Assuming you've reached the go-to-market stage, I must say congrats!
Now it's time to build your startup's online presence...and visibility in search engines is key.
As someone who's been helping small business owners with search engine optimization for nearly two decades, I'm well aware of the common SEO mistakes they make.
That's why I've prepped 5 SEO tips for startups so you can get things right from day one.
This isn't going to be a full SEO guide...instead, you'll learn:
- What tasks you could and should handle yourself
- How to set the right priorities at the initial SEO stage
- The best way to drive business through organic search
Hi, I'm Evan Ernst, founder of a Spokane-based boutique digital marketing agency. In this blog post, we'll talk about how to grow your startup business with SEO.
Lay the SEO Foundation By Yourself
I know you're tackling a million tasks as a startup founder. But trust me, taking the time to set up your website's SEO foundation is the right thing to do.
Setting up a WordPress site isn't as complicated as those long-winded guides make it seem...and DIY-ing it has some serious advantages.
You'll know what's going on under the hood and have full control.
You won't need to call in the cavalry, waste time trying to explain an unknown issue, and open your wallet every time something needs fixing or upgrading.
When you choose a good hosting provider, their customer service will assist you with pretty much anything, anytime...free of charge.
Here is What's Next
The first thing you need is a solid WP theme.
Take Kadence, for example. It's free, lightning-fast, customizable, and SEO-friendly right out of the box. It also has a bunch of pre-built templates that'll make your site look slick without breaking a sweat.
Once you get that out of the way, it's plugin time.
Most of these are free and will get your site ready for search engine results pages. The installation requires no skills, just following their easy step-by-step guides.
Site Kit by Google: Connects your site with essential SEO tools like Google Search Console and Google Analytics to track performance.
Rank Math SEO: Helps optimize your site and content and gives you actionable tips to improve your search engine rankings.
Code Snippets: Lets you add custom code to your site without messing with your theme files. Super handy for technical SEO tweaks.
Short Pixel: Compresses your images to boost site speed without sacrificing quality. They have a free plan, and the paid one is cheap.
WP Rocket: There are many free caching plugins, but this one will make your site faster than Usain Bolt on Red Bull for less than $100 paid annually.
Finally, I assure you that managing a WordPress site is way cheaper than paying for custom work in the long run, no matter how you value your time.
You can always get fancy if you want to, but this DIY approach will save you a bundle.
Prioritize Information Over Design
It's tempting to obsess over every pixel of your website's design...been there, done that.
But the reality is:
Search engines, your target audience, or potential investors don't care about your fancy parallax scrolling or that cool hover effect you spent hours perfecting...they want the meat and potatoes of your business.
As the late Steve Jobs once said:
"Design is not just what it looks like and feels like. Design is how it works"
And when we talk SEO for startups, your website should work to deliver information. I'm not saying to make it look like it was built on GeoCities in the 90's.
Just keep it clean and simple.
A good WordPress theme will provide recommendations on structure and colors. When it comes to fonts, stick with the classics. You can't go wrong with workhorses like Arial, Helvetica, or Open Sans.
Your focus must be on creating content for your essential business pages.
That's your chance to spin a yarn that'll hook potential customers or investors. Don't just list facts - tell your startup's story...it's a conversation.
Don't skimp on the team info, either. Include brief bios of key members, highlighting their expertise and experience. It's not bragging if it's true. Google and other search engines will notice it, too.
And don't forget to back up your claims. Sprinkle in some social proof. If you've been featured in industry publications or won awards, flaunt 'em.
Building a credible website must be part of your SEO efforts from the get-go.
Always Put Yourself in Customer's Shoes
When you're crafting those essential business pages we talked about earlier or whipping up product and service descriptions, it's easy to fall into the "me, me, me" trap.
Your potential customers don't care about you. They want to know what you can do for them.
Just flip the script. Instead of starting sentences with "We are," "We can," or "We have," lead with your customer's pain points. Here is what I mean...
Rather than:
"We offer top-notch SEO startup services"
I'd write something like:
"Want your startup to appear in Google search results? Our SEO strategists will help you drive more organic traffic at an affordable cost."
This approach isn't just good for user experience...it's a solid SEO strategy. When you address your visitors' search intent head-on, you'll keep them on your page. And Google loves that.
Don't stop there. Dive deep into your prospective customer's world.
What keeps them up at night? What are their goals? What's stopping them from achieving those goals? Once you've got those answers, weave them into your content.
Now, let's talk about the benefits of SEO that will help grow your startup.
Focus on Very Niche Specific SEO Content
I'll be straight with you. As a startup (new website), you won't outrank industry giants or drive organic traffic for any high-volume keywords. That's what PPC advertising is for.
Here is how we make things work for folks relying on our small business SEO services.
The secret weapon is niche-specific content marketing. That means targeting long-tail relevant keywords that are less competitive. I'm talking about those question-type searches that your prospects are typing into Google when looking for information.
Here is a quick example:
Let's say you're a fin-tech startup, and one of your products is a budgeting app. Instead of going after a generic keyword like "personal finance" (good luck with that)...you'd be better off creating educational blog content based on searches like:
"How to create a budget for irregular income?"
"What's the best way to track daily expenses?"
"Can budgeting apps sync with multiple bank accounts?"
"How to set financial goals in a budgeting app?"
Yes, these would have a much lower search volume, but that's the SEO strategy we've proved to work for startups and SMBs, and here is why:
- You get search visibility quicker due to the lower competition
- Your content attracts qualified leads actively seeking solutions
- Your conversion rates are higher when addressing specific needs
Now, when it comes to keyword research, topic ideas, and high-quality content production, these are the search engine optimization tasks I'd recommend outsourcing.
First, because more than 96% of web pages get zero organic traffic, and second, because it's one of the SEO services you can afford.
And that brings me to the last SEO tip for startups.
Be Mindful When Outsourcing Startup SEO Tasks
With the growing importance of SEO and the wide adoption of AI tools for content creation, many agencies and freelancers are tempted to take on more clients than they can handle.
In most cases, this results in poor-quality content that fails to meet your needs.
I have another article on all you need to know before hiring an SEO agency as a business owner, but here are some key considerations for startups.
Direct Communication
Insist on speaking directly with the person who'll be working on your project. You want someone who gets your startup's challenges and vision.
Understanding of Business Needs
Make sure they're not just SEO-savvy but also understand your specific business model and growth potential. You need custom-tailored solutions.
The Right Startup SEO Strategy
Your SEO efforts should align with the industry's competitiveness and business goals. A good provider will help you set realistic, measurable objectives.
Don't rush this decision. It's better to take your time and find the right SEO agency than to jump into a partnership that doesn't serve you.
Get on free consultation calls with several providers. Evaluate their approach, their understanding of your niche, and their promises on deliverable results.
And since you're here, why not start exploring your options?
I'd love to hear about your startup, answer your questions, and see how we can help.
Founder of Ernst Media. Fifteen years running paid search and paid social for small and mid-size businesses, and still the person who builds the audits by hand. Writes here about what actually moves accounts.