When you work online, it is pretty hard to get away from SEO. Whether you are blogging or selling online, you will hear “SEO….SEO” whispering throughout your dreams. If you have been struggling with SEO, don’t fret! These Etsy SEO tips will help you sell more on Etsy!
Thankfully, Etsy SEO is not as complicated as it is for blogging. These tips will seem quite obvious, and some of them you might be doing already!
While you are reading these tips, check out my Etsy shop, Blogging Gift Shop, to take a look at examples!
I started my Etsy shop at the beginning of 2020, and have made hundreds of sales since! The great thing about Etsy is that even if you don’t perfect your SEO, you can still make sales.
I personally did not really start working towards my Etsy SEO until months after I started my shop, and still made sales.
So, if you don’t 100% understand how SEO works on Etsy, don’t know if you are doing it right, or simply don’t want to do it, you can still make sales. You just won’t make as many sales as you probably could!
Additionally, if you want to learn more about SEO in general, check out our SEO made easy guide, and a list of SEO terms every blogger should know!
Wondering what you should even sell on Etsy? Check out this list of over 45 Etsy digital products!
Disclosure: Some of the links below are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.
Don’t forget to sign up for a FREE 7 day SEO training, which also comes with SEO resources and an SEO audit!
How to Find Keywords on Etsy
The first step to SEO (no matter if it is for blogging or Etsy) is finding keywords. Keywords basically make up the entire internet! Any search engine you have ever used, or any time you have searched anything on the internet, keywords are what makes the results come up! Google, Pinterest, Amazon, even Facebook all use keywords!
So naturally, Etsy is no different. Users search for items in the search bar, which means your items need to have keywords attached to them, so Etsy can show your products when users are searching for them!
So, how do you find keywords on Etsy? There are a few different ways:
I find keywords to use on my products by simply searching in the Etsy search bar (similar to how you might find keywords on Pinterest). The words that come up, or the recommended search terms, are all keywords you can use for your products.
For example, let’s say you are selling personalized tumblers. If you search “personalized tumblers” in the search bar, you will see tons of other keyword options that you can use. Make sure to search other related terms too, such as “tumbler” or “drinkware” to get more well-rounded keywords to use.
However, many sources suggest that this isn’t the best way to find keywords on Etsy, and suggest using a keyword research tool instead.
My favorite keyword research tool is Keysearch. Follow this link and use code KSDISC for 20% off (Only $13.60 per month with the discount!)
I personally have never used a keyword research tool for my Etsy SEO, and have made hundreds of sales with no problems. So, it is up to you! Maybe experiment with both and see which one gets you more results!
Where to Put keywords on Etsy
Once you have your target keywords, how do you use them? Similar to using keywords in blog posts, there are specific places you should always use keywords in your Etsy shop. Let’s go through them in detail:
Use Keywords in Etsy Item Titles
The first and probably most obvious place to use keywords on Etsy and improve your Etsy SEO is in the item titles!
You get a total of 140 characters to use in your item title. This is not the place to get creative or use punny or unique titles for your product. You want to be as direct and specific as possible to tell both Etsy and the user what your product is.
In your item title, the first 40 characters are the most important. Make sure you are using the most relevant keywords first! Add as many relevant keywords to the item title as you can!
Additionally, make sure you use spaces or punctuation between keywords, as it can get really messy and difficult to read if there are 8 keywords all jumbled up together! Many users use periods in between keywords or slashes (/).
Etsy Item Description
Another way to improve your Etsy SEO is to include your keywords in the item description, which also seems pretty obvious! Along with describing your product, include a handful of keywords in there as well. This should happen naturally as you write about your product.
I also always copy and paste my item title keywords and put them in my description, typically the very first line. This helps Etsy and your users know exactly what your product is immediately!
Etsy Product Tags
Another place to use your keywords is in the product tags. For every product, you get 13 tags. Make sure that all the keywords you used in the tile are also used in your tags!
You might have more tags leftover. For example, you might only have 10 keywords in your title, so you’ll have 3 left. Simply find 3 more keywords to use. Always use all your tags!
Keep in mind that your tags do not have to be in the same order as the keywords in your title!
Etsy SEO for your Store Front
Along with keywords for your individual products, your shop should also have an overall keyword. For example, my shop, BloggingGiftShop, tries to rank for the keyword “blogging gifts”. Let’s walk through how to do this:
Use Keyword in your Shop Name & Shop Title
Using your keyword in your shop name is one of the easiest ways for Etsy and Google to understand what your shop is about. Think of it like the title of a book, or the title of your blog post. You want it to be relevant and clear to users what your shop sells.
You can edit your shop name by going to your dashboard – settings – info and appearance.
Here, you can also edit your shop title. This is a good spot to add 1-2 relevant keywords! Here, I would use your main shop keyword, along with one or two other relevant keywords.
Remember, this is a keyword that describes your overall shop!
Use Keywords in "about your shop"
Another way to improve your Etsy SEO is to include keywords in the section titled, “about your shop”. You can find this section on any shop by scrolling almost all the way to the bottom, after their products. This is another easy place to sneak some keywords in while providing shoppers with more information about you and your shop!
To edit this section, go to your dashboard – settings – about your shop – story.
Describe who you are and what your shop is about, and use your shop’s overall keyword in there if you can! You should try to use it in your story headline and your story. Remember, anywhere you can add a relevant keyword will help Etsy and Google understand what your shop is about! Just don’t overdo it!
Use Keywords in Section Names
Another place to add keywords is in your section names. Sections are a way to break up your products into categories. For example, I have clothing, jewelry, templates, etc. This just makes it easier for shoppers to find what they are looking for (and also tells Etsy more about your products).
You can edit your sections by going to your shop manager – listings – select an item (little square in the bottom left-hand corner of product) – editing options – change section – manage sections. Here, you can add a section or change the name of an existing section.
If you can, include your shop’s keyword here! For example, I use my keyword of blogging gifts in sections titled, “clothing blogging gifts”, “template blogging gifts”, etc.
Other Etsy SEO Tips
Besides using keywords, there are some other things you can do to improve your Etsy SEO:
- Renew items frequently. Yes, you need to pay 20 cents every time you renew an item. However, when you renew items, your products are more likely to come up in searches! Renew items during peak traffic times (not at like 2AM when not as many people are on!)
- Add more pictures. Shoppers love to see images of the product they are going to buy. Add as many pictures as you can to show off your product!
- Fill out all sections in the listing details. The more information you can provide to Etsy and the shopper, the more likely it is to be ranked (or purchased!)
- Add products consistently. Etsy wants to see you are an active shop. As a platform, of course they want you to keep adding products! If you do so consistently (say, once a week or every other week), not only will you have more products to sell, but Etsy will love you!
- Edit your shop/items often. Along with adding new products, Etsy also wants to see that you are engaged and continually updating and editing your shop. This can mean just adding a sentence or two to your description, adding an image, etc.
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