ReDrew Innovations

SEO, SEO, SEO as a marketing student it has been made crystal clear that search engine optimization is a vital skill for all marketers to know. However, just like the rest of marketing’s TLA’s, wrapping your head around the concept of SEO, and how to implement it can be intimidating. By the end of this reading, you’ll be able to recite what SEO is, ways to implement better SEO, and how SEO applies to the fashion industry.

Understanding The Basics Of SEO

What Is SEO?

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization and according to HubSpot’s SEO Guide, SEO is a strategy to ensure that when someone Googles your product or service category, they find your website.   

According to MOZ’s SEO 101, SEO is about understanding what people are searching for online, the answers they are seeking, the words they’re using, and the type of content they wish to consume.

From scouring dozens of SEO blogs I’ve concluded that SEO is making your content user-centric automatically optimizing Google’s ability to read and rank your content higher.

Beyond Content: Other Optimizations Your Pages Need

Besides making content valuable for consumers, MOZ’s On-Page SEO also recommends these tactics to optimize a brand’s website.

• Link Building
• Clear Structure with H1, H2, and, H3 Headings
• Short descriptive URLs
• Sitemaps
• Image Optimization
• Alt Text
• Responsive websites that can shift across digital landscapes
• Keywords

How To Make Content User-Centric

Coined by Google, EAT stands for expertise, authority, and trustworthiness, this is how a marketer can make their content user-centric in a way that will benefit a search engine’s ability to rank their content higher. 

• Expertise: The experience and knowledge the website or author has about a specific topic. For example professional degrees, accreditation, or work experience.
• Authoritativeness: Gained via how often a brand’s respective industry mentions them. Authoritativeness directly helps with ranking as it builds credibility for your content. For example, MOZ’s research on SEO would rank higher than a marketing student’s research on SEO because MOZ is a thought leader in the marketing industry.
• Trustworthiness: Trust is earned through security, engagement, and support.

Google announced in 2022, its algorithms are constantly transforming to favor user experiences over the user interface. So by using EAT to make your content better for consumers, you will automatically position yourself for Google to rank you higher

Why Should You Care About SEO?

As a marketing student many skills would be critical to your career, so why should you prioritize SEO over another TLA?

[IMAGE DESCRIPTION: A HubSpot graphic with three different orange percentages highlighted with corresponding descriptions. The first percentage says 68% of online experiences begin with a search engine. The second percentage says 53% of all website traffic comes from organic search. The third graphic says 93% of all global traffic comes from Google search, Google Images, and Google Maps] 

SEO is important because 68% of consumers begin their consumer journey by typing something into a search engine. Of all the search engine platforms available, 93% of global traffic comes from Google. 

How Does SEO Work?

Search engines work through three primary functions:

• Discovery + Crawling: Googlebots searching the Internet for content.
• Relevance + Indexing: Googlebots organize the content found during the crawling process. Once a page is in the index, it’s in the running to be displayed as a result of relevant queries.
• Authority + Ranking: Googlebots provide the pieces of content that will best answer a searcher’s query, which means that results are ordered from most relevant to least relevant.

How Link Building Can Elevate Your SEO

Link building is one SEO tool used to increase the number of inbound links to your website. Inbound links are links from other companies’ websites that point consumers to your website. As opposed to internal links which are links on your site, that point consumers to your other pages. For example, the home page on your website links to a product page.

Why Is Link Building Important?

Increasing the number of links to your content is a valuable tool because link building is connected to the A in EAT. Building your portfolio of inbound links increases your content authority and that authority will directly impact your ranking strength. 

How To Build Your Links?

In a competitive landscape. How are you supposed to get companies to share screen time and links with you? MOZ’s Link Building & Establishing Authority guide recommends:

• Find link partners, possibly with companies you partner with regularly
• Publishing a blog that generates conversation across the web
• Refurbish top content with up-to-date links
• Be newsworthy so companies want to link to you

HubSpot SEO Certification Course also recommends building quality inbound links by responding to press request alerts.  

How SEO Affects The Fashion Industry

The fashion industry is one area I am interested in bringing my marketing value to and the intersection of SEO and fashion is quite interesting. Fashion is always shifting because new generations are dictating pop culture. For example, in 2021 Generation Z decided to bring back 70’s styling with flared pants and platform boots. Generation Z has also shifted from buying clothing at a brick-and-mortar store to mostly buying clothing on an online forum.

With this shift to a digital landscape, brands need to utilize the SEO practice of EAT

EAT directly links to online fashion brands as the more EAT you have, the more consumers are willing to engage with your brand. Nordstrom is a department company established in 1909. It is linked to reputable blogs, companies, and influencers, and has shown its trustworthiness over a hundred years by protecting its consumer’s information. Whereas Shein is an international fast-fashion brand that gets most of its links through paid affiliation and has been routinely questioned if they sell consumers information.

Based off EAT it is clear that Google would rank a company like Nordstrom higher than a brand like Shein. Based on a quick search of “women’s clothes”, Nordstrom’s was the first organic search as Shein was closer to the 100th organic search.

How Can A Fashion Company Increase EAT?

Expertise is gained through experience and knowledge. A fashion brand can increase experience and knowledge by participating in fashion events like Fashion Week. Fashion brands can also hire experienced designers, marketers, and CEO’s who can bring relevant expertise and knowledge to the brand

Authoritativeness is gained through gain through mentions. Brands can write blogs in areas that intersect with their brand values. For example, Reformation can write blogs on fashion sustainably, and become a thought leader on that topic. Or Good American can provide consultations for other brands on how to become a leader in inclusivity.

Trustworthiness is earned through security, engagement, support, and patience. One way to accelerate your brand’s trustworthiness can be by engaging with causes their target market also cares about. For example, in 2020 Nike announced a $40 million donation to black community organizations because it is a cause their consumer base cares about.