A Small Shift in Overstock’s SEO Strategy Fueled Its Early Growth
Overstock started as an everything store but soon discovered it needed a focus to compete with the likes of Amazon and Wayfair
There wasn’t some big light bulb moment. And there was never a dramatic boardroom meeting where the future was determined ahead of time. Instead, Overstock’s strategy emerged gradually.
When Geoff Atkinson originally joined Overstock in 2005, it was a broad discount retailer that would sell you anything. By the time he left in 2011, it was squarely focused on home and garden.
The reason behind this shift is a fascinating case study in how seemingly small details can have a huge impact: Overstock is a public company worth hundreds of millions of dollars, but its entire strategy turned on a discovery that SEO competition was a little weaker in home and garden than other categories.
Atkinson played a pivotal role in this story. As the senior vice president of marketing, he worked with each corporate function to shape Overstock’s strategy through this critical phase of the business. Today, he shares with us what he learned through it all and what he’s up to now.
