Affiliate marketing that produces qualified traffic with high intent to buy and low BV/A is the marketer’s equivalent to sitting on a pot of gold.
Your affiliate marketing business is dependent on traffic, as without it, your target products won’t have any buyers. In other words, you won’t have a business. The solution to this problem lies in implementing a well-rounded SEO strategy that caters to the needs of affiliate marketing. This approach helps you gain significant, recurring traffic, which increases over time. However, the key challenge remains to convert this traffic into sales.
“Please reword the following passage without changing its message: SEO” “Kindly paraphrase the subsequent paragraph while preserving its intended statement: SEO”
SEO stands for search engine optimization, which is the process of optimizing online content to appear in the organic search results of search engines. As a result, affiliate marketing SEO involves optimizing affiliate pages to increase their online visibility when potential customers search for products similar to those you offer.
Affiliate SEO tips to boost traffic and sales
Although there are constant changes to SEO strategies for online businesses, there are a few that have proven to be effective over time. Here are ten dependable affiliate SEO methods that will enhance your website traffic and boost your sales.
1. Pick a keyword-rich domain name
Before constructing your affiliate website, the competition for rankings and income commences. Even before writing a single word, you may obtain a competitive advantage in SEO by selecting a domain name that is abundant in keywords.
Below are a few speedy pointers to help you make the perfect selection for your domain name:
- Keywords-rich, not barren: make sure you fit a traffic-attracting niche keyword into your domain name. While you must try to put your main keyword into your domain name, don’t force it otherwise, you’ll end up with a ridiculous, unnatural sounding name.
- Short, not long: even if your name includes an excellent keyword, if it’s winding, people will have a hard time remembering it. Coin a short and sweet name.
- Simple, not complex: the last thing you want is for crazy busy people to waste their precious time trying to decode the meaning of your website name. Create a simple, easy-to-spell name to get more hits.
- Memorable, not forgettable: your domain name must be unforgettable. When your site name is keyword rich and memorable, you will get more visits because people easily remember it. So make your name catchy, not run-off-the-mill.
If possible, aim for a dotcom extension as it is the most commonly used top-level domain (TLD) and customers are accustomed to it, making it a more recognizable experience rather than navigating to a unfamiliar extension.
The domain name “Dating Advice” is an outstanding example of a great name as it is easy to remember and uncomplicated.
2. Conduct outreach link building campaigns
If nobody links to your link-worthy content assets, they won’t benefit your website. Hence, outreach link building is necessary.
Sending outreach emails to website owners who create content that complements your content assets is the essence of link building. You request them to add your content resource to their post as a value-add. This task can be conveniently assigned to a freelance SEO expert or a team member.
To achieve optimal outcomes in outreach link building:
- Make social networking a part of your workflow
Cold outreach sucks and has dismal conversion rates. Someone is more likely to respond positively to your request if they know you already. That’s why you must put your name out there and develop relationships with people in your niche before you need them.
- Focus on relationships, not links
Don’t obsess over links. Focus on relationships instead because they give you links plus more: collaborations, intros to key niche players, etc. At Solitaired we’ve generated tons of links and traffic through strategic relationships with niche leaders.
- Make sure you have super-duper link assets
Outreach link building makes one big assumption—that your content is brilliant. Without an excellent content to link to, you won’t succeed. Nobody wants to link to trash.
- Offer something in return
Boost your chances of success by offering the prospect something in exchange. You can offer a link swap if appropriate. Perhaps you can give them free access to your handy tool or give them one of your products.
3. Focus on purchase intent keywords
Different stages of the marketing funnel require different keyword targeting as prospects undergo multiple touches to become customers. Therefore, all keywords are not created equally.
- Top of the funnel (TOFU) keywords
- Middle of the funnel (MOFU) keywords
- Bottom of the funnel (BOFU) keywords
Utilizing commercial intent keywords positioned at the bottom of the funnel can yield swift sales from those prepared to make an immediate purchase. As these prospects have already determined their desire to acquire your product, they require no nurturing. Simply offering a pertinent product is enough to prompt them to click the buy button.
Among these search terms are commonly used keyword phrases.
Keywords related to the product
- Best + product name
- Product name searches e.g. iPhone 12 pro
- Product categories, e.g. men’s shorts, computer accessories, or laundry detergents.
- Top + product
The searches for buy now are currently ongoing.
- Buy + product
- Product + Deal(s) e.g. computer deals
- Discount
- Coupons
- Cheap
Searches for establishments or services located in close proximity to one’s current location.
Local buyers have an urgent requirement that cannot be postponed and prefer to purchase a product or service in their proximity, which is the essence of near me searches, primarily employed in local affiliate marketing.
Searches that are in close proximity to my location appear as:
- Product + near me e.g. “pizza near me”
- Service + near me e.g. “barber near me”
Create comprehensive content guides that are worthy of being linked to.
If you incorporate the search terms used by potential buyers in the content you produce, you stand to benefit greatly, as Google searches account for nearly 60% of purchases made in physical stores and online.
If you want your affiliate content to show up in search engines such as Google, Bing, or Yahoo, creating a thorough evaluation of the product you are advertising is a reliable approach. When you utilize SEO effectively, the benefits are long-lasting, allowing you to generate passive income without any added effort.
These are some brief pointers on how to excel in your review article:
- Highlight benefits, not just features– features are dry lifeless aspects of a product. Yes, you must touch them. But, for best results, focus on how these features help your audience. Sell the sizzle, not the steak. You’ll connect better with people and make more money.
- Be balanced and objective– your review must not be one-sided. Don’t sing the praises of the product throughout. Discuss its weak points as well so your content becomes authentic.
- Provide deep detail– studies show that posts that rank on the front page are 2000k+ long. To increase your chances of getting ranked, explore the product in great detail. Make sure you answer all possible questions people may have about the product.
5. Leverage featured snippet and SERP features optimization
According to SEMRush, the amount of Featured Snippets shown in search results has drastically increased, with an estimated 19% of search results containing them. This means that optimizing for Featured Snippets can greatly enhance your search traffic and should be considered a valuable opportunity.
What are the methods to enhance Featured Snippets and other SERP features optimization? There exist two distinct strategies:
- Include “Summary” paragraphs
- Discuss FAQs
Include “Summary” paragraphs
Featured Snippets are sourced from question-based search queries 41.59% of the time. If your article is geared towards addressing 1-2 main inquiries, it’s recommended to provide a concise answer summary at the conclusion of the post.
For your main focus question, use an h2 or h3 heading and then provide a one-paragraph response to the inquiry.
To increase your chances of having your page listed as the Featured Snippet, ensure that your response is within the range of 40 to 50 words. This is because, based on a 2018 study conducted by SEMRush, the typical Featured Snippet paragraph contains 46 words.
FAQs
Ever since Google started experimenting with them in 2015, “People also ask” (PAA) SERP features have significantly grown in question-based search queries. This can be seen when searching for “what is SEO,” where a PAA box can be found halfway down the initial page of search results.
Google determined that the inquiries are strongly associated with the search term “what is SEO.” When creating an article explaining SEO, consider addressing those inquiries on your blog. Use the original question as an h2 or h3 tag, and provide a concise response of 40-50 words to improve the chances of obtaining the SERP Feature.
6. One-up your competitor’s best content
Type your competitor’s domain name into the search bar and navigate to the “Pages” tab. What you’ll see is a list of the pages on your competitor’s website that drive the most monthly organic traffic back to their site.
Examine these highly successful webpages and scrutinize them to determine which ones you can surpass with a substantially more valuable article. Keep an eye out for substandard pieces – articles that:
- lack depth (could easily be doubled in length)
- lack actionable advice
- lack a meaningful backlink profile
Craft your own rendition of each of those articles that incorporates practical guidance and comprehensive information that your intended audience seeks, and witness your website overtaking your rival’s highest search result positions.
Maximize existing rankings with CTR optimizations
If your content is appearing on the first or second page of search results, yet you are not observing a boost in page views, it indicates that your title tags and meta descriptions are not performing well. In such a scenario, it would be beneficial to focus on CTR optimizations to enhance the number of visitors arriving on your site.
How can you determine if your page is performing poorly?
A straightforward method of verifying is by comparing your page’s click-through rate with the average CTR for search ranking. You may utilize Search Console to obtain a query’s CTR and export the information. Afterward, evaluate your position and CTR against the industry average.
According to AWR, the typical CTR for the 4th result is approximately 5.5%. If your page is in the 4th position but has a lower CTR, it implies that optimizations are necessary. We have an internal spreadsheet with a formula that enables us to recognize poorly performing pages in bulk, rapidly and effectively. Once you have identified these pages, make adjustments and experiment with your title tags and/or meta descriptions until you see an improvement in your CTR.
7. Scale visibility with inlink optimization for new articles
If you have recently published an article, search for other related content on your website that could provide a link to your new article. Doing so will enhance the search authority of your article and improve its rankings. But how do you locate such opportunities?
Enter the following phrase on Google:
Replace “domain” with the name of your website.
You’ll be presented with an index of all the pages on your website. To refine the search, incorporate a term or expression that pertains to your recent post. Examine 5-10 articles from the filtered results and find a suitable spot to insert a backlink to your new article.
Improving inlink strategy can prove to be a strong technique for increasing website returns. If you have an article that generates 10% of your website traffic, simply include links to applicable landing pages that have higher conversion rates to instantly enhance your affiliate earnings.
8. Run readability optimizations for improved on-page performance
In today’s age, people have extremely short attention spans due to their busy schedules and constant exposure to countless distractions. For marketers, what does this signify?
It is difficult to maintain the interest of your reader.
Luckily, we are going to reveal our beloved tips for captivating your readers’ attention.
Remove friction with more digestible paragraphs
Which of these two excerpts would you prefer to read? Most likely, you opted for the one on the right. Why? Because it is much less daunting to view several brief paragraphs than a solid block of text.
The paragraphs on the right have been divided into 1-2 brief sentences, with the majority consisting of fewer than 50 words.
Attempt to apply this to your own website. Locate a webpage on your website that has a large bounce rate and a short average session duration. Examine the material and seek possibilities to divide the paragraphs.
One month later, assess the effects of your actions by reviewing the average session duration and bounce rate.
Eliminate excess wording
In the words of Sam Parr from The Hustle, using adverbs should be avoided as they have a weakening effect on words. Similarly, attempting to display one’s vast vocabulary is ineffective as nobody is interested in the use of complex words like “ratiocinate”. Therefore, it is important to eliminate such jargon and concentrate on making the content more comprehensible.
If you’re unsure, input your text in Hemingway to fragment complex sentences and streamline your vocabulary.
Invest in content design for maximum attentiveness
To use a quote from Jonathan White without permission:
Creating a solid design establishes a level of confidence between users and products. A product that has a refined and polished appearance inspires trust.
The same holds for the design of your content. A well-designed website with creative imagery builds trust with your readers. Brian Dean is the king of well-designed content. That being said, you don’t need to invest thousands of dollars on illustrations to have well-designed content.
Here are a few of our preferred tips for producing well-crafted content:
- Include screenshots/video walkthroughs in step-by-step guides.
- Add relevant imagery throughout your articles to break up text.
- Work with your developer to build out a handful of short codes that your writing team can easily insert into future posts (WordPress users can use this plugin to save on dev costs)