Online stores with catalogs of thousands/millions of items are a real pain for SEO specialists and content managers. Imported product names from 1C, a bunch of different-level headings that need to be prescribed for better promotion, filters that are not displayed in search engines, but are needed in the headings... And all this is almost not automated and is done by human, though rather non-human, forces.
All this is complicated by constantly updating search engine ranking rules, which are tougher and tougher, so "over-optimize" pages - a piece of cake, but this, too, will affect the search engine results.
Today we will tell you about a module we developed that allows you to create unique text from multiple search filters with all declensions and cases. It will automatically assemble a title that is correctly considered by search algorithms and will give your site to the user much more willingly.
Why did we start writing the module?
At first, we were manually prescribing headings for key sections of the sites. At the same time, small sections and individual product cards were covered much worse. That is, the point queries that could have been covered did not get into searches because there was no optimization.
Drupal does not have a module for writing meta tags for pages with filters. For example, a yellow jumpsuit will get into a search only if the word "yellow" is written in the meta tag. The filter itself with the color, located on the page, in the search is not taken into account. It is possible to assemble the meta tag of the three filters, but it's still inconvenient: you have to go to pages and write everything manually. But there is no off-the-shelf option for meta tags to be assigned to a section or a group of filters themselves.
We started writing this module for a bedding and homewear store. The site has many sections, subsections, filters. And all these combinations generate different pages. For SEO-promotion, it is essential for these same pages that in order to be be properly optimized, meta tags and H1-headings must be prescribed.
Creating the module was our idea. The client was with us on SEO promotion, and we were just looking for an opportunity to cover the entire site and all pages for better search engine ranking.
Our developers wrote the module and it gave exactly what was expected of it. With it, our SEO specialist adjusted meta tags on more pages much faster than usual.
In this screenshot there is the result of applying the module: numbers from 1 to 7 - the place in the top 10 search queries, which began to take the client site:
After a successful application, we began to implement the module for all the clients who were in our SEO promotion program. It turned out to be a very useful feature for sites with different nuances: some have several subdomains, some have multilingualism, some need declinations (mostly online stores), and some have everything at once.
Again, here's the magic: meta tags and headers for each page are not created separately for each product, but are generated by the filter.
Now let's talk more about the mechanics of its work.
What can our module do?
A person, for example, is looking for white women's boots with fur and a zipper. Your site has them, but the product itself is called "Martha Shoes", and the characteristics are selected on the side, in the sidebar, using filters. If you are lucky, and your SEO specialist hand-coded in the internal page of such a possible targeting query, you may be found. And if not?
In the filter bar, you have the words "white" in the "color" column and "female" in the "gender" column. But it's unlikely that anyone would search for "white women's shoes," "zipper," or "fur."
Or let's say you want to write a headline that says, "We have a great selection of white women's shoes. This is where it all breaks down, because it's hard for automakers to declinate such splendor.
Our module allows you to prescribe H1 title and desciption on pages generated by selected filters on the template. We can prescribe on pages with the selected 2, 3 or more filters. Thus we cover all low-frequency queries.
Our module has the following additional features:
- Works with the library for declension of cases. It allows you to spell any token in the desired case. The word forms do not need to be spelled out manually.
- Allows you to specify a synonym for the header. Example: the filter generates the page by color - "Blue women's shoes", and you need to write "Blue women's shoes". You write alternative text to the filter "Blue - Blue", and our module substitutes it in the right case in the meta tags.
- Separates the selected filter values with a space (multiple filters are allowed). So we go back to our long-suffering boots. The client came to the women's boots section, clicked on the filters "white", "with fur", "with zipper" and got a page with H1 - "White women's boots with fur and zipper".
- Allows you to specify unique meta tags for a particular page. This can be done bypassing the template for an individual URL. Let's say one page is special and you don't need to apply a module there. There is a super-targeted query and jewelry work on writing the text. In this case, the SEO specialist can prescribe the right meta tags that will override the template.
We adjust the module to the needs of our customers and continue to improve it.
It doesn't matter what your product is:
- piston compressors for 50, 200, and 500 liters;
- New Year's chocolate bunnies in a wrapper;
- acrylic gray paint for repair
— all in all. Your SEO people should prescribe it, and your clients should be looking for you.
Algorithm of operation of our module
For example, this is how the module works when forming a description:
Buy[view:site-name:title-h1-syn1-lower:3] priced from [view:site-name_facets:min-price] rubles. Large selection and affordable prices when buying [view:site-name_facets:title-h1-syn1-lower:2] Order by phone for Moscow - [view:site-name_facets:phone-number], throughout Russia - [view:site-name_facets:phone-number-all].
Buy women's blouses with lace at a price of 500 rubles. Large selection and affordable prices when buying women's blouses with lace. Order by phone for Moscow 880000, the whole of Russia - 88001000.
- In the beginning, the title "women's blouses" was joined by the filter "with lace".
- In this example we have no use for alternative headings. But we'll give you an example: if you have a filter with lace, and according to statistics people are looking for "lace blouses", we prescribe an alternative title "lace" and it is displayed in the meta tags with declensions. Such titles can be a different number, and for a particular pattern can be output one of them. The template is flexible, you can use a lot of fields.
- The module declinates the phrase "...women's blouses with lace" in the genitive case - the moment in the code ":2" on the third line is the correct case.
Advantages of our module
- A more accurate hit with narrow phrases on the search. White boots with a zippered fur "Martha" are sure to find their mistress. Don't underestimate low-frequency queries. They drive far more traffic than they might seem at first glance.
- Organic promotion. Your products rank better in search and are more likely to be found by customers.
- Constant expansion of the catalog without additional work and additional efforts on promotion.
- Less time and effort for SEO. Your (or a hired) specialist does not need to fill thousands of pages manually.
- You can optimize ALL the filter pages on your site. were not seen by search engines because there was no optimization. Now you can optimize all catalog pages in any combination.
Search engines have long since stopped evaluating a site solely on SEO. Moreover, it is possible to overload a site with texts "with keys" so much that no search engine will want to show your site. It is important to strike a balance: make pages more useful and convenient for visitors, speed up loading time, and bother with the subtleties of promotion.
Our module is not a magic pill. But it is a great opportunity to get a result that was not there before.
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