Article

Robert Kramers
Robert Kramers 14 November 2019

‘Tis The Season: 4 Ways To Boost Sales With Seasonal Keywords

Search Engine Optimisation is often preoccupied with major terms. But if you’re an accommodation provider, tourism operator, or eCommerce store, your keywords should be changing with the seasons! It’s the best way to unlock more traffic, inquiries, and sales. Here’s how…

Wait, what are seasonal keywords?

Search Engine Optimisation is a long-term strategy. You research the keywords that relate to your site and its products or services, optimize for these terms, and then create and promote relevant content within your niche.

Sounds simple enough, right?

But there’s one major flaw in this approach…

...effective SEO isn’t a one-size-fits-all kinda deal.

In fact, this generic approach is a recipe for disaster. While it may work for some, it won’t work for everyone. Instead, you need to approach keyword research, optimization, and promotion in a way that supports the way your business works. 

That’s where seasonal keywords come into play.

If your business sells something that’s influenced by the seasons, time of year, or current events, then you need to be more proactive with the term you target.

Wondering how this works? Then keep reading…

Step #1. Constantly revisit your search terms

Once Keyword Research is complete, it’s hardly ever returned to. 

That needs to change!

Seasonal keywords are just that: seasonal. They come and go as the year passes. To ensure you’re using the right terms, you need to check back in and dig up new keywords continually.

If you’re a hotel operator, these could be seasonal:

“winter accommodation in Melbourne”

Event focussed:

“fall out boy accommodation LA 2020”

Or content based:

“things to do in London in summer”

You get the idea, right? 

This doesn’t just apply to hotels and accommodation, either. If you’re an eCommerce store, you could be putting together seasonal buying guides (“great gifts for Christmas / valentines / birthdays”) or sales (“electronics Christmas sale”). 

Tourism operator? You’d best be checking the calendar of events so you can tailor the tours (“rugby world cup 2020 tour package”) you offer! 

The list goes on. 

Utilizing Google’s keyword planner to discover words and phrases is a great place to start. It gives you insights into how often a term is searched for. Additionally, you can use Google Trends to track which keywords are popular at a given time of year. 

This is super helpful, as you can pinpoint when a term is popular and give yourself enough time to prepare new content and promotions. 

Consider this example:

Let’s say you operate a hotel near a ski field.

In this case, winter-based accommodation terms might be most popular 6 - 8 weeks before ski season starts as people search out their options and book ahead. 

It’s a great way to get a jump on your competitors! 

Step #2. Optimize on-page elements

Finding your seasonal keywords is only the first step.

Next, you need to ensure these appear across the critical elements of your page, including internal links, page headers and title tags, meta descriptions, and more. By optimizing your site for these search terms, you’ll increase your chances of being found by your target market.

Which leads nicely into Step #3…

Step #3. Create content around your seasonal terms

Search Engine Optimisation isn’t just about optimizations and keywords…

... it’s about content, too! 

Sticking to our winter accommodation theme, you could create a blog post about “The 10 Things You *Need* To Do In [Location] During Winter”. This increases your site’s relevance, gives your business something to promote, and lets you talk to potential customers who are using these terms.

Closeout with a subtle link back to your accommodation options, and you’re all set!

It doesn’t stop there. Blogs can be created for anything from a Christmas gift-giving guide through to travel guides and gift ideas for Valentine’s day. Whatever terms you dig up, there’s a piece of content you can create to match.

Content creation is one thing, promotion is another. Sharing this seasonal content at the right time across Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn is an effective way to promote this content, as is reaching out to those on your mailing list.

Tip! Many businesses make the common SEO mistake of leaving their seasonal-based content push to the last minute. Writing a post about “5 Great Christmas Gift Ideas For Mum” and posting this in December, for example, is too late! Implement your strategy early with the help of Google Trends, and you’ll nail the timing.

Step #4. Monitor your performance

As the seasons change, so do your keywords and the content - and promotion - strategies that surround them. That’s why it’s vital to monitor how you’re performing for your target terms, capture new ones, and improve your approach based on past performance. This will ensure you are getting the most out of your marketing budget

A reason for the season(al keywords) 

Whatever the season, these simple steps will help you tap into a whole new audience that your regular terms may not have captured up ‘till now. What better gift can you give yourself than a bunch of new potential customers this holiday season, right? 

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