Why is taxonomy so important for Shopify stores?

Marketing for eCommerce stores with large product catalogues is fundamentally different from any other type of business. We’ve built our entire approach around this differentiation and it's fair to say that is the foundation of our success.

It is also true that the size of these large catalogues requires working at scale. We achieve this through our data-driven approach, rather than traditional (read, tired and slow-moving) creative-based SEO approaches (link building, content writing).

We can't overstate how important this all is. Some of the internet’s biggest businesses - eBay, Amazon, ASOS (even PornHub) have been built by understanding and capitalising on taxonomy. Effective taxonomy strategies are the building blocks that successful Shopify stores are built on.

In this article, we'll look at the power of taxonomy in detail , and how effective it is a jumping-off point for effective SEO, PPC and email campaigns.

What do we mean by taxonomy?

In the complex world of large catalogue stores, organisation is everything, for an optimal user experience, improved organic visibility and boosted revenue. Sellers with thousands of products require a streamlined and intuitive online store to provide a frictionless customer experience and give search engines the right information at the right times.

Taxonomy achieves this by organising products clearly and effectively through categorisation. Consider it the building blocks, the foundation of, an effective catalogue. Without it, you are building on shifting sands.

Effective taxonomy:

1.     Enhances the user experience of large catalogue eCommerce sites

2.     Lays the platform for growth through organic search, paid and email marketing campaigns

Luckily your data is telling you exactly what your customers are looking for. We drill down into the depths of Google Search Console, Google Ads and Shopify data to understand your customer needs and fill any gaps.

Here’s how it works. Your customers search for the specific products that you sell, a ‘red maxi dress’ or a ‘memory foam mattress’, for example. Whether they can easily find what they’re searching for depends on the categorisation of your store.

To understand what customers are looking for and how to help them find it, we combine keyword research, search insights, data science, and decades of search engine experience to create a taxonomy that aligns perfectly with their needs.

We use this data to create a highly detailed site structure aligned with user searches. We take this taxonomy and map it onto your Shopify store’s existing pages, and optimise for keywords with the strongest buying intent using organic, paid and your internal search data.

On top of this, we combine your products into new categories based on our data insights to enhance organic visibility, drive engagement and boost revenue across organic, paid search, and email channels.

Taxonomy is far more than just simple keyword research

When you upload new products to your Shopify store a lot of data is attached to them. Their name, colour, description and size are included. Product taxonomy then is the process of tying all this information together. A well-organised taxonomy powers your customer’s shopping experience by optimising on-site search and creating useful product search filters.

A well-organised store cannot be achieved through keyword research alone. Combining search volume data with internal search data and data science insights into user habits is where the real magic happens.

Blink’s unique taxonomy approach is built on three pillars:

·       Pillar 1 - eCommerce marketing for large catalogue stores is fundamentally different from any other kind of business

·       Pillar 2 – its’ differentiating factors (the importance of taxonomy and working at scale) are data-led and not creative challenges

·       Pillar 3 – implement repeatable, effective strategies across projects by taking advantage of Shopify’s consistent codebase

Full-spectrum taxonomy services

Here’s an overview of the holistic taxonomy services we provide.

Product categorisation and tagging:

• Reviewing and cleaning up existing product data (tags, metafields, etc.)
• Creating standardised product tagging systems, including automation where possible
• Keyword mapping and populating related collections for improved user experience and SEO - automated using Macaroni to increase speed and reduce human error

Navigation and site structure:

• Reviewing and redesigning navigation structures, including breadcrumbs, parent/child relationships, and faceted navigation
• Implementing advanced navigation features like mega menus and second-level menus

SEO alignment and schema implementation:

• Cleaning up site cannibalisation and ensuring proper URL structure
• Aligning sitemaps, keyword mapping, and schema for collections, products, and variants
• Incorporating international taxonomy standards (e.g., Google and Shopify product taxonomy)

Customisation and automation:

• Developing automated collection setups using Shopify metafields
• Addressing manual configurations in client stores with tailored solutions

Addressing roadblocks:

• Resolving UX challenges and Shopify limitations
• Advising on budget and template constraints to streamline workflows

 Strategic recommendations:

• Offering new category suggestions based on data analysis using Macaroni

What is faceted navigation and why is it important?

Faceted navigation is another aspect of our data-driven, high-velocity tactics. It’s one of the highest-impact SEO tasks for eCommerce.

So, what is it?

When it works as it should, a web page’s content changes to reflect a filter selected by a user. Take this example. We searched for ‘blue’ trousers on the Charles Tyrwhitt site. The products displayed changed and did the H1 reflecting the pertinent keyphrase ‘men’s blue trousers’, however, there is no copy meaning a missed opportunity for semantic keyword use. Additionally, the URL updates to the following slug:

/uk/mens-trousers/blue/?ppr=4&tib=TIB-text-trousers-ss23&isFiltersHidden=false. 

Google and other search engines can’t easily parse this URL to understand what this page is for. This is a problem.

×

×

Shopify does allow for basic filtering on product pages. The URL would update to /mens-blue-trousers if Charles Tyrwhitt used the Shopify platform. However, the copy won’t automatically change, which means search engines have no context to understand what the page is used for.

Shopify also does not create indexable pages for each filter which means you can’t use these keywords to target organic or paid search.

The good side of Shopify? Its consistent codebase and structure allow us to implement repeatable, effective data-driven optimisation strategies across projects.

Our solution, built on Macaroni, our advanced proprietary AI Shopify SEO software, allows us to create indexable pages for each filtered view with unique H1 tags, meta descriptions and relevant on-page content, including high-volume targets and longtail keywords.

By implementing faceted navigation, Shopify business can easily double the number of category pages on their store leading to a 50-200% increase in revenue. We have some really good data examples we can share with you to show how faceted navigation has had a real impact on our client’s growth.

Want to find out more?

Traditional SEO (link building, content writing) moves at a snail’s pace. However, there’s no need to wait up to 6 months for organic SEO results to start creeping forward. Our team implements measurable SEO uplift for enterprise level Shopify stores using data-driven taxonomy strategies in as little as 60 days. 

Get in touch with us to book a meeting with one of our senior management team to see how we can level up your store’s taxonomy, increase the commercial footprint of your site and leverage our insights across all of your marketing channels.