How Clarks Stepped Up Organic Growth

Clarks, a name synonymous with quality and affordability, has been a trusted footwear brand for decades. Catering to everyone from kids needing sturdy school shoes to adults looking for versatile, reliable styles, Clarks had built a loyal customer base but hadn’t fully harnessed the potential of organic search to grow their online footprint.

When Clarks partnered with StudioHawk, the goals were clear but ambitious: to grow organic traffic by 40% and increase organic revenue by 50% within a year. Beyond the numbers, the mission was to refine their site’s architecture to match users with products better, optimise collection pages for search engines and shoppers and expand their keyword footprint—all without breaking the bank.

 

The StudioHawk team focused on efficiency, the campaign had no room for flashy backlink campaigns; every decision was mindful and made with expertise in mind. 

Clarks was stepping into uncharted SEO territory, which required StudioHawk to act as both guide and collaborator.

 

First, the site’s information architecture was restructured to reflect user search behavior. While Clarks had broad collection pages, these were often too generic to capture shoppers with specific intents, such as finding "black school shoes for boys" or "wide-fit leather shoes." StudioHawk worked with Clarks to identify gaps in their collection pages and ensure that proposed changes aligned with inventory and customer needs.

 

Next came the content. The StudioHawk team crafted collection page copy that was as functional as it was engaging, blending SEO best practices with a user-first approach. Above-the-fold content grabbed attention, while below-the-fold copy provided SEO-rich material and smart internal linking, a critical move given Shopify’s flat URL structure.

 

The team also revamped metadata across the site, optimizing titles and descriptions to reflect user queries and improve click-through rates.

 

Meanwhile, the introduction of the Men’s White Sneakers page marked a turning point. Initially met with hesitation, the page launched in February 2024, and its performance has been a resounding success, proving that sometimes the smallest tweaks can yield outsized results.

 

Challenges emerged, as they always do. Clarks’ internal team lacked familiarity with SEO, which risked slowing progress. StudioHawk tackled this head-on by delivering tailored workshops that demystified SEO concepts and empowered the team to collaborate effectively. A website theme change also threatened to derail visibility, but by explaining the "what" and "why" of SEO recommendations, StudioHawk secured buy-in from developers and navigated the transition seamlessly.