SEO Foundations For Small Business

SEO Foundations For Small Business: How To Get On The First Page Of Google

Search engine optimization (SEO) is a must-have for small businesses looking to increase their visibility and reach more customers. But how do you get started? This can be a huge subject for most entrepreneurs and be very overwhelming.  In this blog post I will provide an overview of SEO fundamentals, giving small business owners some knowledge on how to create effective SEO strategies that can help them get on the first page of Google.  It is incredibly important to recognize that search engine optimization is an ongoing and forever part of any successful digital marketing strategy.  It is never done.

“You can’t just “SEO” your website and be done.  It’s a forever moving goal post” - Stoney deGeyter

What is SEO?

SEO is short form for “Search engine optimization”. It is a long-term marketing strategy used with the goal of  improving a website's visibility and organic search results in google and other global search engines. SEO rankings are achieved by improving the on-page content, optimizing the website speed and structure, as well as developing off-page SEO tactics like link building and social media engagement. 

The goal of SEO is to attract more visitors to your website through higher rankings in the SERP (search engine results pages). When your website appears as the top result for a relevant keyword search, you’re more likely to gain that click. And once users are on your site, you have the opportunity to convert them into leads or customers. 

SEO should be considered as an important part of any digital marketing strategy because it helps businesses: 

• Improve their visibility in SERPs
• Attract more website visitors
• Increase brand awareness
• Generate leads and sales

IMPORTANT SEO STATS (from ahrefs.com)

• 68% of online experiences begine with a search engine
• Less than 1% of searchers will click on a result from the second page
• 60% of marketers say that inbound traffic from SEO is their highest quality source of leads
• SEO leads have a 14.6% close rate
• Google says that backlinks are of its top three ranking factors

Benefits of SEO for Small Businesses

Small businesses have a lot to gain from investing in SEO. Here are some of the benefits:

1. Increased visibility. When your website ranks higher in search engine results pages (SERPs), it becomes more visible to potential customers. This can lead to more website traffic and, ultimately, more sales and revenue.
2. Cost-effective marketing. SEO is one of the most cost-effective marketing strategies available to small businesses. It doesn’t require a large budget like traditional marketing channels such as television or print advertising.
3. Greater ROI. Because SEO is so effective at driving targeted traffic to your website, it typically delivers a higher ROI than other marketing activities.
4. Enhanced brand awareness and credibility. As your website climbs the SERPs, your brand will become more well-known and respected by potential customers. This can help you win more business and charge higher prices for your products or services.
5. Increased customer Insights through analytics tools provided by Google  et al . When you track your SEO progress over time, you gain valuable insights into your target market – information that can help you make better business decisions moving forward

Keyword Research

If you want your small business website to rank on the first page of Google, then keyword research is a critical foundation step.

Before you can optimize your website for specific keywords, you need to understand what potential customers are actually searching for. This requires keyword research.

There are a number of different keyword research methods, but one of the most effective is using Google AdWords Keyword Planner. This tool allows you to enter seed keywords and get data on related keywords, as well as estimated monthly search volume.

Once you have this data, you can start to identify which keywords are most relevant to your business and have the highest potential traffic. From there, you can start optimizing your website for those keywords.

Keyword research may seem like a daunting task, but it's essential if you want your small business website to rank on the first page of Google. By using a tool like AdWords Keyword Planner, you can quickly and easily find the right keywords to target.

On-Page Optimization: Page Titles, Meta Descriptions, Image Optimization, etc.

On-page optimization is a critical part of any SEO strategy. By optimizing your website's pages, you can improve your ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs), drive more traffic to your site, and convert more leads into customers.

Page titles are one of the most important on-page SEO elements. A page title tells search engines what the page is about and helps them index it properly. Make sure to include relevant keywords in your page titles so that they appear in SERPs.

Meta descriptions are another important on-page element. A meta description is a brief summary of a page's content that appears in SERPs. Meta descriptions help search engines understand what each page is about and can influence whether someone clicks through to your site from SERPs. Again, make sure to include relevant keywords in your meta descriptions.

Image optimization is also important for on-page SEO. When you optimize an image, you provide information about the image that can help search engines index it properly and display it in SERPs. Include relevant keywords in image file names and alt text so that they appear in SERPs.

By optimizing your website's pages for titles, meta descriptions, images, and other elements, you can improve your ranking in SERPs and drive more traffic to your site.

Off-Page SEO: Link Building and Social Media Strategies

In order to improve your website’s ranking on search engines like Google, you need to focus on both on-page and off-page optimization. Off-page SEO is all about building backlinks and promoting your site on social media.

Link building is the process of getting other websites to link back to your site. The more high quality links you have, the higher your site will rank in search engine results pages (SERPs). There are a number of ways to build links, such as guest blogging, directory submissions, and social media outreach.

Social media is also a great way to promote your website and build links. Make sure to post high quality content that would be of interest to your target audience. You should also share your content on social media sites such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn - these social media platforms are all indexed by Google.

Related Blog Post "5 Ways to Gain Quality Backlinks"

Tracking & Reporting: Measuring the Impact of SEO on Your Website

There are a number of ways to measure the impact of SEO on your website. One way is to track the number of visitors to your site from organic search results. Another way is to track the number of leads or sales generated from organic traffic.

If you're not tracking the impact of SEO on your website, you're missing out on valuable data that can help you improve your SEO strategy and tactics. By tracking and reporting on the performance of your SEO campaign, you can make informed decisions about where to allocate your resources for maximum impact.

Conclusion

As a small business, SEO can be a great way to get your website noticed. By following the tips outlined in this article, you’ll be well on your way to getting your site ranked on the first page of Google and driving more traffic to it. Don't forget that SEO is an ongoing process - keep updating and refining your content as needed so that you stay ahead of the competition. With a bit of effort and some know-how, soon enough you'll find yourself at the top of search engine listings!  If you are looking for assistance with your SEO strategy please contact me - I would be happy to provide you with a FREE SEO audit.