Toyota reclaims lost traffic through creative SEO
Abdul Latif Jameel Motors Toyota faced a different digital challenge in Saudi Arabia: while local consumers commonly searched for their vehicles using informal Arabic nicknames, the company's official website couldn't use these terms. This technical limitation created a gap in the Toyota SEO strategy, with traffic for these high-volume search terms going to third-party sites instead.
Partnering with Serviceplan Experience, Toyota tackled the issue head-on by leveraging off-page SEO techniques to turn a technical obstacle into a creative breakthrough.
The SEO challenge
The Toyota Hilux and Land Cruiser LC70 are iconic models in Saudi Arabia, affectionately referred to by local nicknames تویوتاوانیت (ToyotaWanit) for Toyota Hilux and تویوتا ربع (Toyota Rabha) for Land Cruiser LC70.
However, the official naming conventions on Abdul Latif Jameel Motors Toyota's website meant these terms couldn't be included in the front-end content.
As Kenan Baki, SEO Manager at Serviceplan Experience, said: 'The biggest challenge wasn't just optimizing Toyota's website, it was watching other websites dominate nickname keywords that we couldn't use on the official site.'
Rather than accept this limitation, the team explored alternative ways to connect with users searching for these terms.
Serviceplan Experience developed an off-page SEO strategy that placed the informal nicknames into backlinks and anchor tags. Collaborating with trusted publishers and bloggers, the team ensured these high-volume terms linked back to Abdul Latif Jameel Motors Toyota's website.
'And since we couldn't implement these keywords on our official website, we had to think creatively. Off-page SEO became our playground, weaving these local terms into our backlink strategy to reclaim our rightful spot,' added Baki.
This approach bridged the gap between what users were searching for and what the website could provide, reclaiming valuable traffic.
Sameer Suri, Creative Director, said, 'We always knew Toyota's had nicknames in KSA. But realising they were costing us sales was an eye-opener. Once the SEO team came to us with this brilliant insight, we did what any good creative would do: Let them work their magic, then slip a quote into the PR like you actually contributed.'
Technical optimisation meets creativity
Beyond addressing the nickname challenge, the team also improved the website's overall technical health. By updating sitemaps, optimising URL structures, and enhancing Core Web Vitals, they raised the site's health score from 86 to 97, significantly boosting user experience and search engine rankings.
In a year's span, Abdul Latif Jameel Motors Toyota's website achieved:
1 million organic product page views—the highest in the website's history.
45 per cent increase in monthly product page views, from 703,298 to 1,021,957.
66 per cent increase in monthly organic sessions, from 338,951 to 562,859.
90 per cent increase in monthly new users, from 167,183 to 318,838.
Domain Rating rose from 40 to 46, with the Ahrefs Health Score improving from 86 to 97.
The campaign shows how brands can turn technical challenges into opportunities with creativity and insight. By focusing on local search behaviours and adopting a data-driven approach, Abdul Latif Jameel Motors Toyota successfully improved its online presence and strengthened its connection with Saudi consumers.
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