SEO Case Study: To the Top of Search Results with Donat

Luka Štular, Tomaž Srpčič, Sabina Bevc11.06.2021Marketing, Websites

How to achieve 2567% growth in monthly organic traffic in a year and a half and a 1362% boost in SERP impressions? Is it only luck, maybe a kind of magic? Have we secretly bribed Google with a basket of Slovenian delicacies? Don’t worry, we do not rely on luck, we leave magic to the professionals, and (for the time being ;) we have no acquaintances at Google. However, we have a recipe for propelling a site to the highest organic positions in search results. Its main ingredient? A sophisticated mix of careful technical optimization and thoughtful content marketing! It is through the latter that we have successfully expanded the online recognition of a brand behind the mineral water that represents one of Slovenia’s most important natural treasures.

By optimizing the website, we have expanded the visibility of the Donat mineral water.

The man sits at the computer and drinks Donat.

TO FIND YOUR WAY AROUND THE TEXT, USE THIS HANDY CONTENT GUIDE:

Step 1: In-depth analysis and distribution of keywords

Step 2: Content Plan

Step 3: Review and upgrade of existing content
Growth of organic traffic

The most important results after 18 months of work
- Let the Word about Healthy Digestion conquer the Online World!
- Do you also wish to make your business more attractive for Google?

DONAT: A HEALTHY INTESTINE’S BEST FRIEND AND THE HERO OF AN ANCIENT MYTH!

Mention the miraculous drink from underneath Mt Donačka and a great many people will immediately think of its iconic green bottle with the images of Pegasus and Apollo. There will also be many who still remember the last time when they took a few sips of it to overcome an annoying digestive issue. And those with top-notch memory will undoubtedly still smile at the thought of the clever TV ads that made the audiences smile a few years ago, for instance the one in which the police serve Donat to a cunning thief. The criminal has swollen the stolen diamond and having discovered this through X-ray search, the detectives resort to the digestion-boosting mineral water to get it out of his intestine ASAP.

But Donat’s fame has much older roots. There is even an ancient legend according to which Apollo, the Greek god of health and beauty, ordered the mythical winged horse Pegasus to smite the East Styrian soil with its hooves in order to release the mineral wealth captured in its meteoric groundwater. Thus, the Rogaška spring was created and even Apollo himself loved to drink it to stay vital and strong.

The winged horse Pegasus as a trademark of the Donat mineral water.

Winged Pegasus as a symbol of Donat mineral water in white.

But the healing powers of Donat are not only a thing of ancient stories. For better well-being, it was supposedly enjoyed as far back as Roman times, and the word about its beneficial effect on the digestion and overall health has been out for over four centuries! However, things are far from an urban myth supported by some clever marketing strategy. In 2015, a German clinical study has actually proven that the unique combination of magnesium, sulphates, bicarbonate and calcium really does facilitate digestion. At the same time, Donat represents a unique product in its segment as no other mineral water boasts such a high mineral content.

Having such an incredible product in its portfolio, it is understandable that the company Atlantic Group, which includes the Donat brand, wanted to spread the glory of the Slovenian national treasure even further, especially on the world wide web. Atlantic’s goal included strengthening Donat’s online presence with the focus on bringing it closer to online searchers in foreign markets. And this could only mean one thing, namely the start of an SEO project of the kind that delights even the most seasoned masters of optimization: an excellent brand, a professional, experienced and cooperative client, great potential in many areas of optimization and tough competition at the top of organic results.

A SUPERB NATURAL PRODUCT AIMING FOR THE ONLINE THRONE!

The decision to revamp Donat’s online home with an improved UI and fresh content brought with it a clear goal: to attract as many searchers as possible to the website and to present to them the exceptional tradition and unique effect of our premier mineral water. However, the client had a broader vision, emphasizing a desire for the site to go beyond the bare promotion of the natural product and to also address the numerous health challenges of modern consumers, especially in the field of healthy digestion, proper nutrition and good quality of life.

Our core mission thus became crystal-clear: to improve the site’s SERP rankings for relevant keywords while raising the consumers’ awareness about the importance of a healthy lifestyle, using quality blog content to help them proactively take care of their well-being, include drinking Donat in their daily routines, enjoy healthier food and adopt other useful habits.

Example of a blog post with an index

Example of a concrete contribution to donat.mg.

THE MAIN CHALLENGES OF THE DONAT MISSION

The path to higher SERP rankings is never a smooth one, even when it comes to an established brand. For the project to succeed, it was therefore necessary to define the most challenging turns as soon as possible:

How to use strategic content marketing to change the opinion of the target group about the product itself? The consumption of Donat is often associated with the alleviation of digestive problems, but we also wanted to draw special attention to role in the prevention of health issues.
How to boost the online presence of the Donat brand in foreign markets? The Rogaška mineral treasure already enjoys a unique reputation in Slovenia and the former Yugoslav states, while other European markets, notably Austria, Germany, Italy, English-speaking countries and Russia still represent untapped potential.
How to outrank the numerous competitors? The key phrases and topics that we would like the site to rank for are considered highly competitive, so an innovative approach and quality, along with a high degree of reliability, are essential.
How do we present digestive care to online users?
Despite their relevance, topics covering intestines and the discharge of waste from the body are considered sensitive while people find it extremely hard to talk about digestive issues. If we want to encourage online audiences to actually invest their time in reading about these things, we need to wrap this kind of content in an attractive, interesting style.

The pleasant style of the text makes the subject more interesting to the readers.

The woman reads Donat’s blog posts with a healthy snack by her side.

PREPARATION: FINDING THE RIGHT (KEY)WORDS TO TELL A WELL-OPTIMISED STORY

We opened the project with a keyword and competitor analysis, on the basis of which we set out the main phrases and topics that will help us propel Donat to the top of SERPs.

Before our team took over, the Donat website had already ranked in Google search results for 294 keywords, but those were mostly so-called brand keywords or queries containing a brand name and having a relatively low number of monthly searches.

Accordingly, organic traffic to the website was rather underwhelming, and it was therefore necessary to make the website more competitive for non-branded, or general search queries as well. These have more average monthly searches and can therefore attract many more online users, especially those who are still not familiar with Donat.

However, the keyword analysis revealed that we would have to overcome two further obstacles on our way to success:

Conquering the “home turf.” The website did not rank for queries closely related to the benefits and intended use of Donat (digestion, constipation, heartburn, flatulence, flatulence during pregnancy…).
Localisation. In our case, the diversity of queries in different languages also confirmed the rule that in the world of optimized multi-language content, plain translation is not enough for organic success. Each language group is characterized by different search specifics and, therefore, each language version of the site should be subject to a separate keyword analysis as well as at least a minimum content adjustment based on the differences discovered in the process. Only in this way can we bring the content closer to all the target groups, effectively addressing their needs and interests.

A HAPPY MIX OF SEO STRATEGIES FOR TOP RESULTS

The charm of search engine optimization lies in the challenge of properly combining different processes and strategies to complement each other and thus strengthen each other’s effects. And to make the magical mineral water from underneath the Styrian soil famous online, we had to do just that – discover that victorious recipe. Working on the ingredients, we quickly realized that bare technical optimization aided by simply adding more content to the site would never get us to where we wanted to be. For this reason, we designed the strategy in a way that effectively intertwines several SEO fields with content marketing.

We set the following as our main tasks:

extension of the existing analysis of keywords and the competition,
thorough content analysis of the website,
optimization of existing blog posts,
preparation of a content marketing plan (timeline included),
additional user interface corrections,
regular technical inspection of the website and relevant corrections
obtaining quality feedback in all key markets.

TARGET GROUPS AND OBJECTIVES

Already during the website redesign, we worked closely with the client to precisely define the target groups and markets and, in accordance with the latter, the main objectives of our SEO offensive.

Content optimisation has been undertaken for all the languages in which the website is available. Localisation thus includes:

Slovenian,
Croatian,
Serbian,
Bosnian,
German (with adjustments for the Austrian market),
Italian,
Russian and
English.

When defining the target customer, we focused primarily on young and middle-aged web users who are, to some extent, already aware of healthy habits, but would like to regularly upgrade this type of knowledge, either out of a desire for prevention or to alleviate digestive disorders or other health problems that can be mitigated by the intake of minerals (headaches, diabetes, gallstones, stress, lack of magnesium, etc.). We wanted to offer these people a wide range of useful, exhaustive and authentic content to strengthen their care for their bodies and also to get them to efficiently include the drinking of Donat in their daily routines.

To measure our performance, we set ourselves the following goals:

an increase in the number of keywords that the site ranks for in search results;
improving keyword rankings;
increasing organic traffic to the website;
a higher CTR;
a higher average position of the website for relevant keywords and
an increase in traffic through “non-branded” search queries.

TIME TO TURN THE FLOW UPSTREAM!

Step 1: In-depth analysis and distribution of keywords

The initial keyword analysis helped us to gather basic content ideas and identify main problems with the site rankings. However, when we started working on the site, we expanded and upgraded it to include more relevant queries. We also divided the list of search phrases with SEO potential according to the thematic areas they cover (digestion, heartburn, bloating, immune system, healthy lifestyle, healthy diet, etc.).

Within each thematic set, we also separated:

the main keywords;
longer or long-tail keywords;
auxiliary keywords (synonyms for keywords with a slightly lower number of searches);
keywords with fewer searches (low hanging fruits), to which the competition is not paying much attention.

Source: https://loganix.com/

Graf ključnih besed - long tail, middle tail in short tail.

We first performed the keyword analysis in Slovenian and English, then adapting it for the individual languages with the help of translators.

Step 2: Content Plan

In order to determine the range of content, especially at the blog level, we had to check how the potential of the keywords we chose were used by the best-ranking websites. By sifting through the most popular health blogs, rival websites and other relevant web content, we analysed online trends regarding digestion, nutrition, lifestyle and relief for digestive disorders.

We turned all our findings into a final content plan, in which we carefully defined the framework topics and content starting points. Together with our client, we also developed a quality assurance system for every piece of content we contribute. Its main star is Donat’s very own nutrition expert Kristina Aralica. Knowing we are not experts when it comes to digestion and nutrition, we make sure that every text we prepare is thoroughly fact-checked and approved by her to before it goes out. This way, the content is 100% accurate and trustworthy while as the same time, her corrections and advice ensure that the advice we present correspond to the guidelines of Donat’s healthy lifestyle programmes such as Detox. Thus, our messages are not only technically accurate, but also consistent.

When working on the strategy for an individual article or other piece of content, we also prepare a localization plan, determining the phrases and topic adjustments that are specific to a particular language or market.

Step 3: Review and upgrade of existing content

In the case of Donat, blog content was not our only weapon for the rise among organic results. As a brand with a centuries-long and rich tradition, Donat made sure to describe its development and its mineral treasure on key landing subpages. And in order to extract all the organic potential from these pages, we therefore also checked whether we could further optimise them to make them even more attractive to Googles algorithms. Our attack strategy on this front included two main steps:

We identified the content that is already getting a higher amount of organic traffic and checked how we could optimize it further.
We determined the organically weakest content and either revamped it or replaced it.

Example of posts on the donat.com website.

TEST, ADJUST, RETEST

Despite a number of indicators in the form of trends and competition, it is always difficult to predict exactly how we will lure web users to a particular site, such as Donat’s online kingdom. This is why in the initial phase of the project, we made sure to publish structurally and thematically diverse content, carefully analysing its reach to determine whether it has any success with searchers. Thus, we gradually discovered the types and stylistic features of the texts that best suit our target group.

At the same time, we constantly tried expand our SEO horizons and look at the challenges from different perspectives. Together with our client, at weekly meetings, we discussed ways to further enrich certain content segments of certain pages and keep visitors on the site for as long as possible.

HOWEVER, THE BEST KEYWORDS ALSO NEED SOLID TECHNICAL FOUNDATIONS

We initially included two components in our winning recipe, so it is high time to move from keywords and content marketing to technical optimization. Without such basic SEO hygiene, even quite good content does not get far on the web. And in order to ensure that there were no major technical barriers on our path when presenting users with new content, we joined forces with our WordPress team, constantly watching over the site’s performance and carrying out regular testing with the help SEO tools.

We focused on:

key subpage loading speed;
possible indexing problems;
javaScript and CSS file size;
negative backlinks;
URL structure and heading structure;
the correct optimization of image files;
correct metadata optimization.

RESULTS

SEO is best described as an ultramarathon with no end – as the goal finish line constantly moves further away from even the best runners. Why? Because there are always new opportunities for further upgrades, meaning there is no end in sight. However, after months of hard work, there is nothing more beautiful than enjoying the sight of encouraging results when checking Google Analytics. This is something even seasoned SEO specialists used to the biggest organic falls and rises never get tired of. Therefore, it is finally time to go through the results that put a smile of satisfaction on the faces of the members of our SEO team.

Growth of organic traffic

Source: Google Analytics

If we compare the organic results for the periods between 3 May and 30 September 2020 and between 1 October 2020 and 27 February 2021, we can certainly be proud of the following:

Source: Google Analytics

The most important results after 18 months of work

Since rolling up our sleeves and making a more determined push to lure web crawlers in the direction of the Rogaška mineral pearl, we have:

Source: Ahrefs

Graphs of increasing the number of keywords for the project Donat Mg.

How about turning these numbers into graphs?

Printout from Ahrefs

In light of the comparison between the above periods, we also cannot overlook the following achievements:

Source: Google Search Console

LET THE WORD ABOUT HEALTHY DIGESTION CONQUER THE ONLINE WORLD!

We are all passionate peeking into Google Analytics and getting all excited when monitoring the organic growth of a website, but when it comes to our love for SEO, this doesn’t tell the whole story. What really makes us tick is the feeling we get when the computers are switched off: it’s knowing that our skills and knowledge have been instrumental in spreading the word about a unique natural product that has been proven to help eliminate some of the most unpleasant health issues of the modern era. Using the power of Google’s vast search orbit, we’ve taken the glory of Rogaška’s mineral star much farther than we could by traditional means.

The mission of raising awareness about topics such as healthy digestion and proper diet represents a special responsibility as it does not only require a well thought-out digital strategy, but also in-depth knowledge of health care and nutrition. Therefore, we are even more grateful for the opportunity to efficiently intertwine our SEO skills with the client’s rich knowledge and experience, transforming their wishes into digital reality. We might sound like we are satisfied with what we have achieved, but you can rest assured that our thoughts are already on the next upgrade. For us, the Donat mission is indeed a success, but it is also far from over!

Luka Štular

Content Marketing Specialist

Merging my SEO and content marketing knowledge with my passion for copywriting, I am constantly analysing search trends to find the most popular keywords and package them in stories that inform, help, entertain, promote, attract attention, and, of course, sell.

Tomaž Srpčič

You won’t find Tomaž in our offices anymore, but we know that no matter where he is now, he is doing a phenomenal job. We’ve kept a piece of them with us as a memory. :)

Sabina Bevc

Chief Marketing Officer

My main mission is strategic client development and leading a team of the best SEO experts. I always advocate for “user first” principle, because that’s the best way to achieve top results.

Be the first one to hear about the latest digital trends and case studies.

Write down your email address below!