Analyzing RetailMeNot's Successful SEO Strategy for Coupon Aggregation

Introduction

RetailMeNot is a notable player in the coupon aggregation market, acting as a directory or marketplace for users looking for discounts at various restaurants and retail stores. In this article, we will dive deep into the SEO strategy that propels RetailMeNot to success, examining their backlink acquisition methods, keyword rankings, and overall digital marketing effectiveness. With an impressive 70% of their traffic stemming from organic search, they demonstrate the power of a well-structured SEO strategy.

Understanding RetailMeNot's Traffic Sources

High Percentage of Organic Search Traffic

Organic Search Contribution: 70% of RetailMeNot's traffic comes from search engines like Google and Bing, showcasing their strong performance in SEO.
Implication: Relying heavily on organic search traffic indicates that the site is successfully optimized for search engines, attracting significant user engagement.

Estimated Revenue Generation

With an estimated revenue of around $10 million annually, a significant portion of this income directly correlates to their effective search rankings.
The more valuable their search positions are, the more traffic they can mitigate to engaged businesses, leading to potential affiliate revenue.

Keyword Rankings and Backlink Strategy

Extensive Keyword Rankings

Keyword Count: RetailMeNot ranks for approximately 1.3 million organic keywords, although this has decreased from a previous high of 2.8 million.
Importance of Keywords: Focusing on high-volume, relevant keywords helps attract more organic traffic and improves visibility across various search engines.

Backlink Profile Analysis

Backlink Volume: The site boasts about 20 million backlinks, with only 66,000 referring domains. Ideally, a higher ratio of unique domains to total backlinks is preferred but still indicates a vast presence.
Backlink Quality & Sources: A significant number of backlinks originate from authority sources like PCMag and Wikipedia, increasing RetailMeNot's credibility in the coupon space.

Building Topical Authority

Niche Focus on Food and Retail

RetailMeNot’s content primarily associates with food-related outlets, concentrating on restaurants like Papa John’s and others.
Topical Authority: By focusing on a specific niche, they establish themselves as authoritative and relevant in the coupon distribution realm.

Template for Success: Dedicated Pages vs. General Content

Every dedicated page for different restaurants or retailers follows a consistent format:
- H1 Tag: Typically includes the business name along with ‘promo codes’ and ‘coupons.’
- Content Structure: Pages contain an overview of the business, relevant coupons, and outbound links leading to the retailer’s website.
This consistent formatting enhances relevancy and helps attract search engine attention effectively.

Creating Relevancy with Structured Content

Utilizing Descriptive URLs and Messaging

URL Structure: The URL typically follows the pattern of the business name, establishing clear relevance to Google and users.
About Us Content: Each page includes a description about the restaurant, enhancing the page's contextual relevance for search engines.

User Experience Optimization

When users click on a coupon link, a new tab opens, either showing the coupon or redirecting users to the main restaurant page, optimizing traffic flow and user experience.

Backlink Acquisition Techniques

Leveraging Authority Blogs

RetailMeNot achieves backlinks by appearing on high-traffic websites such as PCMag, which features links in their footer across multiple articles.
Direct Contributions: Each link from these authority sites contributes to RetailMeNot's domain authority, improving its trust level with Google.

Inbound Blogs Strategy

RetailMeNot maintains a blog that produces high-quality content relevant to their niche, further contributing to backlink generation from similar authoritative sites.
The structure allows link juice to flow to the main domain, enhancing SEO efforts.

Best Practices in Technical SEO

Meta Optimization and Sitemap Management

RetailMeNot emphasizes solid technical SEO practices, such as accurate meta titles and descriptions that include promotional phrases and keywords relevant to their focus areas.
Proper Sitemap Management: Incorporating a dedicated sitemap and robots.txt also supports search engine indexing.

Conclusion

RetailMeNot exemplifies how effectively implementing an SEO strategy can lead to substantial organic traffic and revenue in the competitive landscape of coupon directories. By focusing on strategic keyword choices, leveraging backlinks from authoritative domains, and ensuring strong topical authority, they maintain a robust online presence. As businesses increasingly integrate into directories like RetailMeNot, understanding their tactics offers insights into establishing successful marketing and SEO strategies in contemporary digital landscapes.