Source: Reebok Online Shop | Reebok US
I could have started this post with a discussion on the fact that Nike has updated their CMS and they are actively recruiting a tech to work on the backend of their sites as the Nike platform looks and functions like a WordPress site that has countless metatags and coding that allows the site to be indexed much faster with Webmaster Tools. I could have done that, and I just did, but I chose to discuss the work Reebok is doing on their CMS/blog as it relates to search and the importance of brands taking the time to diversify the delivery of media to their prospective consumers.
I built my recent book release around the need for marketing by brands and retailers to reverse engineer sneaker sites. To do so, however, the companies will have to hire more writers and people capable of taking everyday stories and turning those stories into either video, pictures, or articles to create a community beyond the paid services of influencers and social media.
Here is a search on “Reebok new release sneakers”:
In the first picture you will note that Reebok has the first spot but it’s an ad. However take a moment to look at the next ten search options:
What becomes immediately apparent is that without running a consistent ad campaign Reebok doesn’t generate an organic search at all. Websites utilizing traditional static coding aren’t being considered in the same way that a CMS is given priority in search. This is because search engines are looking for the most informative and shared information on the web. Right now sneaker websites like the ones shown in the search on the search above: Solecollector, Sneaker Bar Detroit, rank much higher and by default these sites gain the click throughs brands should be attaining for themselves.
Reebok’s update of their CMS is a vital part of their marketing while it will be a much slower process and could take a lot longer because the company isn’t creating content daily on its own platform. I’m using Reebok because of the recent update, but every retailer and brand should be building in-house content development teams. Businesses relying on the same old strategy of buying ads to increase traffic and engagement are using a unicycle approach. It’s effective, but a bicycle is more effective. A car is even more effective. In other words content, social, ads, and most important, great product are all required to reach the digital consumer that enjoys a scroll feed and all of the information that can be acquired in one location. A static product page only works when someone is looking and the product is hot.
Reebok’s decision to update their CMS and to organize their information with a platform allowing for metatags and a more engaging user interface is a small, but smart play by the brand that any person with a business should be following.
