What changed
Originally, every page on the site had outdated or limited meta titles and descriptions. Google and other search engines were left to guess what the content of each page included.
We rewrote titles and descriptions for key pages such as the home, bistro and all of the individual room pages from scratch, each crafted to the content of that specific page with exactly the right search terms, a clear hook, and giving a reason to click.
We also improved the Hotel schema markup, which helps to give key hotel information to search engines.
21 NEW PAGE TITLES
Rewritten to lead with descriptive keywords, within SEO limits matching what guests were actually searching for.
21 NEW META DESCRIPTIONS
Refreshed with a unique 150–160 character description with a clear reason to click through.
11 NEW INDIVIDUAL ROOM DESCRIPTIONS
Each room now has its own unique description referencing its character and key selling features.
HOTEL SCHEMA MARKUP
Structured data added to tell Google exactly what The Cookie Jar is. Hotel type, rooms, bistro, amenities and reviews.
Before & after: organic search traffic
54.8
Organic sessions per day Before — Jan 1 to Jun 4
113.1
Organic sessions per day After — Jun 5 to Sep 9
+106%
Increase in daily organic traffic after the SEO changes
44,850
Total sessions across all channels, full year to date
Organic search traffic more than doubled after the new titles, descriptions and schema were applied, from 54.8 sessions per day to 113.1. That’s an extra ~58 people per day, within these 97 days, finding the site through Google who weren’t before. Over time, that compounds significantly into bookings.
Full year traffic by channel
Across the full year to date, 44,850 sessions recorded. Organic Search and Direct are neck and neck on volume, but the quality difference is stark. We’re also seeing the early seeds of AI search.
Direct
- 50.2% Engagement Rate
- 35 sec Avg Time on Site
Organic Search
- 64.5% Engagement Rate
- 48 sec Avg Time on Site
Referral
- 66% Engagement Rate
- 39 sec Avg Time on Site
Organic Social
- 61.4% Engagement Rate
- 35 sec Avg Time on Site
AI Search
- 61.9% Engagement Rate
- 23 sec Avg Time on Site
Organic Search visitors spend 37% longer on the site than Direct visitors and engage at a ~14% higher rate, making them significantly more likely to book. Growing Organic Search is a high-value SEO objective.
With the rise of AI search (ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini), it’s becoming an important channel to explore, with The Cookie Jar, the target market skews older, but we’re seeing an improvement in AI search engagement rates. The SEO changes we’ve applied already will help establish The Cookie Jar for AI GEO (Generative Engine Optimisation).
Direct Traffic: Visitors who arrive by typing your web address directly into a browser, using a saved bookmark, or clicking an untagged link. Organic Traffic: Visitors who click on unpaid search results in engines like Google or Bing. This traffic grows through good search engine optimisation. Referral Traffic: Visitors who come to your site by clicking a link on another external website. Organic Social Traffic: Visitors who arrive from social media networks like Facebook, LinkedIn, or Instagram. AI Search: Visitors from a AI application like ChatGPT.
Overview
The numbers tell a clear story. In the three months since the new titles, descriptions and schema went live, organic search traffic more than doubled from 54.8 sessions per day to 113.1. That’s not a marginal gain; it’s roughly 58 extra people every single day finding The Cookie Jar through Google who simply weren’t before. And crucially, they’re the right kind of visitors.
Organic search arrivals spend an average of 48 seconds on the site and engage at a 64.5% rate — higher than any other channel — which means they’re genuinely interested. On top of that, a brand new channel has quietly emerged: 278 sessions have now arrived via AI tools like ChatGPT and Google’s AI Overviews. It’s a small number today, but it’s a channel that didn’t exist 18 months ago, and the hotel schema we installed puts The Cookie Jar in the best possible position to be cited as that traffic grows.
“Curate have been looking after the Cookie Jar from the very beginning – indeed when it was just a thought……and that is nearly 10 years ago.
They very quickly shared our vision of what the Cookie Jar was going be – the vibe we wanted to create, the style and most importantly, they understood our market – the guests that we wanted to choose to stay with us. Their support has remained steadfast, considering we are so very small – indeed a tiny client – they are at all times responsive, enthusiastic, creative – and super helpful. Curate has grown over the years due to its success and with that the team have grown – what stands out is that the new members of the team are every bit as committed as the original founders which is a huge testament to David and Michelle – they share their qualities, values and passion.”
– Debbie, The Cookie Jar
Want to see how we can grow your website with SEO? Get in touch.
See The Cookie Jar in action, or see how we built The Cookie Jar brand.