SEO for startups: 5 things you need to know

Small businesses may not have all of the resources they want to pump into search engine marketing and SEO, but that doesn’t mean they have to be left out in the cold. In fact, these startups or even older, smaller companies can successfully employ this type of content marketing to make an impact on customers.

Focus on your brand

Before a small business can make its mark on the community, it must first decide what that mark will be. To begin, set attainable goals as well as a timeline for achieving these ends. Then come up with a plan that will put your business on a course for success, which can help you determine what your specific brand should be. Once that has been established, you’ll have a clearer idea of the type of content marketing and SEO you need to embrace.

Consistency matters

There is an element of the unknown with small businesses. Without a lot of history to call upon, you’re left to start making your own, and this means hitting the ground running and not missing a beat along the way. Consider coming up with a schedule for your content marketing efforts before you launch. Leave room for some flexibility to alter the message as you see fit, but make sure you are regularly churning out quality content. This paints you as a reliable source of information and ideas, proving your business is not just a flash in the pan.

The Huffington Post noted that startups should have no problem recruiting employees to write blog posts on a weekly or biweekly basis. All you have to do first is establish a list of keywords you want the content to focus on and encourage writers to dive into these topics. As they start creating unique content, your search engine marketing will naturally establish a foothold and begin gaining traction thanks to SEO.

Build credibility

Small businesses face some stiff competition when it comes to their industry. Not only do they have to fight major brands for consumers, but they must also battle other small – and medium-sized companies in their space. The only way to roll with the big dogs is to build credibility and make the business into a reliable provider. This takes time, but it’s not impossible. Consider collecting feedback and reviews from customers and placing these reviews on your site. Add profiles about your staff as well, as this can provide a personal touch to your content and give readers insight as to the authors of the data.

Go mobile

SEO is one thing, but the importance of mobile cannot be understated. According to a study from comScore, 4 out of 5 smartphone users – or more than 85 million people – shop on their mobile devices. As more individuals leverage this technology to browse for products and services, small businesses must be sure they are tapping into this market. Having an optimized website that has been designed and tested for mobile screens is incredibly important, because if the user experience is poor, it could drive away customers permanently. Small Business Computing reported that optimized sites also have a better chance at ranking above pages that are not, giving you a leg up on the competition.

It will take time

The most tumultuous time for small businesses is in their first year of existence. However, owners should not expect content marketing and SEO to step in and make an immediate impact. It will take months to get real results, according to The Huffington Post, and you must be willing to invest the resources in the project if you expect to see efforts pay off.