SEO Strategies to Boost Retail Sales During Peak Season

October to December is the busiest time of year for retailers, with major shopping dates like Black Friday and Cyber Monday generating huge revenues as customers gear up for Christmas.  

This year, Black Friday (29th November) coincides with payday and falls closer to Christmas than usual – so we’re anticipating an even greater demand from consumers for quality products and worthwhile deals. With November and December making up over 20% of the year’s retail sales, and online sales accounting for around 30% of this, having a solid ecommerce strategy is essential if you want to maximise your share of the market. 

Here are five expert SEO tips from Summit to help you increase online traffic and conversions during this crucial trading season.

1. Get an Early Start

If you’re only just starting your SEO strategy for this peak period in November, you’re already too late. SEO takes time to build momentum, and retailers who prepare early see the best results. Last year, Barclays found that nearly a fifth of consumers had started their holiday shopping by October to spread out costs. This has prompted retailers to launch promotions, campaigns and deals even earlier than usual. Amazon’s second Prime Day in October is a prime example – capitalising on early-bird shoppers and boosting their sales long before Black Friday rolls around. 

By building your SEO foundations well in advance, you’ll ensure your website is visible and performing when the peak holiday shopping season hits. It’s time to start optimising content, refreshing outdated blogs and creating landing pages for your next big launch.  

2. Prioritise and Revitalise

Knowing where to focus your SEO efforts during peak is an essential part of your strategy. Start by identifying the product categories that are already on page 1 of SERPs and drive your content further up the rankings. With the #1 organic search result in Google earning an average click-through rate (CTR) of 39.8%, prioritising your strongest categories during a sales boom can drive substantial traffic to your site. 

At the same time, it’s important to review underperforming categories. If certain products aren’t attracting the traffic they should based on their search volume, now’s the time to either optimise them or reassess their place in your ecommerce range. Covering both bases will help you maximise your online potential during peak. 

3. Test Landing Pages

Landing pages play a vital role in converting peak visitors into customers. In December 2023 alone, UK shoppers spent £11.2bn online – a huge market you don’t want to miss out on due to website issues. That’s why it’s essential to create and test your landing pages well before the busy period starts. 

A/B testing can help you perfect everything from headlines to design elements, giving you the insights you need to convert more visitors. But remember to test one element at a time, and make sure you’ve gathered enough data to base your decisions on.  

4. Leverage Informational Content

Creating useful, high-quality content is more important than ever following Google’s recent core updates, which favour well-optimised, people-first content. To stay competitive, focus on producing helpful informational content that resonates with your target audience. 

Incorporating long-tail keywords into your content strategy is a smart move, too. Long-tail keywords not only boost your rankings but also target specific search intents, driving more qualified traffic to your site. Since they account for the majority of Google searches, these keywords are easier to rank for and typically signal that the searcher is closer to making a purchase. So, by combining great content with long-tail keywords, you can significantly boost your conversion rates. 

5. Monitor, Report & React

Once the peak season is in full swing, tracking performance is key. By monitoring live data and user behaviour, you can make timely adjustments to optimise your site’s performance and conversion rates. Keep an eye on: 

• Google Search Console (GSC) for rankings and traffic 

• Google Analytics (GA) for data and insight 

• Keyword tracking tools (e.g., Semrush, Ahrefs) for keyword trends 

• Website crawls to monitor internal links 

After the season ends, conduct a detailed review of your SEO activity. Analysing what worked and what didn’t will help you refine your strategy for 2025. 

 

With around 8 million UK adults expected to spend more this Christmas, peak trading season offers an incredible opportunity for retailers. By following these five SEO tips, you’ll be in a strong position to capture your share of the market and boost your online performance. 

At Summit, we’ve been helping retailers achieve impressive ROI during peak trading seasons for years, using SEO, Paid Search, and more. Get in touch today to learn how we can help you make this year your most successful peak season yet.

Written By Emily Woodcock

Sources

‘Retail sector forecast to have a bumper golden quarter’, Retail Week (02/09/2024) 

‘The themes that are shaping ecommerce as retail gears up for the golden quarter’, Retail Week (23/09/2024) 

‘Writing people-first content’, Search Engine Land (15/04/2024) 

‘A Data-Driven Guide to Google CTR by Position in 2024’, Timmermann Group (24/01/2024)