As a startup founder without tech skills, you can boost your online presence with these simple SEO tips:
- Optimize Google Business Profile
- Make website easy to use
- Create content with short-tail keywords
- Use specific search phrases (long-tail keywords)
- Speed up website loading
- Build strong internal links
- Manage online reviews
- Improve local search visibility
| Tip | Time Needed | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Google Business Profile | 30-60 min | Free |
| Website structure | 1-2 hours | Free |
| Content creation | 2-3 hours/piece | $0-$500 |
| Specific phrases | 1-2 hours | $0-$500 |
| Website speed | 1-2 hours | $0-$100/month |
| Internal linking | 1-2 hours (small sites) | $0 |
| Online reviews | 1-2 hours/week | Free |
| Local search | 1-2 hours setup, 1-2 hours/week | Free |
These tips help you:
- Rank higher in search results
- Get more website visitors
- Turn visitors into customers
Use free tools like Google Analytics and Search Console to track your progress.
Related YouTube video
What is SEO and Why It Matters for New Businesses
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. It's about making your website show up higher in search results. This helps more people find your business online.
Why SEO Matters for Startups
SEO helps new businesses compete with bigger companies online. It makes your website easier to find and more trustworthy to customers. This can lead to more sales and a stronger online presence.
Here's why SEO is good for startups:
| Benefit | Description |
|---|---|
| Low cost | SEO is cheaper than many other ways to market your business |
| Easy to find | It helps customers find your website when they search online |
| Builds trust | A well-optimized website makes customers trust your business more |
| Stands out | Good SEO can help you beat your competitors in search results |
Next, we'll look at simple SEO tips that busy startup founders can use to improve their online presence.
1. Optimize Your Google Business Profile
Setting up your Google Business Profile is a key step to boost your online presence and local search rankings. This profile acts as your online business card, giving customers important details about your company.
How to Do It
Setting up your Google Business Profile is easy and doesn't need tech skills. Here's what to do:
- Fill in all sections: name, address, phone, hours, and categories
- Add good photos and videos of your products or services
Why It Helps SEO
A complete Google Business Profile can greatly improve your local search rankings. It increases your chances of showing up in the local pack - the top local businesses in Google search results. This can lead to:
- More people seeing your business online
- More visits to your website
- More customers
Time and Cost
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Time Needed | 30-60 minutes (one-time setup) |
| Cost | Free |
By setting up your Google Business Profile, you can:
- Show up more in local searches
- Get more people to find your business online
- Bring in more customers
This simple step can make a big difference for your startup's SEO.
2. Make Your Website Easy to Use
A website that's easy to use helps both visitors and search engines. When your site is well-organized, people can find what they need quickly. This can lead to more sales and happy customers.
How to Do It
Setting up a good website structure is not hard. Here's what to do:
- Plan your main topics before building your site
- Aim for about five main sections (more for online stores)
Why It Helps SEO
Search engines like Google look at how your site is set up. A well-organized site helps them understand your content better. This can make your site show up higher in search results.
Time and Cost
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Time Needed | 1-2 hours |
| Cost | Free |
Benefits of a Good Website Structure
| For Users | For Search Engines |
|---|---|
| Easy to find information | Better understanding of your site |
| Quick navigation | Easier to crawl and index |
| Better user experience | Improved search rankings |
3. Create Good Content with Key Words
Making good content with short-tail keywords is important for SEO. This kind of content helps people find your website and makes search engines understand what your site is about.
How to Do It
Making good content with key words isn't too hard:
- Find words people use to search for your business
- Use these words in your content
- Make sure your content is still easy to read and helpful
Why It Helps SEO
Good content with key words helps SEO in two ways:
| For Search Engines | For People |
|---|---|
| Understand your website better | Find your site more easily |
| Rank your site higher in search results | Get useful information |
Time and Cost
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Time Needed | 2-3 hours per piece of content |
| Cost | $0 if you write it yourself, $50-$500 if you hire someone |
Making good content takes time, but it's worth it! It can help more people find your website and learn about your business.
4. Use Specific Search Phrases
How to Do It
Using specific search phrases (also called long-tail keywords) is easy, especially if you've already looked into keywords. Here's what to do:
- Find long, specific phrases people use to search for your business
- Add these phrases to your website content
- Make sure your writing still sounds natural
Why It Helps SEO
Using specific search phrases can:
- Bring more focused visitors to your site
- Help you rank higher in search results
- Turn more visitors into customers
These phrases often have less competition, making it easier for your site to show up in search results.
Time and Cost
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Time Needed | 1-2 hours |
| Cost | $0 if you do it yourself, $50-$500 if you hire someone |
Benefits of long-tail keywords
| For Your Website | For Your Business |
|---|---|
| Shows up for more searches | Gets more focused visitors |
| Ranks higher in results | Turns more visitors into customers |
| Needs less work to rank well | Spends less on ads |
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5. Make Your Website Load Faster
Why It's Important
A slow website can make people leave quickly. This can hurt your business and make your site show up lower in search results. Images often make websites slow. They can take up more than 60% of a page's data.
How to Do It
Making your website faster is not hard:
- Make your images smaller using free tools like TinyPNG
- Use Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) to speed up your site
How It Helps SEO
Google likes fast websites. If your site loads quickly, it can show up higher in search results. This means more people can find your business online.
Time and Cost
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Time Needed | 1-2 hours |
| Cost | $0-$100 per month |
You can use free tools to make images smaller. CDNs cost money, but they can really help speed up your site.
Benefits of a Fast Website
| For Users | For Your Business |
|---|---|
| Pages load quickly | More people stay on your site |
| Better user experience | Higher search rankings |
| Less waiting time | More visitors |
6. Build a Strong Internal Linking Structure
How to Do It
Building good internal links on your website is easy:
- Find your main pages
- Link them together in a way that makes sense
- Use clear words in your links
Why It Helps SEO
Good internal links help your website in many ways:
| Benefit | How It Helps |
|---|---|
| Better crawling | Search engines can find all your pages |
| Easier navigation | People can move around your site better |
| Stronger pages | Important pages get more "link power" |
Time and Cost
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Time Needed | 1-2 hours for small sites, several days for big sites |
| Cost | $0 if you do it yourself, varies if you hire help |
Tips for Good Internal Linking
- Link to your most important pages often
- Use clear words in your links
- Make sure links make sense for the page they're on
- Don't add too many links - keep it natural
7. Encourage and Manage Online Reviews
How to Do It
Getting and handling online reviews is easy:
- Ask happy customers to leave reviews on Google or other sites
- Check and reply to reviews often
Why It Helps SEO
Good reviews help your website show up more in search results. They make people trust your business more and visit your site.
Time and Cost
| Aspect | Details |
|---|---|
| Time Needed | 1-2 hours per week |
| Cost | Free (or varies if you hire help) |
Tips for Managing Reviews
- Check reviews often
- Reply to good and bad reviews
- Use free tools to help manage reviews
- Ask happy customers for reviews
- Fix problems from bad reviews quickly
By taking care of your online reviews, you can:
- Show up more in search results
- Get more people to trust your business
- Bring more visitors to your website
8. Make Your Business Easy to Find Locally
Helping local customers find your startup online is key. By focusing on local search, you can show up more in local results and Google Maps. This makes it easier for people nearby to find and pick your business.
How to Do It
Making your business easy to find locally is not hard, even if you're not tech-savvy. Here's what to do:
- Set up and keep your Google Business Profile up to date
- Make sure your business info is the same everywhere online
Why It Helps SEO
Local SEO can make more people in your area see your startup online. This can bring more people to your store or website.
Time and Cost
| Task | Time Needed | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Setting up Google Business Profile | 1-2 hours | Free |
| Weekly updates | 1-2 hours | Free |
Most local SEO work is free, which is great for startups with small budgets.
Steps to Make Your Business Easy to Find Locally
-
Set up your Google Business Profile:
- Fill in all your business details
- Pick the right business types
- Add good photos of your business
- Post updates and offers often
- Use the same name, address, and phone number on all websites
- Ask for and answer customer reviews
- Write about local topics on your website
- Get your business listed in local online directories
- Add local info to your website's code (ask a web expert for help)
How to Check if Your SEO is Working
As a busy startup founder without tech skills, you need to know if your SEO work is helping. Here's how to check:
What to Look At
To see if your SEO is working, check these things:
| Metric | What It Means |
|---|---|
| Website visitors | How many people come to your site from search engines |
| Search rankings | Where your site shows up in search results |
| Actions taken | How many visitors do what you want (like buying or signing up) |
| Page load speed | How fast your website loads |
| How people use your site | How long they stay, how many pages they see |
Tools to Use
Use these tools to check your SEO:
| Tool | What It Does | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Google Analytics | Shows who visits your site and what they do | Free |
| Google Search Console | Tells you where you show up in searches | Free |
| MonsterInsights | Makes Google Analytics easy to use on WordPress | Paid |
Wrap-up
Now you know the main SEO tips for busy startup founders who aren't tech experts. Remember, SEO is not a one-time task. You need to keep working on it to get good results.
Here's a quick look at what we covered:
| SEO Tip | What to Do |
|---|---|
| Google Business Profile | Set it up and keep it updated |
| Website Structure | Make your site easy to use |
| Content | Write good content with key words |
| Search Phrases | Use specific phrases people search for |
| Website Speed | Make your site load faster |
| Internal Links | Link your pages together well |
| Online Reviews | Ask for and respond to reviews |
| Local Search | Help local customers find you online |
By following these tips, you can:
- Show up more in search results
- Get more people to visit your website
- Turn more visitors into customers
Remember to check if your SEO work is helping. Use free tools like Google Analytics and Google Search Console to see how your site is doing.
Keep working on your SEO, and you'll see your startup grow online!
FAQs
How to do SEO for startups?
| Step | What to Do | Why It Helps |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Get support | Explain SEO to your team | Everyone works together |
| 2. Plan and budget | Set goals and decide on resources | Keeps you on track |
| 3. Fix website issues | Make your site fast and error-free | Search engines like good websites |
| 4. Find good keywords | Research words people search for | Helps the right people find you |
| 5. Make good content | Write helpful articles | Keeps people on your site |
| 6. Update old content | Improve existing pages | Makes all your content work harder |
| 7. Get links from other sites | Build connections with other websites | Shows search engines you're trustworthy |
| 8. Check your progress | Use tools to track your results | Helps you know what's working |
