SEO
Store categories: organise your catalogue and SEO
Build categories that customers understand. Decide when to create a page, when to use a filter and what useful category copy should contain.
Categories are the map of your store. Use customer language rather than internal supplier labels. Even a carefully described catalogue is difficult to use when visitors cannot predict where products belong.
Start with shopping behaviour
List the main product types and uses. A kitchenware store might begin with mugs, bowls and plates. Gift collections can provide an additional route, but should not replace a straightforward product structure. Ask someone outside the team where they would look for a particular item.
Choose between a category and a filter
Create a category for a stable group with a distinct shopping need and enough products. Use filters to narrow an existing list by features such as colour or capacity. Every combination does not need its own menu entry.
Write helpful category copy
Explain what visitors will find and how to compare options. Keep long guidance from pushing products too far down a mobile screen. A practical note about capacity and weight is more useful than repeatedly restating the category name.
Connect the pages clearly
Use consistent labels in navigation, headings and links. Provide breadcrumbs and relevant subcategory links. Do not send the same label to different kinds of pages unpredictably. Consult Google's ecommerce URL documentation for technical guidance.
Test after changes
- Products remain reachable through a logical category.
- Filters return the expected items.
- Empty categories explain the situation.
- Old URLs have suitable redirects when needed.
- Navigation works on mobile and with a keyboard.
Revisit the structure as the catalogue expands. Ten products and several hundred products may need different arrangements.