Executive Summary
A leading B2B omnichannel retailer in the hospitality industry partnered with CMAX to enhance their e-commerce presence. Despite having 27 physical locations and a substantial wholesale business, their e-commerce segment was relatively small but growing. By implementing a scalable SEO strategy, the retailer achieved a 255% increase in organic traffic within 12 months, generating over $1 million in incremental SEO revenue per month.
Introduction and Background
The client, a major B2B retailer in the hospitality sector, generates over half a billion dollars in revenue annually. Despite their substantial offline presence with 27 physical locations and a significant wholesale business, their e-commerce channel was relatively small. Historically, they had focused heavily on PPC campaigns to drive online revenue but were seeking more cost-effective methods to enhance their digital presence. Previous attempts with traditional SEO agencies and strategies had not yielded the desired results. Recognizing the untapped potential in their e-commerce channel, they sought to enhance their digital marketing strategy with a robust SEO approach. CMAX presented an innovative approach to building more content on the site, aimed at capturing customer queries and driving relevant traffic.
Challenges
Before partnering with CMAX and implementing a comprehensive SEO strategy, the client faced several challenges:
- Limited E-commerce Presence: Despite strong physical and wholesale operations, their e-commerce channel was underdeveloped, limiting their reach and revenue potential.
- High Competition: The hospitality industry is highly competitive, with numerous players vying for online visibility and market share.
- Scalability Issues: The existing SEO efforts were not scalable, making it difficult to expand content and improve site authority efficiently.
Solution
To overcome these challenges, the client implemented a two-pronged SEO approach:
- Traditional SEO Program: Launched in August 2022, this program targeted 50 priority category terms with hand-written content and software-based offsite optimization. This foundational work aimed to boost the authority of the site, preparing it for dramatic content expansion.
- CMAX Implementation: In December 2022, the client added 5,000 CMAX pages targeting long-tail terms related to hospitality products and appliances. These static search pages not only targeted specific keywords with optimized content but also displayed relevant products, enhancing user experience and engagement. The target keywords were identified by mining existing SEO performance data and Google Ads performance data to ensure high conversion potential.
- Site Integration: To support these CMAX pages, dynamic content was set up across all existing product pages, facilitating effective cross-linking and integration with the existing site. This full-body SEO approach of combined head/shoulder content with long tail CMAX content helped deliver the most transformative results.
Results
The implementation of this robust SEO strategy led to outstanding results:
- Significant Revenue Growth: Within 8 months, the incremental SEO revenue from the program exceeded $1 million per month.
- Traffic Surge: Organic traffic increased by 255% within 12 months of the SEO program’s implementation.
- Improved Conversion Rates: Using CMAX pages for Google Ads DSA (Dynamic Search Ads) programs resulted in a 204% improvement in conversion rates, highlighting the added benefits of this integrated approach.
Conclusion
By leveraging CMAX as part of a holistic Full Body SEO strategy, the omnichannel hospitality retailer successfully transformed their digital marketing approach. They overcame scalability issues, increased their online visibility, and achieved substantial growth in organic traffic and revenue. This case study demonstrates the power of a well-rounded SEO strategy in driving e-commerce success for a large-scale B2B retailer. With most of the effort concentrated in the setup phase, future expansions with CMAX can be executed swiftly and efficiently.
