How to Get Found in Search

Etsy.com handmade and vintage goods
Alfonzi

Story by Kimm Alfonso

Published on Oct 08, 2012 in Seller Handbook

Alfonzi

In the spirit of Holiday Boot Camp, we’ve updated this canonical resource originally written by the esteemed HeyMichelle. Are you working your shop into shape?

What I hear most from Etsy sellers as they grow their businesses is that they struggle to get found in search by shoppers online. Thankfully, its a problem you can solve with a little know-how and time to experiment with using the right copy. The tips below will help you work on your shop to make it easier for shoppers to find you right at that moment they are ready to buy.

As you work on your listings, be sure to think like a shopper each step of the way — what will grab them and communicate everything they need to make that purchase.

Step 1: Brainstorm Keywords and Phrases

Each listing should start with a list of keywords and phrases that you think your target buyer will search when shopping. Use this brainstorming list to get the ball rolling and be sure your titles, tags and description answer all of those questions.

Pro Tip: Search Suggestions
Did you know that Etsy’s search bar can give you a leg up on tracking what customers are searching? Start typing what you sell in the search bar. The words that appear are popular customer search terms. This will give you the exact keywords and phrases shoppers are searching, so be sure to use ones that are relevant to your product in your titles, tags and description. Think of synonyms and try those in the search field as well!

Descriptions: Look in your listing’s description — often, there are good ideas in there that you are organically using when describing your item that make great keywords! Test some of these descriptive words in your titles and tags.

Step 2: Apply Search Terms to Your Listings

Now that you have a list of keywords and phrases you want to try, work them into item listings.

Create powerful titles. While keeping your titles enticing and buyer-friendly, add more meaningful terms that buyers are likely to search. Keep the most important search terms at the beginning of the listing to maximize their importance in search.

Pro Tip: Including your main category in the title (handmade, supplies, vintage) doesn’t necessarily increase your relevancy in Etsy Search for those terms. It does, however, communicate to a shopper without a doubt what the item is. Experiment for yourself to see what words in your title help your conversion rate of browsers into buyers.

Maximize your tags. Plug in your list of keywords and phrases and use all available spaces. Each one is another opportunity to find your shopper!

Diversity matters. Don’t name all of your similar items the same (or nearly the same) thing! This targets just one type of shopper, you want to keep a bit of diversity in your keywords to try and target a variety of buyers and bring them to you shop through different search results.

Put your most important terms in both your titles and tags.

Important terms to the front: If your titles are long (more than one line in “List” mode), put very important search terms so they fall in the first line.

Step 3: Make Sure It’s Working

Shop Stats: Keep an eye on your stats to see your hard work in action. Shop stats lists what keywords people are using to find you in search. How can you use this information to improve your titles, tags and description?

  • Use any listed words that you are not already using.
  • Include synonyms for your most popular keywords.

If you are getting lots of hits but no sales, maybe you are optimizing for the wrong keywords to find a shopper ready to buy — try testing out new phrases, and being very specific with style. Experiment to see what works!

Make measured changes: If your search terms are already bringing people into your shop, go slowly with making major changes so you can see what’s working before doing more.

Step 4: Bring It Together

Get help: If you need help with coming up with search terms or improving your search ranking, try joining one of these teams about relevancy or SEO. Or read more here.

See more examples: We worked with a few sellers on their search relevancy. Watch these videos below:

More Holiday Tips | Seller Handbook | Holiday Boot Camp

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