If you’re running a Shopify store and wondering why your products aren’t showing up on Google, you’re not alone. According to a 2024 study by Backlinko, only 0.63% of Google searchers click on results from the second page. That means if your store isn’t on page one, you’re missing nearly all the traffic.
Many store owners spend hours designing their website, uploading products, and promoting on social media, yet still struggle to get consistent organic traffic. That’s where the Shopify SEO checklist can come in handy.
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of improving your website so that it ranks higher in search engine results. Better rankings mean more traffic, more visibility, and ultimately, more sales. This guide is designed for beginners which means no coding or technical skills needed.
Let’s go through a step-by-step Shopify SEO checklist that will gradually help your store get the high ranking on search engines.
-
First Step Of Shopify SEO Checklist: Keyword Research
To begin working on the Shopify SEO checklist, let’s get down to keyword researching. A keyword is a word or phrase that people type into search engines
when looking for products
or information. Keyword research helps you understand exactly what your target audience is searching for, so you can create content and product listings that match their intent.
You can begin by using Ubersuggest, a free tool by Neil Patel that offers keyword suggestions, search volume, and content ideas based on your niche. Another helpful resource is AnswerThePublic, which shows common questions and phrases related to your product keywords. Google Keyword Planner is also a reliable choice, giving you data straight from the source.
When choosing keywords, consider three key criteria:
-
Search volume: Choose keywords that people actually search for. You can consider aiming im for keywords with a monthly search volume between 100 to 1,000 if you’re just starting out. These terms are specific enough to attract targeted traffic and aren’t as competitive as broader keywords with tens of thousands of searches.
-
Competition level: Avoid keywords that are too competitive, especially if your store is new. Instead, go for low to medium competition keywords that you have a better chance of ranking for.
-
Relevance: Make sure the keyword accurately reflects your product or content. There’s no benefit in ranking for a term that doesn’t convert into sales or engagement.
-
Optimize Product Titles and Descriptions
After researching your keywords, the next step in your Shopify SEO checklist is applying them to your product pages. Start by editing your product title and description. While editing, make sure these keywords appear naturally meaning your descriptions should still sound like a human wrote them.
For example, a vague title like “Handmade Candle” could be impro
ved to “Handmade Soy Candle with Lavender Scent – Perfect Gift for Aromatherapy Lovers.” The second version is not only keyword-rich, but it also sounds more co
mpelling to your customers.
From your Shopify admin, go to the Online Store, then click Pages. Choose the page you want to optimize. In the Search engine listing preview section, click Edit website SEO. In the Page title field, write a clear, keyword-rich title that will appear as a link in search engine results. In the Description field, enter a concise and compelling summary of the page that encourages clicks.
Once you’re done, click Save to apply your changes. Keep titles under 60 characters and meta descriptions around 150 characters. Make sure to include your primary keyword in both.
-
Optimize Your Images for SEO
One of the important steps in the Shopify SEO checklist which is often overlook is image optimization.
To get started, let’s add alt text to every image. Alt text helps search engines understand your visuals and also improves accessibility for users with visual impairments. In Shopify, you can do this directly in the media settings when uploading or editing a product.
After finishing the alt text, start compressing your images to speed up your site but you should do it without sacrificing their quality.
-
Create Internal Links Across Your Store
Internal linking helps both users and search engines navigate your store more effectively. This step of your Shopify SEO checklist includes linking from blog posts to product pages, from products to related collections, and between related articles.
For instance, if you’re writing a blog about the benefits of soy candles, include a link to your best-selling soy candle product page. These internal connections keep visitors on your site longer and signal to Google which pages are most important.
-
Make Sure Your Store is Mobile-Friendly
Mobile optimization is critical. Over 63% of ecommerce traffic comes from smartphones, and Google prioritizes mobile-friendly sites in search results.
A mobile-optimized store is crucial, as most shoppers buy from their phones. Use a responsive Shopify theme that fits all screen sizes. Ensure buttons and text are easy to tap, navigation is simple, and pages stay clean and uncluttered. Prioritize key content, reduce pop-ups, and consider sticky add-to-cart buttons. Even with a responsive theme, check how your site functions on different devices to avoid issues that could hurt your ranking.
-
Improve Your Site Speed
A slow website not only frustrates users but also harms your SEO. Therefore, your Shopify SEO checklist must include speed optimization.
Get started by testing your site speed to identify what’s slowing it down. You can use tools like Google PageSpeed Insights or GTMetrix.
Afterward, check for elements like oversized images, unused scripts, or excessive apps that might be impacting performance. Once you know the issues, you can optimize accordingly.
As a tip, you can consider compressing large images to reduce file size for speed optimization. You can consider removing or disabling apps you’re no longer using as well. Choosing a lightweight Shopify theme can also help your store load faster and offer a smoother user experience.
-
Build Your Blog Page With Valuable Content
Building a blog is another essential step of the Shopify SEO checklist because blogging will help you to capture long-tail keywords and make your brand appear more trust-worthy.
If you don’t know which topic to write, get started with articles that answer customer questions, such as “How to Choose the Right Candle for Your Home” or “Top
10 Gift Ideas Under $50.”
The article should include keywords, links to relevant products, and aims for at least 800–1000 words per post. You should write blogs frequently as consistent blogging not only brings in organic traffic but also gives you valuable content to share on social media and in email newsletters.
-
Earn Backlinks to Boost Domain Authority
A backlink is a hyperlink from another website that points to your store. In SEO terms, it acts like a vote of confidence. The more high-quality websites that link to your store, the more trustworthy and authoritative your site appears to Google.
Therefore, getting links from other reputable websites will increase your domain authority and improve your ranking. This is one of the more advanced tasks on the Shopify SEO checklist so it will take more time and effort. But rest assured it’s well worth the effort.
Reach out to bloggers in your niche and offer them free samples in exchange for a review. Submit your store to relevant online directories. Offer to write guest posts for partner brands. All of these methods help you build backlinks naturally over time.
-
Set Up Google Search Tools
Analytics are essential. Without tracking, you won’t know if your Shopify SEO checklist is actually working.
To start data tracking, connect your store to Google Analytics to monitor visitor behavior, bounce rate, and traffic sources. It’s also important to understand how Google Analytics categorizes traffic—especially which mediums are considered default and which are not. This knowledge helps avoid misinterpretation of your traffic data. You can check out our guide on what is not considered a default medium in Google Analytics to learn more.
Use Google Search Console to track which keywords bring people to your store and fix crawl errors that may be holding you back.
Both tools are free and give you a comprehensive view of your store’s SEO health.
- Get Through The Shopify SEO Checklist easier with apps
You might be feeling overwhelmed by the many steps and tools involved in this Shopify SEO checklist. Fortunately, the Shopify App Store offers a range of SEO apps that provide all-inclusive solutions to simplify your efforts. These tools help automate tasks, monitor performance, and ensure your store stays SEO-friendly with minimal manual input.
These are the few tools you can consider using:
-
SearchPie: A beginner-friendly, all-in-one SEO solution that helps you fix SEO issues, optimize metadata, add structured data, and improve site speed.
-
Plug In SEO: A simple tool that scans your store and gives you a checklist of SEO improvements to make, with clear explanations.
-
Smart SEO: Automates metadata and image alt text generation, and adds structured data to improve how your store appears in search results.
SearchPie offers the all-inclusive solutions along with automated SEO to make your SEO journey easier from Site Speed, Schema & Snippet to Backlinks, SEO Tags & Content. It also provides customization packages such as Google Search Console optimization, Google Merchant Center optimization.What’s more is the 24/7 support team will always be there along the way and help you with your SEO optimization, making it the app perfect for beginners.
Conclusion
Implementing SEO can seem overwhelming at first, but this Shopify SEO checklist breaks it down into simple, actionable steps so Shopify merchants, especially beginners, can optimize SEO with ease.
While following the checklist, please keep in mind that consistency is key. SEO isn’t a one-time task, it’s a continuous effort that compounds over time. Stick with this Shopify SEO checklist and monitor your results using Google’s free tools or Shopify apps like SearchPie.
By following this Shopify SEO checklist, we hope you will see improvements in your chances of showing up on page one of Google, attracting more visitors, and increasing your sales. Whether you’re just starting your store or aiming to scale, this guide will help you grow organically in 2025 and beyond.