Thoughts from the SearchPilot team

I recently ran a webinar on SEO testing for retail sites where I explained how SEO testing works, my process for coming up with test ideas and how to prioritise ideas. Although there were over 30 test ideas in the webinar, I thought I’d share the 5 test ideas that I recommend most retailers start with.

The right SEO metrics can not only drive company initiatives forward, but also shine a light on the power of SEO. In this article, we’ll share which SEO metrics are helpful for SEO leaders to present to C-level executives, and which are not.

SEO split-tests that lack a strong foundation ultimately cost an organization time, resources, and sales. In this post, we’re going to share when to launch SEO tests on your website, along with the key factors to examine before running your first SEO split-test, for best results.

Most companies guess when it comes to SEO, but the best organic ranking companies are using SEO-split tests to test each website change before they make any changes. Tested results statistically outperform untested guesses. We’ll teach you how to start testing.

When marketing leaders start SEO split-testing, they want to identify winning tests and grow their traffic. But one of the biggest pieces of value that you get in testing is from identifying losing tests and never rolling out those features that would negatively impact SEO.

Product-led SEO is the best way to choose your next product enhancement and rank for rich keywords. Yet we see a lot of companies making mistakes when they try this approach. We’re offering our best advice on product-led SEO to help you accelerate your marketing strategy.

SEO and product teams are focused on different metrics. While product teams care about website users, SEO teams focus on organic traffic. But as Google changes algorithms to incorporate more UX signals, the decision to keep the two areas separate can hurt company goals. SearchPilot explains the relationship between UX and SEO, and how SEO split-testing can give teams more data on both.

In recent years, there has been a sea change in the way that professional sports teams are coached and managed as a result of more available data and new statistical techniques for making the most of it.

I’m going to argue that the rise of testing capabilities in SEO is causing a similar sea change, and that everyone responsible for organic search performance for large websites should be aware of these changes and building them into their plans.

Ultimately, modern on-site SEO for large websites should dramatically cut down untested changes and focus instead on new content, and deploying winning tests.

The relationship between engineering and SEO teams is growing even more important as website traffic and engagement continue to be key to a company’s success. However, given the common disconnect between the two teams, the SearchPilot’s CTO, Tom Anthony outlined some of his learned best practices for the teams to work effectively together.

Simply running SEO tests isn’t enough to guarantee success or even valuable data insights. But by establishing the right setup, processes, and systems to run tests, teams can better trust the entire process. Learn from this comprehensive playbook on what to consider when designing an SEO test, and start testing yourself!