Programmatic SEO - Everything You Need to Know [Guide]

Programmatic SEO(pSEO) is an SEO technique that involves generating keyword-targeted pages automatically or semi-automatically.

Did you know that businesses like Booking.com drive over 70 million visitors per month using the programmatic SEO strategy, according to Ahrefs?

With over 8 million pages that target closely related keywords for property rentals around the world.

Even though you would think it’s impossible to create that number of pages, the great thing about pSEO is that it uses almost the same page template for each of those pages.

In today’s article, we’ll help you understand what programmatic SEO is, what its pros and cons are, and how to implement it successfully within your business.

Let’s dive in!

What is Programmatic SEO?

Programmatic SEO is the process of creating many specific keyword-targeted landing pages to rank on search engine results.

Here, every landing page creation begins with a template that contains the same elements (like page structure, pictures, prices, and reviews).

Then, you make different versions of the same page using automation tools that use the database with information. 

Each page targets a different specific keyword that is usually low-competitive, making it easier to rank for 1000s of keywords.

Traditional SEO vs. Programmatic SEO - The Difference

Programmatic SEO and traditional SEO both goals are to increase your website’s organic traffic.

However, they use different methods to improve your site's visibility in search engine results.

Traditional SEO involves strategies to improve your website’s ranking in search engines (like Google) that focus on quality content and take time to see results.

Part of traditional SEO involves creating web pages and articles centered around certain keywords. 

This aspect differs greatly from programmatic SEO.

Content creation for traditional SEO takes longer because it requires unique content, and it often targets keywords that are more competitive.

On the other hand, Programmatic SEO is a faster method to achieve the same goal of ranking in search engine results. 

It involves creating many landing pages with the same layout for search engines.

These landing pages are generated from a database, templates, and automation, allowing you to create thousands of pages using the same structure.

Like traditional SEO, programmatic SEO also involves researching specific keywords to execute your strategy.

What Are the Benefits of Programmatic SEO

1. Easy to Scale

In simple terms, programmatic SEO links a database to a page design to make many pages quickly. 

MentorCruise's homepage shows this with its animated page title switching between different mentorship types.

When you search for a marketing mentor on MentorCruise, you'll see one of these pages. You don't need top-notch writers for this. Just the right data for your page design.

This method also saves time. Instead of hours of keyword research for each page, you find one good keyword for programmatic content. We'll explain how in this article.

2. Cost-effective

When all your content comes from a database, you don't need to hire writers or editors to create content manually. 

So, programmatic SEO keeps your cost-per-page low. 

This is especially true when you make many programmatic pages for one main term.

Drawbacks of Programmatic SEO

1. Thin and Duplicate Content

Thin content refers to pages lacking value, often relying heavily on visuals without descriptive text. 

In Programmatic SEO, this strategy may be due to websites prioritizing visuals like images and videos over informative text.

According to the newest Google core updates, 40% of websites disappeared from the search results due to unhelpful content.

Your aim is to make pages useful for users and satisfy Google. 

Keep in mind: Show users valuable content. Google assesses content on your whole site, so thin content doesn't rank as high as rich content.

2. Dependence on Data

Finally, unless you are prepared to spend money on excellent writers capable of adding context and insights to your programmatically generated pages, your content's quality will solely rely on the data sources you create.

3. Indexing Issues

You may generate thousands of pages within a week through programmatic SEO. 

However, it is highly unlikely that Google will index all of them instantaneously, which can cause some indexing issues on your side that should be solved.

How to Implement Programmatic SEO?

Here are the four concrete steps on how to implement programmatic SEO for your project.

Step 1: Conduct Keyword Research for Programmatic SEO

Programmatic content entails targeting multiple closely related keywords using a general page template. 

Start From the Head Terms

To begin, the initial step is to locate relevant keywords that have a significant number of similar variations, possibly hundreds or thousands.

Let’s say you have a social media design creation tool.

In most programmatic SEO endeavors, there are head terms that refer to general categories for which we intend to rank.

They usually get a significant amount of traffic and are often searched with modifiers.

As an example, you may consider keywords that include terms such as facebook post, instagram story, and youtube thumbnail. 

Begin your search by inputting seed keywords or head terms into Google or any Keyword research tool. 

Include Modifiers

To broaden your list of potential keywords, we should explore the more specific keywords by including modifiers.

Depending on your business's type, you can use different modifiers:

• Primary modifiers - for example, focusing on templates or examples
• Secondary modifiers - targeting different niches, elements, use cases, and so on.

Here’s an example for the “instagram story template,” where we got an example of variation keywords, such as:

• birthday instagram story template
• blank instagram story template
• polaroid instagram story template
• mother’s day instagram story template
• valentine’s day instagram story template
• halloween instagram story template

‍

After examining these keywords, we discovered over 1000s of keywords providing a total volume of over 50,000 searches per month. 

If you are fortunate enough to rank for some of these keywords, your website could experience a significant increase in organic traffic.

These types of keywords are ideal for programmatic SEO. 

The content required to assist users searching for "boyfriend instagram story templates" is likely quite similar to the content necessary for those searching for "girlfriend instagram story templates." 

Although the information provided on each page must differ, the outline and main concepts should remain the same.

Step 2: Build the Content Template

Before starting with your pSEO execution, it's important to carefully consider the types of pages you'll create to avoid mistakes that businesses usually make.

Prior to establishing the content database, it is imperative to have a clear idea of the page's appearance (to determine what content is needed). 

The target is to satisfy the user's objective and ensure your page is thorough, precise, and valuable. 

Overlooking this stage increases your risk of having Google exclude those pages from the index.

Personally, I use Excalidraw to create a wireframe of the page's planned look and the specific content sections that it requires. 

However, you may use any design or wireframe tool that fits your needs.

You can also use the website screenshots and elements that operate effectively and brainstorm methods to improve and make them more unique and adapt to your website. 

The greater the level of detail at this stage, the simpler the later steps will be for you.

Step 3: Collect Data

This stage is different for every site, and it varies significantly.

Some websites may not have any dynamic content, while others (such as investing websites) require daily updates. 

It's essential not to create thin content, so ensure that you've conducted thorough research and have something of value and originality.

There are various approaches to collecting data, ranging in complexity. 

The primary ways include scraping websites, collecting inaccessible or exclusive data by hand, manual data entry, or gathering user-generated content.

For example, you can use Bardeen AI to automate any task, and also to scrape any data from the same-looking pages.

One of Zapier's primary sources of unique data is the triggers and actions distinct from the Zapier website. 

These components are dynamic and may be updated frequently, rendering them entirely exclusive to Zapier.

Step 4: Create a Database and Import It to Your Website

You can create your website using different CMS, such as WordPress, Webflow, Shopify, custom solution, or any other.

If you’re interested in Webflow, discover how to use Webflow programmatic SEO to your benefit and implement it successfully step by step.

Programmatic SEO can be carried out in a variety of ways using different tools. 

However, I've found Airtable to be the simplest choice, particularly since the product is meant for users lacking coding or database expertise.

In this stage, use Airtable to establish distinct fields mapped to each piece of content designed for the page, including metadata such as the page title, URL, and description. 

Given that the page template has already been established in Step 2, the process should be relatively easy: merely generate a field for each element of the content appearing on the page. 

However, simple does not always mean immediate, as populating hundreds of lines will take some time.

If you tend to integrate images as a component of your SEO strategy, you may benefit from using tools like Placid or Banner Bear (both of which integrate with Airtable) to create custom images on a large scale.

Programmatic SEO Examples

This long list of programmatic SEO examples highlights the need to be creative. 

Making content people search for is vital, but don't forget to check and fix any duplicate content on your Programmatic SEO pages regularly. 

Now, let's see what are some of the best examples to explore further:

1. Airbnb: A platform that allows people to rent or lease apartments, homes, or other unique accommodations from locals on a short-term basis.

2. Webflow: A website-building platform that lets users design, develop, and launch responsive websites without requiring extensive coding knowledge.

3. ProductHunt: A community-driven website and platform that covers new tech products, services, mobile apps, and websites.

4. G2: An online review site that provides rankings and reviews of various products and services in the software industry.

5. Canva: A graphic design platform that enables individuals to create and collaborate on marketing materials, graphics, and other visual content with an easy-to-use interface.

6. Zapier: A platform that allows users to automate workflows by integrating apps, services and websites together without requiring programming knowledge.

7. NomadList: A website that offers information about digital nomad-friendly destinations, including cost of living, Internet speed, visa requirements, and quality of life.

Ready to Start With Programmatic SEO?

We understand how critical SEO is for business prosperity. 

Employing this strategy offers businesses the ability to attain a larger audience and improves website visibility to qualified leads on search engines.

Programmatic SEO is a tool that can help you dramatically maximize your ROI.

And it shouldn’t be that hard to implement.

Need help?

Schedule a free consultation with us, and let’s discover how you can implement programmatic SEO for your business.