Search Engine Optomization is key to online business success. It is actually of no use for a website to be so great in layout and view yet, does not get to be seen by internet users. Search engine optimization helps address this problem. In this tutorial, we will look at the basic optimization required for an opencart website.

There are numerous SEO techniques but we will focus on 5 items below:

Page URL
Page Title
Meta Description
Header H1 Tag
Page Content (page description)

1.Page Title

The page title is the most important aspect of search engine optimization and can be the most important place to include keywords. Search engines place more importance on keywords in the title tags than the majority of other elements within a page. A well optimized title tag should include the target keywords while also influencing the searcher to click to the page from the search results.

Good Keyword: It’s best to use your most important keywords in the beginning of the title tag. Search engines place more weight on keywords at the beginning which can have a stronger impact on your rankings.

Length - Try to keep title tags between 10 - 60 characters since anything longer will get cut off on the search engine results page.
Branding - It’s generally a good idea to include your website name at the end of the title tag for additional brand exposure.

To add Title tags for OpenCart page, please go to:

Category Pages: Admin Home -> Catalog -> Categories -> General -> Meta Tag Title Field
Product Pages: Admin Home -> Catalog -> Products -> General -> Meta Tag Title Field

2. Page URL

page url

It’s important to include the main keyword in the page URL. Luckily OpenCart makes it easy to add the target keywords in the URL. Don’t worry about fitting in all the different keywords you identified. Trying to “over optimize” and stuff in excessive keywords can negatively impact rankings. Instead, focus on the main keyword.

To add SEO keyword for category and product, please go to:

Category Pages: Admin Home -> Catalog -> Categories -> Data -> SEO Keyword Field
Product Pages: Admin Home -> Catalog -> Products -> Data -> SEO Keyword Field

3. Meta Descriptions

To add a custom meta description to your OpenCart store, use the following navigational paths:

Category Pages: Admin Home -> Catalog -> Categories -> (Category to Optimize) -> General -> “Meta Tag Description” Field
Product Pages: Admin Home -> Catalog -> Products -> (Product to Optimize) -> General -> “Meta Tag Description” Field

4. Header Tags

To modify header tags in OpenCart, please go to:

Category Pages: Admin Home -> Catalog -> Categories -> General -> Category Name Field
Product Pages: Admin Home -> Catalog -> Products -> General -> Product Name Field

5. Page Content

Content Length – Typically the more content you have on a page the better chance it has to rank higher. Instead aim for at least 150 words of content for category and product pages. Feel free to go past well past 150 words but keep in mind that a significant amount of content on category pages can push down the actual products on the page and negatively affect conversion rates.
How to use Keyword: It’s important to use your target keywords throughout the content. However, make sure that the content reads naturally and doesn’t come across as keyword stuffed. In SEO, if your pages are “over optimized” you risk losing rankings as a result of a penalty.

To add content to category and product pages in Opencart, please go to:

Category Pages: Admin Home -> Catalog -> Categories -> General -> Description Field
Product Pages: Admin Home -> Catalog -> Products -> General -> Description Field

Source: https://www.todhost.com/knowledgebase/716/How-to-optimize-an-Opencart-website-for-search-engines.html