But what I’ve not shared, until now, is an example of what happens when you significantly reduce the length of page content.
Let’s get stuck in.
We removed 1,300 words of content after rankings dropped…
Just because a page was good enough to rank at the top of the SERPs before doesn’t mean it’s still good enough to rank now.
And often, significant ranking drops mean that’s the case and that your page needs reworking.
Recently, we saw a drop from #1 down to as low as #11 for the core keywords for one an eCommerce client’s category pages. It had held strong in #1 for a long time; then a drop came in Google’s June Core Update.
What had been a stable ranking for a core conversion-driving search term was suddenly jumping about daily; with clicks and sales down as a result.
A quick audit (there’s a set of checks you can do when rankings drop to rule out a lot of causes), including a SERP analysis to understand what was now ranking, confirmed the issue was the page’s content.
The category had over 2,000 words of content on it, plus FAQs.
We totally reworked this page, removing a lot of the “What is…” type sections and instead placed a core focus on:
The retailer’s specific product range and the different options
Their USPs
The page became a way to help a searcher figure out what to buy, and why to buy, from this retailer. Not a buying guide.
We removed just over 1,300 words of content, in total. Leaving just 700 words, as opposed to the 2,000+ that previously sat below the product grid.
We pushed the new page content live on 30th September. Within 3 days, the page was back to ranking #1…
It's retained that top spot since.
If you only take one thing away from today's email, it's that removing words from a page often results in ranking gains.
Think about it...
We've come out of the back of the 'publish more content era' of SEO (let's not get into whether or not that should have worked, but it did...), and too many pages have way more content than they need on them. You know, those 'what is...' sections etc.
Are they actually 'helpful'? In most cases, no, not at all.
We're also now in an era when anyone can create content about anything they know nothing about in seconds with AI. Content, therefore, needs to add value.
And that's things like:
Specific insights about the brand, products or service offered, not the general category
Reasons why someone should buy, or enquire, with this business
Get the idea? It's about being way more targeted and specific, publishing content that only makes sense for your business.
If your content could be lifted and published almost word-for-word on a competitors comparable page then, sorry, but it's not good enough.
Remove the filler, focus on what a user wants and, usually with way fewer words, you'll have a better, more relevant and more helpful page...
If there's one thing you go away and do after reading todays email, it's to go and look at whether the content on your pages that could (or did) rank higher is too generic?
If it is, try changing it up...
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If you learned something from this issue or it’s made you think about SEO a little differently, please consider forwarding it to someone else on your team.
I’m on a mission to make sure more SEO investment actually has an impact on real business metrics.
Appreciate you making it to the end; same time next week?
- James Brockbank
P.S. If you ever need expert support with SEO or digital PR and want to drive results that actually matter, I’d love to chat. Let’s talk.
You're invited to The eCommerce SEO Summit 2025...
On 20th November, Digitaloft is hosting a free half-day virtual event for marketers working for, and with, eCommerce retailers.
Join us on the afternoon of 20th November to discover the strategies and tactics that you need to be paying attention to as an eCommerce retailer if you want to drive growth in 2026.
We’re bringing together a mix of sessions and panel discussions led by the SEOs working with, and for, some of the fastest growing eCommerce brands out there right now, including Crystal Carter (Wix), Ryan Jones (SEOTesting), Anthony Barone (StudioHawk UK), Amy Gibson (Digitaloft) and myself. We're also hosting an exciting panel discussion on 'The Future of the eCommerce SERPs' which we'll be revealing very soon.
I've spent the last 10 years building an agency that's perfectly positioned to help ambitious brands to drive real business growth from SEO and digital PR.
You might have seen me speaking at events like BrightonSEO, SMX and the International Search Summit.