Benjamin Strusnik has quickly become one of the leading experts in e-commerce SEO. He has been instrumental in helping clients make an extra $25 million in organic revenue in just the last two years. He achieved this through his agency, GoldenWeb, and his own online businesses. Benjamin's strategies and approach, which rely on data, have led to significant growth for Shopify stores in various industries.
Benjamin began his journey as an online entrepreneur when he was just 12 years old, over a decade ago. His story teaches us important lessons on how to get e-commerce sales from organic traffic, try out new ideas, and constantly improve online businesses. These qualities helped him transform from an ambitious teenager to a highly sought-after strategic partner for successful e-commerce brands.
Benjamin Strusnik
Early beginnings in video content and website design
Benjamin's first taste of entrepreneurship and digital marketing came from his YouTube endeavors as a young teenager in Slovenia. He became intrigued when he saw popular YouTubers being sponsored by tech companies to review new products. At the age of 14, he decided to create his own tech videos, where he would review the latest phones, laptops, and other gadgets.
By consistently uploading content, Benjamin quickly caught the attention of major phone carriers in Slovenia, who began sponsoring him. By the time he was 15 or 16, he had already accumulated over 1,000 videos and garnered 25-30 million views on YouTube. However, he wanted to better organize his vast video library, so he took it upon himself to learn website design from YouTube tutorials and built his first website using WordPress.
This experience opened Benjamin's eyes to the world of online business and revealed new ways to monetize beyond YouTube. He started a web design agency that catered to local Slovenian companies. However, he soon realized that these businesses were more interested in gaining new leads rather than just having a website. This realization prompted his transition into pay-per-click advertising and, ultimately, SEO.
Early exploration of PPC, Local SEO, and affiliate marketing
Benjamin noticed that small companies were spending a lot of money on GoogleAds clicks, especially when compared to the visibility they could achieve through organic search. This made him realize that focusing on SEO (search engine optimization) would be a more cost-effective strategy. He started offering local SEO services, which produced good results but had limitations based on location.
During his journey, Benjamin met Igor Basic, who was also an expert in SEO. This connection introduced Benjamin to online communities and conferences like Chiang Mai SEO, where he could further immerse himself in the world of SEO.
As Benjamin continued to learn, he discovered affiliate marketing techniques such as content recipes and building relationships. This inspired him to start ranking his own websites. He shifted his focus from local SEO to working on affiliate websites, where he gained valuable experience in generating organic traffic on a larger scale.
Through his work with affiliates, Benjamin realized that helping them indirectly benefited e-commerce brands as well. This realization led him to start working directly with online stores, providing them with his expertise in SEO and helping them grow their businesses.
The birth of GoldenWeb and pivoting to e-Commerce SEO
Benjamin realized that e-commerce and high-ticket products, such as information products, offered the best return on investment when it came to SEO. This was because a single click on these types of products could result in higher average order values. He also recognized that positioning himself within the Shopify ecosystem made strategic sense, as it was simpler for store owners compared to WordPress. This decision led to the establishment of GoldenWeb, an agency dedicated to helping Shopify stores grow through organic traffic.
Over the past four years, Benjamin has fine-tuned GoldenWeb's processes and approach to targeting clients. He has turned it into a well-defined process. By carefully selecting the right clients and maintaining a limited roster, he can focus his efforts on achieving the best possible results. This approach allows him to create impressive case studies that attract even more opportunities. Now, let's take a closer look at the methodologies that have enabled Benjamin and his clients at GoldenWeb to achieve tremendous success stories.
The comprehensive audit: Building a strong SEO foundation
GoldenWeb always starts by doing a thorough check-up of the website. They look at more than 285 different things related to SEO and improving how well the website turns visitors into customers. This helps them find areas where they can make quick improvements for fast results. For example, they look for technical issues that might be making it hard for search engines to understand the website, or problems that are causing the website's rankings to drop. They also examine things like headings and structured data on the webpages.
During the check-up, GoldenWeb also looks at where the website's visitors are coming from, what the website's goals are, who the competition is, and how people are using the website. This information helps them figure out what they should focus on. With this knowledge, GoldenWeb can then organize the website in a way that matches up with the best keywords they find later on. The check-up makes sure that the technical parts of the website are set up correctly so that search engines can understand what the website is about and what its content means.
- Targeted keyword research
GoldenWeb uses special tools to find groups of related keywords and phrases that are connected to the main keywords. They filter out any words that aren't relevant before organizing the keywords into different groups.
These insights help them plan and structure their content. They create groups of articles that are all related to a specific topic and link them to each other. For example, they might create a group of articles about the best iPhone cases, with articles like "iPhone 14 Cases" or "iPhone 13 Pro Max Cases." Each group of articles also links to important pages related to the topic they cover.
This research helps them make the most of what they already have. For example, if they find broken links leading to old articles or publications, they redirect them to new relevant content. This helps the website regain its ranking power while still honoring the old links. Their systematic approach helps their pages become authoritative for the keywords they want to target.
- Improving the website performance by fixing technical SEO
GoldenWeb spends a lot of time fixing technical issues that they find during their audit. For example, they fix problems with how the website is structured or how search engines can crawl it. They also fix issues with redirects, pages that don't have any links, or broken links. These fixes help search engines understand the website better and make it easier for users to navigate.
In just 45 days, GoldenWeb was able to increase one client's organic traffic by over 70% just by fixing technical SEO issues. This shows how important it is to have a strong technical foundation for search engines to understand the website properly. Technical auditing helps address hidden problems that, if left alone, can prevent a website from reaching its full potential, no matter how good the content strategies are.
- Using data-driven content marketing to improve topical authority and rankings
GoldenWeb doesn't come up with random ideas for blog posts. Instead, they use data from keyword research to find topics that answer common questions or match what users are searching for.
They create informative articles that are long and relevant to the keywords they want to target. This helps establish their website as an expert in the field and improves its visibility in search results. For example, by publishing 50 articles in 3 months, GoldenWeb was able to increase one client's monthly organic traffic by 500% just by providing valuable and relevant content.
They also make sure to link their articles together in a smart way. This helps transfer the power of their content between articles and important landing pages. Their content strategy also helps their website gain more visibility over time, as search engines recognize the value of the fresh data they provide.
Building high-quality backlinks is important for organic success. Benjamin advises focusing on techniques that bring the best return on investment, rather than spending a lot of money on methods that don't give much benefit. Based on his experience, he has found that getting links from niche media sites, having links on private blog networks' homepages, and using strategic 301 redirects have been the most effective strategies.
Niche media sites that have authority in a specific industry, when optimized correctly, can spread trust signals throughout a website. Links from private blog networks, when done right, can have a positive impact due to natural network effects. And implementing 301 redirects can boost the authority of a website by redirecting traffic and link juice from one domain to another.
Benjamin emphasizes the importance of staying within the guidelines set by search engines and focusing on providing value to users. The goal is to build credibility and long-term success by earning genuine endorsements from reputable sources.
Choosing the right clients for success
To reduce stress, GoldenWeb carefully assesses potential clients to make sure they are a good fit. They evaluate how much the client can grow compared to the investment required and the competition in their specific market. They prefer clients with established sales channels rather than those with just random ideas.
Clients who have higher average order values also have more potential to benefit from search engine optimization (SEO) because they can earn more money from each organic click. GoldenWeb keeps a small group of clients so they can focus their efforts on achieving the best results and reviews in the industry. This helps them attract even more qualified opportunities, creating a positive cycle of growth.
Impressive results: Success stories with increased website traffic
GoldenWeb has a track record of success with clients in different industries. For example, they focused on improving the technical SEO of a French pet store, which resulted in a 70% increase in organic website traffic within just 45 days after the audit. They also published 50 articles targeting specific keywords for an education website, leading to a 500% increase in monthly organic traffic after four months. Another client in the beverage industry saw their daily website visitors increase from 50 to 3,000 in just three months through SEO implementation.
One of their most remarkable achievements was with a solar company client, who generated over $981,172 in additional organic revenue from Google search engine alone within a six-month period after working with GoldenWeb. These success stories demonstrate how GoldenWeb's optimized processes can deliver measurable returns on investment for e-commerce brands.
Benjamin's strategic approach to constant improvement
Despite already achieving impressive results, Benjamin is always looking for ways to optimize their processes through continuous testing. He envisions turning GoldenWeb into a highly scalable operation driven by strategic vision rather than relying solely on manual execution. By bringing in experienced professionals, Benjamin can step back from day-to-day tasks and focus on guiding the company at a high level.
Benjamin conducts personal tests on private projects to develop strategies that can be adapted for their clients. They regularly review data to assess what strategies are working best. This mindset ensures that GoldenWeb remains a leading SEO partner by constantly refining and improving their methodologies.
Building a loyal following through transparent expertise
Benjamin has gained a significant online following on platforms like LinkedIn, YouTube, and Facebook by openly sharing GoldenWeb's approaches. Instead of hiding their tactics, Benjamin provides a complete picture, even discussing less commonly talked about topics like link building. This transparency fosters trust in GoldenWeb's ability to deliver sustainable, ethical results that prioritize user intent over manipulating algorithms.
While some may criticize this approach, Benjamin believes that educating practitioners and business owners about all available options helps them make informed decisions rather than being confused. This philosophy resonates with those seeking a strategic partner who can consistently deliver data-driven growth through proven strategies developed over a decade of experience scaling brands globally through organic channels.
Future plans
Benjamin's goal is to continuously optimize GoldenWeb's processes by bringing in more leaders while maintaining a small, carefully selected group of clients. They prioritize strategic planning and marketing over day-to-day operations to provide the most value. GoldenWeb aims to double the organic revenue they have achieved so far by focusing on clients who are experiencing rapid growth.
Technology and internal systems will play an increasing role in automating routine tasks through customized platforms developed in-house. This will streamline GoldenWeb's services, allowing them to focus on strategic vision and fuel the success of each client partnership. Benjamin also plans to expand their education and knowledge offerings, sharing their proven methodologies to empower others to scale their brands independently or with GoldenWeb's assistance.
