(make sure to watch the video above – there are more details included than in the article below)
Today I am going to show you how to diversify or completely stop using paid ads and teach you how to drive free traffic to your Shopify store free (this is what my link building services agency does).
In fact, these are the same techniques that I use for Ecommerce link building and SaaS link building.
Before we begin…quick intro!
My name is Artem and I help E-commerce stores grow by using free organic traffic from Google.
The Birdseye View of The Process
I want to make this as actionable as possible…which means I need a real example!
For the sake of that I’m going to use a website of someone who reached out to me as a potential client but didn’t end up hiring me as a consultant – http://naturesarcorganics.com/ (because why not share the value).
So our entire process would boil down to these 5 steps.
- Keyword research
- Understand the intent
- Plan content
- Produce and publish
- Build links
Now, let’s go through each and every step.
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Important
I have just published a research called “Shopify Stores: Top-100 vs SMEs” where I compare what Top-100 Shopify stores and 50 SME-type shops do differently.
Check – that – out!!
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1. Keyword Research
NaturesArcOrganics is a CBD store that sells a bunch of products and one of them is CBD gummies.
Here is what I do next.
- Plug in “cbd gummies” into Ahrefs and click “Having same terms”
- Tell Ahrefs to include “how” into search results so I can see more info-focused content to build links to
- Pick a keyword which is “how to make cbd gummies”
Here is what it looks like.
I want to make sure that:
- There is a decent search volume (more than 100 is pretty good)
- I can actually rank for it (Ahrefs shows that links from ~13 sites will get me to Page 1 on Google).
- Its “pre-buying” intent (people that want to make their own gummies are very likely to buy them as well)
All set for this part.
2. Understand the intent
This part is c-r-u-c-i-a-l yet it’s always overlooked.
Take the keyword, plug it into Google and click search.
Now…what results do you see show up?
Are they videos? Recipes?? Info articles? Comparison articles? Images?
This is important to understand because Google is showing you what it currently wants on Page 1.
So for my keyword phrase “how to make cbd gummies” I see the following:
- 3 recipes (from Google’s rich snippet)
- 3 videos (from YouTube search)
- a few blogs with recipes included inside
From this I understand that if I want to rank for this keyword, I want to:
- Create visual content (e.g. recipe steps photos)
- Potentially record the video of the process and publish it on my YouTube channel
- Have a recipe for people to follow and download (in exchange for their email of course)
Done here – move on to the next one.
3. Plan content
Another important step before you even put anything together.
Here are some of the key aspects we need to consider:
- Article length
- Keyword density
- Subtopics
So, using my example of CBD gummies, I open up first 5 organic results.
I want to see what they cover, their average article length and keyword density.
It’s a simple process and it’s best shown in the video I recorded for you.
Once I know those metrics, I want to have a better quality (if that’s possible) piece that is also 10-20% longer than the average.
I also want it to be different than the rest – this will give me an edge for the next step – link building.
Got it done? Now…
4. Produce and publish
Easy step – just write out the whole thing and publish it.
I recommend using Hemingway App for simplifying readability (you want to have grade 6-7) and Grammarly for checking any typos, grammar and spelling.
Once you publish the content, format it for even better readability – use H2, H3 title tags, bullet points, images and do NOT be afraid of white space. 😉
5. Build links
Time to get the word out!
If you do it the right way, you can generate extra referral traffic, get links and even sales!
We are going to use 2 most effective link building strategies in this case.
First – you need the power of Ahrefs.
1. Take all the URLs from Page 1 (and maybe even Page 2)
2. Plug them individually into Ahrefs
3. Find all the dofollow that come from quality relevant domains
4. Find their contact details (i.e. first name and email)
5. Reach out to them and let them know that them know that you published this new piece of content.
Using my gummies example I’d reach out with something like this:
Hey [Name],
I noticed you mention one CBD gummies recipe…
I just came up with one myself (and that took quite some time in my kitchen and a few stoned (just kiddin’) friends after all that tasting!
If you want to check it out – let me know and I’ll send you the link!
Writing emails for outreach is an art in itself but generally you want to follow these rules:
- Don’t send the link right away…rather try to intrigue them with your pitch
- Pitch them smth they might actually want to check out (they might not want to see your “better” piece but “another” (i.e. different) can easily d0)
- Follow-up! I recommend 3 follow-ups with 3-4 days between them.
Once you ran through these opportunities, time for guest posting!
I recommend finding blogs that are not publicly advertising that they accept guest posts because getting a link from these is more valuable.
To do this:
1. Google your keyword followed by “inurl:blog” (e.g. “cbd edibles inurl:blog”). That way you tell Google that you want websites that talk about CBD edibles AND have blog at the same time.
2. Find 20 opportunities with DR>40 (I wouldn’t waste my time on anything less than that because guest posts are quite laborious).
3. Next – find their decision makers emails and names.
4. Reach out to them complimenting their recent article on the topic (you can comment on it if comments are enabled, reply to their Twitter etc – they just need to notice that interaction). Don’t ask for anything else.
5. In about 3-4 days after the initial outreach, pitch them the guest post you had in mind using as much personalization as possible.
Again, remember to follow up.
Link building is a continuous, tough and monotonous process so brace yourself for the marathon and enjoy the grind!
Need Help?
If you need help with driving free traffic to your Shopify store reach out to me.