more.

These data are often available internally at different geographical levels, such as city, township, village, or even country. They allow for a more targeted and effective SEO strategy.

Consider this example: While conducting keyword research for an online marketplace or classifieds site, you find that “firewood” is a popular search term in Canada.

You’ve got great news. Do you want to create a landing page with top-level info about firewood and compete with Wikipedia?

Do you choose a product page that is well-rounded and try to compete with Amazon or Wayfair?

You will likely decide against creating a page that is optimized for “firewood Canada” because you know that few people are looking for firewood from across Canada.

Internal search data is extremely valuable in this case.

This can help you understand the exact context of firewood searches in Canada. They are primarily in rural areas, and they peak in the fall.

The level of understanding is sufficient to create localized, targeted content.

The willingness of people to travel can vary greatly depending on their goals.

While some people might travel across the country to find a rare item like a single-engine vintage airplane, local services such as pizza or flower delivery are more common.

It’s possible for a large website with robust internal searching to eliminate the guesswork and gain insights by observing how users interact and refine the search.

By observing how users interact with proximity sorting, you can tell the distance they are willing and able to travel.

It’s also worth noting that not all places are created equal. Population density, inventory levels, competition and geography all play a role in determining the localization aspect of your SEO strategy.

Location entities in cities may cover a small area – the level of a neighbourhood could be enough to give a competitive edge for certain searches.

In regions such as Canada’s North, an area can cover hundreds, or even thousands, of kilometers.

Co-occurrence

The search behavior of large sites is not random. Some keyword searches appear at the same time as others.

Users searching for cutlery may also be looking for towels, cutting board, and can openers.

There may be opportunities to create content that includes kitchen appliances and furniture in a broader sense.

A bookshop that discovers that customers who search for Harry Potter also frequently search for Lord of the Rings might consider broader fantasy content in order to attract higher-funnel traffic that is relevant to the business.

Attributes and refinements

Similar, repeated combinations or sequences or filters or attributes can provide important signals which can be used for SEO.

Word of caution: You might find it tempting to automatically generate a maximum of pages by pairing each category or search to every possible location and see what sticks.

It’s unlikely that all your products are searched for in every location. You always have inventory on hand.

If you overdo it, you run the risk of diluting your page authority and producing large volumes of thin and duplicate content that has no real value.

The SEO nightmare is compounded by the risk of site outages and combinatorial explosions when crawlers are in a frenzy.

Data-driven site architecture

Search and behavior data from within the site can be used to guide the creation of a Site Architecture which benefits both user experience and search engine optimization.

This is a dynamic taxonomy of a site that takes into account local search demand and existing inventory as well as seasonality, emerging trends, and market conditions.

It is important to optimize crawl paths to ensure the best possible content for users and search engines.

You can capture new trends by using a robust localized taxonomy that is responsive to seasonality and search trends.

Search data is the key to understanding your audience

Understanding your customers’ needs and how to leverage internal search data are key factors in leveraging this data.

This allows you to go beyond the decontextualized keyword and focus on a cleaner SEO that is smarter, which will bring value to your business.

Internal data is a multidimensional and complex tool that should be a part of your SEO arsenal. It will help you achieve the competitive edge you need.

The article How internal site search can give you a competitive edge for enterprise SEO first appeared on Search Engineland.