Laithwaites UKSEO and content strategy case study

The strategic challenge

Laithwaites needed to reduce its reliance on branded searches and grow organic visibility for non-branded, high-volume search terms.

We were challenged with the following:

• Growing organic traffic by 40% within 12 months, aiming for over 2.8 million clicks across the site.
• Achieving top 3 rankings for previously unranked high-volume generic keywords.
• Addressing complex technical issues, including site crawlability, JavaScript rendering and duplicate content.
• Shifting focus from branded to generic search traffic, aiming to increase generic traffic from 20% to 46%.
• Embedding SEO best practices within the Laithwaites team, enabling long-term sustainability.

Our strategy involved building a comprehensive multi-faceted SEO approach that would attract potential customers across various stages of the buyer’s journey, focusing on both technical and content improvements.

Our Approach

Technical SEO

To address the technical SEO site issues, we focused on optimising product landing pages (PLPs) across the Laithwaites site. We supported the rollout of 1,000 SEO-optimised PLPs, ensuring that each page had a clean URL structure, appropriate canonical rules and fully rendered content. This approach allowed us to improve user experience and indexing, making it easier for customers to find relevant products.

We also tackled site crawlability issues by addressing duplicate content and implementing an uncrawlable faceted navigation system. This reduced the number of necessary pages that Google had to crawl, directing its attention to the most valuable content instead. Throughout this process, Submerge worked closely with the Laithwaites development teams, creating a prioritised technical roadmap. We also participated in regular User Acceptance Testing (UAT) to verify that all technical fixes were implemented effectively.

Content strategy and optimisation

A core part of our approach was developing high-quality, informative content that would engage users and improve SERP rankings. Submerge created around 200 new PLPs, each featuring detailed descriptions and FAQs that catered specifically to the needs of the wine buyers. This content was strategically designed to increase the relevance of key search terms and improve user engagement.

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We also assisted Laithwaites with launching a new wine blog platform with content tailored to UK wine trends and preferences. The blog – built in Contentful – featured a range of articles, from wine-buying guides to educational pieces, targeting both informational and commercial search queries. This helped Laithwaites build authority in the wine sector and attract new audiences who were not familiar with the brand.

Our content strategy was informed by comprehensive keyword research and competitor analysis, which allowed us to identify high-impact, winnable keywords. This research guided the development of a detailed content plan, resulting in SEO-optimised articles and landing pages that addressed the specific needs and search intent of wine shoppers in the UK.

Performance monitoring and reporting

Monitoring the impact of our SEO efforts was vital for demonstrating value and guiding further optimisation. We built custom dashboards that integrated data from Google Search Console and SEMrush, providing clear insights into traffic performance, keyword rankings and revenue attribution. This allowed both the Submerge and Laithwaites teams to track progress in real-time and make data-driven decisions.

Our performance monitoring ensured that organic performance could be directly linked to revenue. This clear attribution helped demonstrate the value of SEO optimisation to Laithwaites’ overall business strategy.

Embedding an SEO culture

We conducted regular workshops and created a library of SEO best practice guides to help Laithwaites adopt an SEO-first culture. These resources helped Laithwaites’ teams understand the importance of SEO and how to implement effective strategies in line with the wider business objectives.

Submerge worked closely with the UK-based development and marketing teams to integrate SEO into Laithwaites’ wider business processes. This cross-departmental collaboration ensured that SEO was not just an isolated tactic but a core part of the company’s strategic approach to digital marketing.

The result

One of the most significant achievements of the campaign was the increase in organic traffic for www.laithwaites.co.uk. We boosted organic clicks, surpassing the initial target of 40%. This impressive uplift was largely driven by the technical improvements made across the site and the strategic focus on high-volume, non-branded keywords, which attracted a broader audience.

Our targeted efforts also led to substantial improvements in rankings, particularly for high-value, generic keywords. For example, the site moved from being unranked to securing 4th position for ‘Prosecco’ with 74,000 monthly searches and 1st position for ‘wines’ with 9,900 monthly searches. Overall, the visibility of Laithwaites’ top 5 keywords improved by 222%, with over 1,000 new keywords added to the top rankings.

An important goal of the campaign was to reduce Laithwaites’ reliance on branded search and increase traffic from generic queries. We successfully achieved this by diversifying the brand’s search traffic, increasing the proportion of generic traffic from 20% to 46%. This shift allowed Laithwaites to reach new customers who were not already familiar with the brand, broadening its market reach and contributing to overall business growth.

Overall, the campaign’s success was in meeting short-term objectives and setting the stage for long-term growth.