E-commerce SEO- A Blueprint for Success in the Irish Market

Technology has fundamentally altered consumer purchasing habits, increasingly steering them towards online platforms for both research and shopping. This shift places a premium on visibility in search engine results, making SEO an indispensable tool for e-commerce sites. The thing behind this is simple: since the majority of product searches starting on platforms like Google, you want to secure the top spot  in search results, since this directly affects the financial success of your business. Speaking of money unlike paid advertising, which loses its momentum once the campaign concludes, SEO continues to deliver benefits, ensuring long-term visibility and engagement with potential customers. In fact, organic search remains one of the top sources of revenue for e-commerce websites. 

Are you an online store selling organic Irish food products and need to appeal to health-conscious consumers and those interested in sustainable eating? Or perhaps you run a small business specializing in handmade crafts from local artisans looking target potential customers interested in authentic Irish gifts. Tech companies doubling down on mobile search optimization, with fast loading times and easy navigation, wanting to rank for results on searches like “best tech gadgets Ireland” and “latest smartphones in Dublin”, all through to online fashion retailer boosting their visibility for searches related to fashion in specific Irish cities,  like “affordable fashion Cork” and “exclusive Dublin fashion boutiques online” – things are competitive, and you need toe right strategy to stay ahead.  Let’s look at this and more in this guide for Irish online retailers towards achieving a dominant SEO posture in the market.

An Overview the Irish E-commerce Market

It’s primarily driven by a robust digital infrastructure and a consumer base that’s increasingly leaning into online shopping. Projections suggest that the market is set to see revenue leap to US$7,744.7 million by 2024. And get this: they’re expecting a lively 10.0% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2024 to 2028.  There are lot of opportunities just waiting to be seized.

Thanks to this tech advancements and the fact that smartphones are practically glued to our hands, we’re expecting to see an even bigger boom in mobile commerce. To put things into perspective, figures from the Central Bank of Ireland show that, as of March 2022, nearly half (47%, to be precise) of all spending at checkouts was done online. 

Fashion and clothing are at the forefront of the e-commerce industry, gaining a lot from shopping features built right into social media platforms. It’s also pretty easy to place orders and track delivers from smartphones, even when you’re on the go. Scrolling through newsfeeds and see a dress you want to buy? Simply slide into the business’ DMs or click through to its online store and complete the purchase. Shopping on mobile is one trend that is here to stay.  A noteworthy rise in online retail sales of clothing, footwear, and textiles — from 8.1% in September 2021 to 14.1% in January 2022. This just goes to show how much people are loving the convenience of snapping up their fashion pieces online.

Consumer Behaviour and Trends

For the day-to-day users, they have a diverse range of products available at their fingertips. Between meetings, emails, and business trips, you can barely spend hours shopping for the perfect business casual attire. However, what you can do is browse through digital boutiques on your phone during a quick coffee break. Find that perfect pair of sleek, comfortable heels and a stylish yet professional tote bag, all while waiting for your espresso. You get to maintain a polished, professional image without sacrificing any precious time. Or say you’re a student passionate about sustainability and always on the lookout for eco-friendly fashion choices. With online shopping you can find ethical brands across the globe or right in your local stores. That way you can order for biodegradable sneakers made from recycled materials, while researching for your term papers. 

Teens have not been left behind, keen on keeping up with the latest trends and expressing themselves through their unique styles. While living in a small town can limit access to the diverse fashion offerings found in big cities, the shopping features integrated into social media platforms enable them to buy the latest off-shoulder crop tops and vintage-inspired sunglasses that they see their favorite influencers wearing, all from the comfort of their bedrooms. Fitness enthusiasts looking for high-performance athletic wear that can keep up with his rigorous workouts – those moisture-wicking running shirts and durable compression pants; the elderly who find it challenging to go out for extended shopping trips but can now easily order their favorite cardigans and comfortable shoes online while reading through detailed product descriptions and reviews to make informed decisions from the comfort of their homes – everyone is on board.

The breakdown of the market shows that hobbies and leisure, along with electronics, are big favorites for online shopping. These trends not only highlight how shopping habits are changing, but also point out great opportunities for businesses to explore these growing areas. Plus, with more and more shoppers looking beyond their shores, the Irish e-commerce scene is becoming a melting pot of global tastes and preferences.

Of course, the pandemic played a huge part in this. For instance, it was a big reason why demographics such as the affluent over-65s were pulled into the trend, as they were previously less inclined to shop online. This change isn’t just about more people buying online; it’s also about how often they’re making purchases.  Interestingly, even though more people are trooping to those online stores and brand pages, the average amount spent per transaction has actually dropped a bit. So while they are shopping more often, the amount they are spending per transaction is reduced.

SEO Strategies for Irish Online Retailers

Here are some of the issues that you should be looking into: 

Keyword Research and Market Segmentation

First you want to get a handle on local search trends and how the market is divided up to create an SEO strategy that really connects with your audience.  Electronics and fashion already have the lead as the most popular product categories, followed by toys & DIY, media, and beauty products. A remarkable 84% of online shoppers in Ireland engage in cross-border purchases, the highest rate in Western Europe. So it’s important to integrate both local and international search trends into your SEO strategy. The preference for payment methods has evolved, with digital wallets and bank transfers showing significant growth – meaning you will also need to have a variety of payment options. 

Tools like Semrush come in handy when researching keyword trends, traffic channels, and competitive intelligence, enabling you to pinpoint the keywords that are used most by your audience. A tech shop could focus on optimizing for keywords like “fastest gaming laptops” or “budget smartphones” and include region-specific brands popular in the area. An online boutique might target seasonal trends and specific fashion keywords like “winter coats Ireland” or “sustainable fashion Dublin” to attract local and cross-border European shoppers. And to target DIY enthusiasts, a home improvement online could work with phrases such as “easy home renovation projects” or “DIY tools Ireland” to capture the interest of hobbyists and practical users alike.

When it comes to demographics, the predominant age group of e-commerce users is between 35-44 years old, closely followed by the 45-54 and 25-34 age brackets. Women represent a slightly larger share of the e-commerce market at 52.3%. Interestingly, the income distribution among e-commerce users is evenly spread across low, medium, and high-income brackets. Your SEO needs to be tailored to be the different needs and tastes of the different demographics. 

For the cosmetics company targeting women aged 35-44, relying on vague and broad terms like “skin products” or “makeup” without any geographic or demographic focus would dilute your reach. Instead, you want to go with the likes of “anti-aging skincare” and “organic makeup brands in Ireland”, depending on the kind of products you’re dealing with.

If you run a fitness equipment store targeting folks between in their late 20s and early 30s, try using keywords like “affordable home gym equipment” and “best fitness trackers 2024” to grab their attention. On the other hand, if you’re selling luxury goods to a wealthier crowd, you might want to focus on terms like “designer handbags Ireland” and “luxury watches Dublin” to draw in those high-end shoppers. 

Are you in charge of a restaurant chain with online ordering? Then think about sprucing up your website with keywords like “food delivery app Dublin” and “best takeout near me” to catch the eye of hungry customers. For those of you with an online bookstore, you can tap into the trend of reading on-the-go by focusing on keywords like “e-books Ireland” and “download audiobooks,” which are perfect for mobile users. And if you’re in the travel business specializing in mobile bookings, consider using phrases like “last-minute travel deals from Ireland” and “booking tips for travel” to attract travellers who prefer planning their trips on their smartphones.

On-Page SEO

This focuses on how you structure your website’s elements to boost both its visibility and user engagement. Here’s what to focus on for better performance in search engines and a superior user experience.

1. Keyword Optimization: Utilizing tools like Ubersuggest, Moz Keyword Explorer, or Ahrefs can help you identify high-intent, low-competition keywords that align with what Irish consumers are searching for. This involves analyzing competitors’ strategies to spot opportunities and focusing on long-tail keywords that are specific and have a high purchase intent. Once identified, these keywords should be strategically placed in meta titles, H1 headlines, meta descriptions, blog posts, product, and collection page descriptions, and URLs to improve page visibility on search engines.
2. Building Backlinks and Internal Links: Link building serves to establish your site’s credibility. Invest in quality content that other websites want to link to and building relationships with other brands for backlink opportunities. Simultaneously, internal linking helps distribute page authority and ranking power throughout your site, aiding in navigation and providing structure.
3. Optimizing Product and Collection Pages: Focus on making your collection pages rank, as they are generally easier to optimize and can garner better results compared to individual product pages. Google often prioritizes these pages in search results over single product pages, making them a valuable asset for driving traffic.
4. Utilizing Effective Meta Tags: Compelling and keyword-rich title tags and meta descriptions can significantly impact your click-through rates. These tags help search engines understand the content of your pages, improving your visibility in search results.

Here are some examples:

Electronics Retailer:

• Title Tag: “Buy the Latest Smartphones | TechStore Electronics Ireland”
• Meta Description: “Discover our wide selection of the latest smartphones from top brands. Enjoy fast delivery and great deals only at TechStore Electronics Ireland.”

Healthcare Services:

• Title Tag: “Affordable Dental Care Services | SmileBright Dublin”
• Meta Description: “Offering professional and affordable dental care in Dublin. Book your appointment with SmileBright for quality dental treatments and gentle care.”

Hotel Industry:

• Title Tag: “Luxury Beachfront Hotels | OceanView Resorts Wexford”
• Meta Description: “Stay at OceanView Resorts for a premium beachfront experience in Wexford. Enjoy luxurious rooms, gourmet dining, and exceptional service.”
• Structuring SEO-Friendly URLs: Simplifying your URL structure enhances both user experience and search engine indexing. Keep them short, clear, and packed with relevant keywords. For example, a fashion retailer might use a URL like www.fashionista.com/women/dresses/summer-collection. This URL is straightforward and descriptive, containing helpful keywords such as “women,” “dresses,” and “summer collection.”

For a cooking and recipe site, a URL like www.cookinggenius.com/recipes/quick-dinners clearly shows what you’ll find on the page — it’s all about recipes for quick dinners. This makes it easy for both users and search engines to understand what the page is about.

Similarly, a fitness equipment store could use a URL like www.fitgear.com/fitness-equipment/yoga-mats. This tells you right away that the page features fitness equipment, specifically yoga mats, improving both the browsing experience and SEO effectiveness.

Content is Key: The information on your product and category pages needs to do more than just please search engines; it should be engaging and useful for your audience too. Instead of just copying what the manufacturer says, try to write fresh, appealing content that really speaks to your Irish customers. Prioritize your top-performing pages for optimization and use semantic keywords to improve relevance and search visibility.

7 Tips For Technical SEO

For this, focus on:

1. Website Structure and Navigation

A well-structured website enhances both user experience and search engine indexing. Ensure that your website has a clear, hierarchical structure, making it easy for users to navigate and for search engines to crawl and index your site efficiently. Ideally, every page should be accessible within three clicks from the homepage. Breadcrumbs also help navigation for users and provides search engines with more context about your site structure.

Let’s consider an online bookstore for instance. The homepage would prominently features categories such as “New Releases,” “Bestsellers,” and “Genres,” each leading to a further breakdown like “Fiction,” “Non-Fiction,” “Children’s Books,” etc. Each category and subcategory page is accessible within two to three clicks from the homepage.

• Navigation: Breadcrumbs are used on all product pages (e.g., Home > Genres > Fiction > Title), which helps users easily trace back their steps and provides search engines with structured pathway information.

For instance, with a law firm, you can have:

• Structure: The website is divided into main sections such as “Our Services,” “About Us,” “Our Team,” and “Contact Us.” Each service like “Family Law,” “Corporate Law,” or “Intellectual Property” has its own sub-page, which can be reached directly from the dropdown menu on the homepage.
• Navigation: Breadcrumbs are integrated into every page (e.g., Home > Our Services > Family Law), enhancing user navigation and improving the website’s SEO by outlining a clear, logical structure for search engines.

If it is an ecommerce store dealing with electronics, it can be something like:

• Structure: There can be a top menu with main categories such as “Smartphones,” “Laptops,” and “Accessories.” Under each of these, you’ll find subcategories—for instance, under “Smartphones” you might see “Android Phones,” “iPhones,” and “Refurbished Phones.” This setup ensures that any product is never more than three clicks away from the homepage, making shopping super convenient. Without these subcategories, it can get a bit messy—customers might find themselves endlessly clicking or searching without a clear path to what they need, which can be pretty frustrating and might even lead them to leave your site.
• Navigation: The use of breadcrumbs is consistent across the site (e.g., Home > Laptops > Gaming Laptops > Product Name), helping users navigate back to broader categories effortlessly while also bolstering the site’s SEO structure by showing hierarchical relationships.

2. Structured data (Schema markup)

Adding this code to your site helps search engines get a clearer idea of what your content is about. This can lead to those detailed rich snippets showing up in search results, like product prices, availability, and ratings. Not only does this make your site more visible, but it also can increase how often people click through from those results.

3. Optimizing Canonical URLs

Canonical URLs are your way of telling search engines which page is the main one when you have duplicate content, like when different URLs can lead to the same product page because of filters or search features. 

There are different ways this comes in, such as:

i. Product Variants: Suppose an online store sells a T-shirt that comes in multiple colors and sizes. Each variant might generate a unique URL:

• • https://example.com/products/t-shirt?color=blue&size=m
  • https://example.com/products/t-shirt?color=blue&size=l

Even though the content on these pages might be pretty much the same (like the same T-shirt in different sizes), it’s a good idea to pick a main product page URL (for example, https://example.com/products/t-shirt) and stick a <link rel=”canonical” href=”https://example.com/products/t-shirt”/> tag on each variant page. This way, you point them all back to your primary page. 

ii. Filter and Sort Parameters: Many e-commerce sites allow users to sort or filter products, which can create multiple URLs for the same page. For example:

• • https://example.com/category/shirts?sort=price_low_high
  • https://example.com/category/shirts?filter=size_large

Here, the canonical URL could be set to the main category page without any filters or sorting parameters: <link rel=”canonical” href=”https://example.com/category/shirts”/>.

iii. Session IDs in URLs: Some websites append session IDs to URLs for tracking purposes. For instance:

• • https://example.com/products/jacket?session_id=12345

These session IDs should not lead to indexing of multiple versions of the same page. Therefore, the canonical URL should omit the session ID: <link rel=”canonical” href=”https://example.com/products/jacket”/>.

iv. HTTP and HTTPS: Is your site accessible through both HTTP and HTTPS protocols? Then choose one as the preferred version and use it in the canonical URL. For instance:

• • Non-secure: http://example.com/page
  • Secure: https://example.com/page

The canonical URL should be the secure version: <link rel=”canonical” href=”https://example.com/page”/>.

v. WWW vs. non-WWW: Similar to the HTTP/HTTPS issue, if your site can be accessed with both www and non-www prefixes, decide on one and consistently use it in your canonical URLs:

• • https://www.example.com/page
  • https://example.com/page

Choose one (e.g., https://www.example.com/page) and use it as the canonical URL.

4. Fixing Broken Links

Nobody likes running into dead ends, and that’s exactly what broken links are. They are an instant turn-off, creating a frustrating user experience. Make it a habit to check your site regularly for and update those links. You can set up some redirects, or even customise your 404 page to help lost visitors find their way back to useful content.

5. XML Sitemap Optimization

This helps search engines crawl and index your website more effectively. Ensure your sitemap is up-to-date and includes only the pages you want search engines to index, while excluding pages that don’t add value like tag or thin content pages.Important pages typically include:

• Main category pages: These are the backbone of your site structure, helping users and search engines find your products or services.
• Product pages: Every individual product page should be accessible, ensuring that they can be indexed and found via search engines.
• Key informational content: Articles, blogs, guides, or any other educational content that adds value to your visitors should be included.

To keep your sitemap clean and efficient, exclude pages that do not add SEO value. These might include:

• Tag pages: Often generated by CMS platforms, these are typically not useful for search engines unless they gather substantial unique content around a topic.
• Thin content pages: Pages with very little original content or those that aggregate content from other sources without additional value.
• Utility pages: Such as “Terms and Conditions” or “Privacy Policies,” which, while important legally, usually do not need to be indexed.
• Duplicate content pages: If your site contains the same content under different URLs, only include the preferred URL in the sitemap.

6. Secure your site with HTTPS

Google uses HTTPS as a mark of trust, so at the bare minimum, ensure your site has SSL/TLS encryption. This also reassures your visitors that their data is safe, particularly on pages where they’re buying something or sharing personal details.

7. Website Speed Optimization

Site speed is a critical ranking factor and impacts user experience significantly.  When it’s fast, you have less bounce rates to worry about, and it also boosts overall engagement. You get this by:

• Compressing Images: Lots of images can bog down any site. And for e-commerce stores, they are loaded with them. Worry not – tools like TinyPNG or Adobe Photoshop come in handy here. Use them to shrink the images without sacrificing their quality.
• Browser Caching: For this, configure your web server so that it tells visitors’ browsers to keep certain files, like images, JavaScript, and CSS, stored locally for a set period. This way, when someone revisits your site, their browser doesn’t have to download these files all over again. From their end, they’ll just be impressed with how the pages load. Make sure to set appropriate expiration dates for these stored resources, which can be done through settings like .htaccess or directly on the server.
• Minimizing the Use of Heavy Scripts and Plugins: Simplifying the code by removing unnecessary scripts and plugins can improve site speed. For example, instead of using multiple plugins for different functionalities, try to consolidate tasks or find lightweight alternatives. Also, defer the loading of JavaScript files until after the main content of the page has loaded to prevent them from blocking the page render.
• Optimizing CSS Delivery: Reduce the impact of CSS files on page load times by minimizing them and using techniques such as Critical CSS (loading only the styles necessary for the above-the-fold content initially). This ensures that the visible part of the page loads quickly, enhancing the user’s perception of speed.
• Utilizing Content Delivery Networks (CDNs): CDNs can host your site’s static assets (like images, JavaScript, and CSS) on multiple servers around the world, allowing them to be downloaded from the nearest server to a visitor. This reduces latency and speeds up the loading of these resources.
• Implementing AMP (Accelerated Mobile Pages): For mobile users, implementing AMP versions of pages can dramatically increase speed. AMP is a Google-backed project designed to ensure fast mobile pages by using a restricted version of HTML and caching pages on Google’s AMP servers.

Link Building: Establishing Your Authority 

Getting backlinks from trusted websites is a big thumbs-up to Google and other search engines, showing them that your site is a reliable place for information and products. Here are some strategies you can employ:

1. Repair Broken Links: With this method, scout for broken links on websites relevant to your niche – then offer your content as a replacement. That way the hosting website benefits from you fixing their dead link, and in the process you get a backlink for your site.
2. Domains for Sale: Searching for domains relevant to your business that are on the market, but still have backlinks pointing to them, presents an opportunity. You can request the owners of these linking websites to redirect the links to your site instead, building on the existing link equity.
3. Creative PR Campaigns: Get seen, far and wide. Newsworthy stories or engaging content, videos that go viral – they are all an asset. Just ensure that they resonate with your audience. Once such content gets coverage and links from different media outlets, you get a boost in traffic and sales.
4. Partnership Outreach: Establishing links with your suppliers, distributors, or other partners who might list you as a retailer or vendor on their website is a direct way to build backlinks. This also includes getting listed on industry-specific directories, enhancing both your visibility and SEO.
5. Infographics and Visual Content: Developing compelling infographics or visual content related to your products or industry can encourage shares and backlinks. Sites and blogs looking for high-quality, informative visuals may link back to your content, increasing your site’s exposure and authority.
6. Competitor Link Analysis: Analyzing your competitors’ backlink profiles to find broken, lost, or active links gives you insight into potential backlink opportunities. You can then reach out to these sites, suggesting your content as an alternative or additional resource, thereby diverting some of these valuable links to your site.

Engaging with industry experts for roundups or creating comprehensive comparison content can also provide valuable information to your audience and attract backlinks from participants and other interested parties who find your content share-worthy

A Look At The Macro

The rollout of 5G technology across Ireland, coupled with the high smartphone penetration, is making online shopping more accessible and convenient.The market is notably competitive, with leading players like Amazon.co.uk and Tesco Ireland dominating, alongside other significant entities such as Argos. Strategic movements, including new payment systems, strategic partnerships, or acquisitions, are needed to enhance market presence.

The Irish government is also backing card payments, shown by their move to reduce the debit card interchange fee cap. This points to a shift towards using cards more often for online shopping, along with a drop in using bank transfers and cash. It looks like cards and digital wallets are becoming more popular, especially because they’re so handy for shopping on mobile devices.