SEO Guidelines

Optimising the title and description for SEO can drive more traffic to your listing

Put yourself in your customer’s shoes and imagine that you are trying to find a service similar to the services you offer. What would you type into a search engine to find it?

When searching online for services, we have a tendency to focus on the service category (i.e., hiking, snorkelling, surfing, etc.) and on the location where it will be provided. Including these words in your Service Listing title can be a good strategy for boosting your listing’s relevance with search engines. Optimising your listing for Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) can help generate more traffic to your listing, attract more customers and grow your business.

1.    Keyword research

Keywords are the words and phrases that best describe your service while reflecting what your audience is searching for. For example, if you provide a hiking trip to Geres, you may want the title to be something along the lines of “Explore the best hiking trails of Geres”.

SEO keywords may be a challenging subject, but these tips can help you get the most out of your keyword research and rank higher in search results:

• Choose several keywords with high search volumes. Start with a variety of potential terms and phrases and find their search volume using a keyword tool.
• Find the right balance between relevance and traffic. Refine your keyword candidates list by adding specificity which may help distinguish you from your competitors, while also giving your listing a chance to rank higher in search engines.
• Categorise your keywords into primary and secondary. While primary keywords are important, secondary keywords add value by attracting different sources of traffic. Use primary keywords in the listing’s title and secondary keywords in the listing’s description.

There are several tools available online for keyword research. Wordstream, Google Ads Keyword Planner and  Rank Tracker are free and may be a good place to start.

2.    Avoid Keyword Stuffing

“Keyword stuffing” means overusing keywords in the listing’s description. This practice can actually harm rankings, as Google and other search engines can tell when terms are used excessively or in an unnatural way.

To avoid keyword stuffing, you should:

• Make sure you have good keyword density, i.e. use them in a way that feels clear and natural to potential customers.
• Use a semantic alternative rather than keep repeating the target keyword.

Ranking higher in search engines is not the only factor to increase your sales. The content of your listing should also be engaging so that your target audience feels inspired to book with you. Consider writing your content for your target audience first and then optimise it for search engines.