What if I told you that in just 16 months, we achieved an almost 160% increase in daily clicks, a 50% rise in daily impressions, and significantly improved our search rankings? That’s exactly what we accomplished at OLX through a well-executed SEO strategy.
SEO is not an overnight game—it takes persistence, data-driven optimizations, and continuous improvements. Over this period, we transformed our non-branded traffic, improved rankings, and enhanced user engagement across major categories like Cars, Properties, and Jobs. But the impact didn’t stop there. Our overall traffic also saw a substantial boost, with clicks and impressions increasing by 29% and average search position improving by 4 points—a clear indicator of enhanced visibility and discoverability.
In this blog, I’ll break down exactly how we did it, the challenges we faced and the key strategies that worked, and the takeaways that can help any marketplace or classifieds platform achieve similar growth. Let’s dive in!
But before we dive in lets talk about..
What is SEO?
SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is the practice of optimizing a website or online content to improve its visibility and ranking on search engine results pages (SERPs). The goal is to attract more organic (non-paid) traffic from users who are searching for information, products, or services related to the website’s content.
The key components of SEO are listed below. A website that meets all these criteria will achieve a high ranking.
but we be might be thinking..
Why do we need SEO?
SEO is essential for several reasons, especially in today’s digital landscape, where online visibility can significantly impact a business’s success. It is a crucial component of a comprehensive digital marketing strategy. It helps improve your online presence, attract targeted traffic, build credibility, and achieve long-term business goals.
Some key reasons why SEO is important:
So now as we know why SEO might be a crucial component for any business having an online presence let’s discuss the issues, challenges and the fixes we did to unleash the traffic growth.
We focussed majorly on On Page SEO and Technical SEO to boost the traffic as part of SEO iniatives.
Technical SEO Improvements
Fix High 404s
Achieved a 99.5% Reduction in 404 Errors 🏆
On the OLX platform, key pages such as the Homepage, Listing Page, and Product Detail Pages (PDP) are indexed by Google. With over 100K ads posted daily, each ad follows a lifecycle and expires after a set period (e.g., 30 days). This leads to millions of expired listings (PDP pages), resulting in a large number of 404 pages being indexed and crawled by Google and other bots, ultimately diluting crawl bandwidth.
To address this, we implemented a redirection mechanism for expired or obsolete PDP pages, directing users to the parent listing page. This ensures that if a specific item is no longer available, users are guided to similar listings, improving both user experience and SEO efficiency.
On the listing page, filter links are dynamically generated based on category, location, filters, and item count. This was resulting in millions of pages , including pages with no inventory, leading to empty listing pages and contributing to crawl bandwidth dilution and 404 errors.
To resolve this, we removed or greyed out links that led to zero-inventory pages. This effectively prevented the creation of Zero Results Pages (ZRP), optimizing crawl efficiency and conserving bandwidth.
We also modified the response code for listing pages with no inventory by returning a 200 status code while adding the noindex, nofollow directive to prevent indexing and crawling in such cases.
Serve a 410 Status Code for Expired Images: When an image of posted ad is deleted or expired, returning a 410 Gone status signals to crawlers that the resource has been permanently removed. This is a stronger directive than a 404 Not Found, ensuring search engines quickly de-index such images and optimize crawl efficiency.
Redirect Malformed URLs to Correct Paths: We implemented redirections for incorrect URLs, such as /en/pagelink to en-in/pagelink, ensuring users and crawlers reach the intended pages. This eliminated unnecessary “404 erros”, improving both user experience and SEO.
Results : Achieved a 99.5% Reduction in 404 Errors 🏆
Fix High Soft 404 Error Pages Fix
Achieved a 93% Reduction in Soft 404 Errors 🏆
High Soft 404 errors occur when a page returns an HTTP 200 status code but contains little to no meaningful content. This poses an SEO issue since the page provides minimal or no value to users and search engine crawlers.
To resolve this, we implemented error tracking and monitoring for all APIs in New Relic. By analyzing performance metrics, we identified and fixed APIs with high error rates, especially during peak load times. We prioritized critical endpoints like search and feed APIs, as they were essential for rendering high-traffic pages such as the listing and home pages.
and the result…93% Reduction in Soft 404 Errors.
Fix High 5XX Error Pages
To resolve the intermittent 502 errors in Google Search Console, we aligned the timeout settings between the Node.js application and the AWS Elastic Load Balancer (ELB). NodeJs has a default timeout of 5 seconds. ELB timeout was 60 minutes.
We updated the NodeJs idle timeout setting to a higher value, ie 61 seconds, to avoid situations where the ELB waits longer than necessary for a response. This alignment prevented timeouts from mismatching and help eliminate the 502 errors.
Enhance SSR Page
Previously, the item page was lazy-loaded, meaning content would load only when a section came into view. This approach resulted in only a portion of the page being server-side rendered (SSR), which limited the visibility of the rest of the page for crawling.
The change involved rendering the entire page server-side for Product Detail Pages (PDP). The trade-off in load time was minimal compared to the significant SEO benefits gained by rendering the full page for crawlers.
Fix Page Indexing Rules
Implemented the addition of the noindex, nofollow directive for multi-filter pages, pages with no inventory, and categories that should not be indexed. This update helpsed search engines better understand which pages should be indexed and which should be excluded from search results.
Improve Load Time via Caching
API Caching with Redis/Akamai: We enabled caching the static content from APIs like categories, SEO tags, and popular searches to ensure faster load times while preserving content consistency. This not only improved user experience but also helped search engines crawl the content more efficiently, leading to better indexing and ranking.
HomePage/Listing Page Caching: We implemented full-page caching of the homepage which boosted Time to First Byte (TTFB) and improved the Largest Contentful Paint (LCP) score, both of which are critical for SEO. A faster-loading page enhanced crawlability and positively impacted SEO rankings by improving user engagement and reducing bounce rates.
Those were some technincal seo fixes and improvements which enabled in boosting the SEO score. In addition to that we addressed and improved on the…
On Page Seo Improvements
On Page SEO focuses on content, user experience, and on-page optimizations to improve search rankings. It includes keyword optimization, meta tags, internal linking, schema markup, and engagement strategies. The goal is to enhance relevance, usability, and visibility in search results.
Meta, H1, and Canonical Fixes
Optimizing the canonical tags, titles, descriptions, and H1 tags by including the high search volume keywords, inventory count etc significantly enhanced content targeting and richness. These changes helped avoid content duplication, ensuring better SEO performance and more accurate indexing by search engines.
Dynamic Content Addition
Integrating dynamic content, such as showcasing different car models on the cars page, job types on the jobs page etc, helped keep the content both fresh and relevant. From an SEO perspective, this strategy not only improved user engagement by offering personalized, real-time updates but also enhanced crawlability and indexing. Search engines are better able to recognize the ever-changing content, leading to improved rankings and more targeted traffic
FAQ Section Addition
Adding a dedicated FAQ section not only improved user experience by answering common queries directly but also helped with SEO. Search engines value well-structured, relevant content like FAQs, as they provide quick answers to users’ searches. This enhanced visibility in search results, particularly with featured snippets, and contributed to better ranking for long-tail keywords.
Pagination on Listing Page
By introducing pagination on listing page, the crawlers get exposed to the large number of pages from a single page. Since rel prev/next is no more honoured by search engines. Adding paginatied results with pages linking to the individual numbered pages, the inventory pool is exposed to crawlers.
Interlinking Addition on Internal Pages
Introducing interlinking on listing and product detail pages greatly improved SEO by helping search engines discover and index related content more effectively. This approach not only strengthened the internal linking structure but also guided users to relevant pages, enhancing navigation and increasing engagement. It ensured better distribution of link equity across the site and supported improved rankings for related search terms.
Fix Structure Data for Rich Text Results
100% Reduction in Invalid Rich Text Schema 🏆
For Google Search, rich text snippets often come from structured data (like schema.org) embedded in a webpage’s HTML. This structured data helps Google understand the content and context of the page, enabling it to display additional rich features (e.g., a product price, product make, product images etc). This can lead to higher visibility in search results and improve user engagement.
Rich text in search results helps provide more contextual information upfront, making the search results more informative and attractive to users.
At olx we have different PDP pages for cars, jobs, electronics etc. Enhancements and fixes were done to address issues with job and vehicle schema so that they are as per google defined schema.
eg. Example Schema for Vehicle (Car):
<script type="application/ld+json">
{
"@context": "https://schema.org",
"@type": "Car",
"name": "2021 Toyota Camry",
"image": "https://example.com/images/toyota-camry.jpg",
"description": "A pre-owned 2021 Toyota Camry in excellent condition with low mileage.",
"brand": {
"@type": "Brand",
"name": "Toyota"
},
"vehicleModel": "Camry",
"vehicleIdentificationNumber": "1HGBH41JXMN109186",
"offers": {
"@type": "Offer",
"priceCurrency": "USD",
"price": "24999.99",
"priceValidUntil": "2025-12-31",
"availability": "https://schema.org/InStock",
"url": "https://example.com/toyota-camry-for-sale"
},
"vehicleEngine": {
"@type": "EngineSpecification",
"engineType": "V6",
"fuelType": "Gasoline",
"numberOfDoors": 4
},
"mileageFromOdometer": {
"@type": "QuantitativeValue",
"value": "15000",
"unitCode": "KMT"
},
"color": "Silver",
"vehicleTransmission": "Automatic",
"dateVehicleFirstRegistered": "2021-05-01"
}
</script>Results
Schema Addition to Listing and Home Page
Website Schema and Listing Page Schema were added and they played a crucial for improving SEO and enhancing visibility in search results.
Website Schema helps search engines understand the identity and structure of a site by marking up key details like the site’s name, logo, and contact information, which can boost brand recognition and trust. On the other hand, Listing Page Schema is used for product or service listings, provided detailed information like price, availability, and reviews.
This allowed search engines to display rich snippets in search results, which can improve click-through rates (CTR) and product visibility. Both schemas contribute to better search rankings, increased user engagement, and more effective SERP presence.
Core Web Vitals Improvements
Core Web Vitals improvements and optimization of page performance were done.
- Improving CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift): To address CLS, we’ve implemented a fixed height for the Google Ads container. This prevents layout shifts as ads load, providing a smoother and more stable visual experience for users, reducing unexpected page movements.
- Boosting LCP (Largest Contentful Paint): To enhance LCP, we’ve focused on webpage caching to ensure quicker retrieval of static assets and reduce JavaScript byte size. By cutting down on unnecessary JavaScript, the critical content on the page loads faster, leading to improved load times and a better user experience.
There is a continued trend of decline in bad urls and an uplift in good urls in GSC with respect to core webvitals. These changes significantly enhanced overall page performance, contributing to improved user engagement, faster load times, and better SEO rankings.
By focusing on these technical and on-page SEO improvements, we observed a significant increase in organic traffic, clicks, and impressions both in non branded traffic , overall traffic and category wise uplift.
Talking about some impact numbers 👇
Overall Traffic Improvements
- Clicks and Impressions: Both increased by 29%, reflecting improved visibility and engagement.
- Average Position: Improved significantly by 3.9, suggesting better search engine rankings.
| Metric | Before (Nov 4, 2023) | After (Feb 9, 2024) | Change |
| Daily Clicks | 5,80,727 | 7,50,926 | 30% |
| Daily Impressions | 5,715,738 | 7,396,390 | 30% |
| Average Position | 12.7 | 8.8 | +3.9 (Improved Rank) |
Non Branded Traffic Improvements
- Impressions and clicks had a clear upward trend, with a remarkable 157% increase in clicks on daily basis and a 48% rise in impressions daily basis
- The Click-Through Rate (CTR) improved from 9.9% to 11.2%, which indicates more users are engaging with the search results due to better optimization (titles, descriptions, etc.).
- The average position of the query has improved from 9.9 to 5.8, meaning the site is ranking higher, which likely contributed to the increased visibility and clicks.
| Metric | Nov 23, 2024 | Feb 10, 2025 | Improvement |
| Daily Clicks | 27,125 | 69,717 | +42,592 (+157.0%) |
| Daily Impressions | 410,167 | 606,458 | +196,291 (+47.9%) |
| CTR | 9.90% | 11.20% | +1.3% |
| Average Position | 9.9 | 5.8 | 4.1 (Improvement) |
Category Wise Performance
Job
- Clicks Growth: Increased significantly from ~4.6K/day (Nov 2023) to ~30K+/day (Feb 2025) (~6x growth).
- Impressions Surge: Jumped from ~41K/day (Nov 2023) to ~250K/day (Feb 2025) (~6x increase).
- Ranking Improvement: Average position improved from 7.8 (Nov 2023) to 4.5 (Feb 2025), leading to better visibility.
Cars
- Clicks Growth: Increased ~4x from ~3K/day (Nov 2023) to ~10K/day (Feb 2025).
- Impressions Growth: ~3x rise from ~30K/day to ~100K/day.
Properties
- Clicks Growth: Increased to ~10K/day in Feb 2025 from ~6K/day in Nov 2023 (~1.6x growth).
- Impressions Surge: Grew from ~30K/day (Nov 2023) to ~40K/day (Feb 2025)
- Consistent Upward Trend: Traffic steadily increased with spikes in Dec-Jan, possibly due to seasonal demand.
By focusing on these technical and on-page SEO improvements, we observed a significant increase in organic traffic on our website, clicks, and impressions across both non-branded traffic, overall traffic, and category-wise uplift.
