Keyword stuffing is the practice of excessively repeating keywords within a text, which is used in SEO with the goal of improving a web page's ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs) like Google and Bing, but because it is considered black hat, it ends up having the opposite effect.
Just to provide context, SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, a digital marketing strategy used to improve page ranking in SERPs. SERP stands for Search Engine Results Page. In other words, a SERP is the results page that appears on a user's screen after searching for a keyword on a search engine like Google. A keyword, in turn, is a term or phrase that corresponds to a search performed by a user in the search field of a search engine. And black hat , finally, is the name given to malicious SEO techniques used to circumvent the rules of search engines. Black hat techniques are the opposite of white hat techniques , which are considered good SEO practices.
On Google, pages prepared with the black hat technique of keyword stuffing have long been frowned upon. To give you an idea, Google entered the scene in 1998 and only five years later, in 2003, launched the "Florida" update , which penalizes pages that excessively repeat keywords.
Regardless, keyword stuffing has a devastating effect on e-commerce. Blog articles and product description pages that excessively repeat keywords are severely penalized by search engines like Google, rank poorly in SERPs, and therefore receive little or no organic traffic , compromising the e-commerce audience and consequently sales.
SEO for e-commerce
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HOW TO AVOID KEYWORD STUFFING: WHAT IS THE IDEAL KEYWORD DENSITY?
Given the devastating effects of keyword stuffing on an e-commerce business like yours, you should avoid this practice. The first step to doing so is knowing the ideal keyword density for your pages. There's no official rule about this, but generally, a density of 0,5% is recommended.
To measure the keyword density of a page use the formula “(NVPCA / NPP) X 100”, where NVPCA is the Number of Times the Keyword appears and NPP is the Number of Words on the Page. Use this formula as explained below.
Let's say that you have a security camera virtual store and that it has a page where you are selling the Intelbras "Dome Camera". On this page, the main keyword is “Dome Camera”. If the page is, for example, 800 words long and the term “Dome Camera” appears 8 times, is that good or bad? To find out the answer, let's apply the formula "(NVPCA / NPP) X 100", check it out:
Density = (NVPCA / NPP) x 100
Density = (8 / 800 = 0,01) x 100 = 1%
As you can see, the density is 1%, well above the recommended 0,5%. Therefore, it's important to redesign the "Dome Camera" page and reduce the excess keywords. To do this, include synonyms such as "VHC 1120 D Camera", "Intelbras VHC 1120 D Camera", among others. This way, in addition to eliminating keyword stuffing from the page, you will improve the readability of the text.
Finally, to avoid keyword stuffing , use systems like Yoast SEO, which alerts you when there is an excess of keywords. Also use the Keyword Density Checker, which provides a list of the density of various words within a text.
IMPORTANCE OF UNDERSTANDING SEO CONCEPTS LIKE “KEYWORD STUFFING"
In the article “ 79 SEO Statistics for 2023 ”, the Ahrefs blog compiled a series of studies, some of which demonstrate the importance of understanding SEO concepts such as “ keyword stuffing ”. To begin with, 68% of online experiences start with a search engine, according to data from the aforementioned blog.
Furthermore, 53,3% of all website traffic comes from organic search. A website built with white hat SEO techniques can generate up to 1.000% more traffic than organic social media. And SEO leads have a very high closing rate of 14,6%.
In other words, knowing SEO concepts is extremely important. But just knowing is not enough, you need to know how to implement them. Keep reading and learn how to do this in your e-commerce!
HOW TO IMPLEMENT SEO IN YOUR E-COMMERCE?
To implement SEO for your e-commerce business, turn to SEO agencies like Agência e-Plus. Agência e-Plus serves only companies in the e-commerce sector. This agency provides services in Brazil, Portugal, Spain, Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, and other countries. To discuss your project with our team, click the button below and start a conversation with us via our messaging app:
