WooCommerce SEO

Format: {Product Name} | {Category} | {Brand}

Keep under 60 characters.

With Yoast/Rank Math: Edit in SEO meta box below product editor.

Default template: Settings > SEO > Search Appearance > Products.

Write unique, compelling descriptions (150-160 characters).

Include product benefits and call-to-action.

Avoid duplicating product short description.

Set default template with variables: %%excerpt%%, %%price%%.

Settings > Permalinks > Product Permalinks.

Options: /product/name/, /shop/name/, /shop/category/name/.

Remove /product-category/ base if desired (Yoast setting).

Keep URLs short and keyword-focused.

Write unique, detailed descriptions (300+ words for key products).

Use headers (H2, H3) within description for structure.

Include specifications, use cases, benefits.

Avoid manufacturer-provided duplicate content.

Products > Categories > Edit category.

Add unique description (displays above/below products).

Include relevant keywords naturally.

150-300 words helps differentiate from product pages.

With SEO plugin: Edit category to set custom title/meta.

Format: {Category Name} - Shop {Product Type} | {Store Name}

Avoid generic 'Products' or 'Category' titles.

Ensure page 2, 3, etc. have unique titles: {Category} - Page 2.

Use self-referencing canonical on each page.

Consider 'View All' option for small catalogs.

Implement infinite scroll carefully (ensure crawlability).

WooCommerce includes basic Product schema by default.

Key properties: name, description, image, offers (price, availability).

Yoast WooCommerce SEO addon enhances schema output.

Test at: search.google.com/test/rich-results.

Enable WooCommerce reviews (Settings > Products).

Review stars can appear in search results.

Requires aggregateRating in Product schema.

Consider verified buyer badges for credibility.

Enable breadcrumbs in theme or via SEO plugin.

Path: Home > Category > Product.

Helps Google understand site hierarchy.

WooCommerce Breadcrumbs hook: woocommerce_breadcrumb.

Add Organization schema with logo, contact info.

For physical stores: add LocalBusiness with address, hours.

Configure in SEO plugin settings.

Add descriptive alt text to all product images.

Format: {Product Name} - {Variant} - {Angle/View}.

Edit in Media Library or Product Gallery.

Critical for accessibility and image search.

Rename before upload: blue-widget-front-view.jpg.

Avoid IMG_1234.jpg or random strings.

Use hyphens, not underscores.

Use WebP format where supported.

Plugins: Smush, ShortPixel, Imagify.

WooCommerce generates multiple sizes—optimize all.

Enable lazy loading (built into WordPress 5.5+).

Cart, Checkout, My Account pages: noindex by default.

Empty category pages: noindex until products added.

Product tags: Consider noindex if thin content.

Filter URLs (e.g., ?filter_color=blue) can create duplicates.

Options: noindex filter pages, use canonical to category, block in robots.txt.

AJAX filtering avoids URL indexation issues.

Products should self-reference canonical.

Variable products: Each variation URL needs proper canonical.

Category pagination: Self-canonical on each page.

Cross-sells appearing on multiple pages: Maintain product canonical.

Clean expired transients: WP-Optimize plugin.

Remove old order/session data periodically.

Optimize wp_postmeta table (grows large with products).

AJAX cart fragments can slow pages (wp-admin/admin-ajax.php).

Disable on pages without cart: Use 'Disable Cart Fragments' plugin.

Or load fragments only on cart/checkout pages.

Page caching: WP Rocket, LiteSpeed, W3 Total Cache.

Exclude cart, checkout, my-account from cache.

Object caching: Redis or Memcached for database queries.

CDN: Cloudflare, BunnyCDN for static assets.