How to Get Started with SEO as a Start-Up or SME?
- Birte Manke
- Sep 8, 2024
- 6 min read
3…2…1… Click! Congratulations, you’ve published your website!
Now, you’re officially on the World Wide Web.
But did you know that Google still doesn’t “see” your website?
Even though it’s technically online? I didn’t know that either!
Don’t worry. I’m here to show you how to fix this and cover a few other essentials to ensure Google takes your website seriously.
Here’s a quick rundown of the most critical SEO topics:
SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, helps your website rank higher in search results, so the right people find your business online. The main goal of SEO is to make Google “like” your website and ensure it doesn’t run into any issues. I’ve linked additional resources to help you dive deeper into each topic because, believe me, a lot has been written about SEO.
This checklist will guide you through some initial steps to improve your SEO or give you a solid foundation when discussing SEO strategy with an agency.
By the end, you’ll understand the key concepts and how to optimize them effectively.
So, let’s get started!
There are three main areas to focus on: On-Page SEO, Off-Page SEO, and Technical SEO.
On-Page SEO involves all the elements you can control directly on your website to improve its rankings. This means improving the content on your website, the short descriptions for each page (meta tags), and the links that connect your pages.
Off-Page SEO covers activities outside your website that can influence your rankings. This includes ways to get other websites to link to yours, get people talking about your brand, and share your content on social media so search engines trust your site more.
Technical SEO focuses on the behind-the-scenes elements that ensure your website is easy to navigate and understand by search engines. This includes optimizing website speed, fixing broken links, and making sure Google can find and read all the pages on your website.
Preparation Before You Start
1. Connect to Google Search Console
First, connect your website to Google Search Console. This tool helps Google find and understand your site. Without this connection, your website may be online but invisible to Google.
You might also consider ensuring your website appears on Bing, as user numbers are rising there, too. However, Google remains the priority for most businesses.
2. Create a List of Keywords
Think like your customer! Write down the words or phrases they might use to search for what you offer. Then, use tools like Google Keyword Planner, Semrush, or Ahrefs to find popular keywords and understand their search volume. Check out your competitors to see which keywords they use. Select keywords that are popular but not overly competitive, and use them naturally throughout your website.
Let’s Dive into On-Page SEO
3. Make Sure People Click on Your Website
Three elements guide users in deciding whether to click on your site: title tags, meta descriptions, and URLs.
Title Tags: These are the names of your web pages that appear in search results and tell Google and users what your page is about. Optimize them by using relevant keywords, keeping them concise (50-60 characters), and making them compelling to encourage clicks. If possible, include your business name for recognition.
Meta Descriptions: These are brief summaries that appear under the title in search results, helping users decide if your page is worth visiting. Keep them short and clear (150-160 characters), include relevant keywords, and use action-oriented language like “Learn more” or “Find out” to entice clicks. Ensure they accurately reflect the content on the page.
URLs: Your web addresses (like www.example.com) should be short, descriptive, and easy to read. Use hyphens to separate words and include keywords that describe the page’s content. Clear URLs help both users and search engines understand what the page is about.
4. Make Sure People Enjoy Your Website Content
After people click, you want to keep them on your website. People enjoy staying when your content is interesting, helpful, and easy to read. You can use pictures, videos, and clear headings to grab attention. Keep your text simple with short sentences and bullet points. Add descriptive links and images with short explanations so everyone, including search engines, understands your content. Here are the specific points to focus on:
Content Quality: Good content keeps people on your website longer and answers their questions. Make sure it is helpful, interesting, and easy to read for your specific target audience. Add pictures or videos, and check for any spelling mistakes.
Word Count: Search engines like longer content that gives more information. Try to write at least 300 words for each page, but make sure all the information is useful. Don’t add extra words just to make it longer.
Readability: Use simple words and short sentences. Break up your text with headings, bullet points, or numbered lists. Some suggest to keep wording as simple as reading level grade 3. Yes, that is primary school reading level. Keeping the text easy to read helps both people and search engines.
Headings: Use clear headings that describe what each section is about. This helps people and search engines understand your content better.
Anchor Text: Use clear words for links to other pages. Instead of saying “click here,” use words like “learn more about bikes” to show where the link goes.
Bullets and Lists: Use bullet points or lists to make information easy to find. This helps people read quickly and makes your website better for search engines.
Images: Use good-quality pictures that match your content. Make sure the pictures load quickly by keeping the file size small.
ALT Text: Write short descriptions for your pictures. This helps people who can’t see the pictures understand them and makes your website better for search engines.
Video: Use videos to make your website more interesting and keep people on your site longer. Make sure the videos are good quality, match the topic, and have a short description.
5. Make sure People and Search Engines Find Your Website
To help people and search engines find your website, use your main keyword a few times naturally. Add links to other pages on your website and link to trusted websites to show your site is reliable.
Keyword Use: Use your main keyword a few times, but make sure it sounds natural and not overused.
Internal Links: Add links to other pages on your website to help people and search engines find more information.
External Links: Link to good, trusted websites to show your website is reliable.
Let’s Dive into Off-Page SEO
6. Make sure your website is trusted
To increase trust in your website, you can use off-page SEO by getting links from other websites, sharing helpful content, and making sure people can find you in local searches. Use social media like Facebook and Instagram to get more visitors, and ask happy customers to leave good reviews. These steps will help more people find and trust your website. Here are some specific areas to focus on:
Backlinking: Get links from other websites to show search engines that your website can be trusted.
Content Marketing: Share helpful content to bring visitors to your site and make them want to share it.
Local SEO: Make sure your website shows up in local searches to attract customers nearby.
Social Media: Use sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter to get more visitors and keep them engaged.
Reviews: Ask happy customers to leave good reviews to build trust and help your website show up higher in local searches.
Let’s Dive into Technical SEO
7. Make sure to boost search engine success
Make your website work better behind the scenes to show up more in search results. Keep it fast and easy to use, and make sure all your pages are easy to find and understand by search engines. What to look out for:
Site Speed: Make your site load fast so visitors don’t leave.
Responsive Web Design: Make sure your website looks good on any device.
Core Web Vitals: Make your site load quickly, stay stable, and respond well.
Schema Markup: Add special code to help search engines understand your content.
Sitemaps: Send a sitemap to search engines so they can find all your pages.
Robots.txt: Use this file to tell search engines which pages to show.
Crawl Depth: Make important pages easy to find in just a few clicks.
Duplicate Tags: Give each page its own unique title and description.
Broken Links: Check for and fix any broken links regularly.
Orphaned Pages: Connect all pages on your site so search engines can find them.
Now, it is time to take action!
Congratulations on taking the first step toward understanding SEO! By implementing these strategies, you’ll be well on your way to improving your website’s visibility and attracting the right audience.
Enjoy the ride!
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