2: Marketing Campaign Slide Deck

NATIONAL SMALL BUSINESS WEEK

6 SEO Tips to Benefit Any
Small Week is a good time to quit procrastinating and optimize your SEO to rank higher, load faster and reach
more visitors.

! ” # !

Scott McGovern
Founder of NDXBL, an organic growth co.

! ” # $ ”

NEXT ARTICLE

Webinar | May 11 | Winning Strategies to Drive Product
Innovation & Growth
Join us for this insightful webinar with CEOs Jason Nazar and Burton
Gold:eld. Together, they’ll discuss how to pivot during times of crisis and
change your business strategies to achieve growth.

Register Now >>

May 7, 2019 7 min read

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

National Small Week is a good time to remind
yourself that building a digital business means knowing which
SEO tips to implement first. No matter what they’re searching
for, people typically turn to search engines first. The best way to grow your traffic, no
matter what your business, is by creating a website with both search engines and your
visitors in mind.

In today’s search engine-oriented market, SEO is the most effective way to drive traffic
to your website without paying for advertisements. For small businesses with limited
budgets, this can be a huge advantage when facing more established competition. SEO
(search engine optimization) is a way of structuring your website to build traffic
through organic search. As opposed to paid traffic, which comes from advertisements,
organic search traffic comes from high rankings in search engines and creating quality
content that captures your audience. In a world where 32 percent of people click the
first Google search result, SEO is a crucial part of any business.

But optimizing your website all at once can be daunting for owners of small businesses
who have a lot else to do. These six actionable SEO tips are the best place to start –
– small changes can transform your traffic.

1. Monitor all changes.

No matter which SEO tips you choose to implement first, the single most important
thing to do is monitor those changes. If you’re not seeking professional help, this
means accomplishing the following:

1. Decide on a metric to use to monitor your traffic. Is it newsletter sign-ups,
product purchases, keyword rankings, or percentage of people who return to
your website?

2. Start using at least one of the recommended SEO tools to help you rank higher
in Google to monitor your progress.

3. Implement one change at a time. How can you know what is working if you do
everything at once?

2. Create a clear site structure.

It doesn’t matter how many SEO tips you implement on your website if it isn’t
structured in a way that’s easy for search engine crawlers and users to navigate. For
small businesses with new websites, this means creating a hierarchy that includes:

Pages

Categories

Subcategories

Internal linking that reaffirms the site structure

Headings

Crawlers and humans both love hierarchy: Having a clear site structure
accomplishes your two main objectives. First, Google crawlers can quickly understand
your content and rank it accordingly. Second, humans can navigate it easily, making
them more likely to stay on your website, buy something from it, or return to it in the
future.

If your site structure is unclear, Google crawlers could miss some of your content,
making it impossible for people to search for it in the first place. Bad site structure
also leaves your visitors confused and likely to go somewhere else. This will translate
to less time spent per visitor, lower conversion rates for online retailers and less traffic
as Google demotes your website based these statistics

3. Prioritize content creation.

Creating quality content is one of the top SEO marketing trends in 2019, whether
you’re a small or large business. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

Google algorithms consider content quality more than ever before. This means
creating content that matches your keywords, headlines, and meta descriptions.

Long form content will rank higher than short form.

Writing should appeal to readers, not robots. Google algorithms are getting so
sophisticated that they penalize content for keyword stuffing, a tactic designed
to appeal to algorithms rather than people.

Content doesn’t just mean text, either. Videos have significant engagement, and
photos are equally important.

Keep in mind that the ideal content for your website will depend on your type of
traffic. Test out different styles and monitor traffic to see what your audience wants
from your website.

4. Focus on building both internal and external links.

Building a network of internal and external links is a constant process. Whether you’re
an entrepreneur with a less-than-perfect existing site or you’re a small business
building a brand new one, one of the best SEO tips is to structure your links a little
every day.

Use internal linking to create site structure: For starters, it’s important to
internally link every new piece of content. Otherwise, it becomes orphaned content.
This means that it’s disconnected from the rest of your site. Orphaned content is
difficult for Google crawler and visitors to find. If a piece of content isn’t connected to
the rest of your website, crawlers can either miss it or will consider it less important,
thereby ranking it lower.

More broadly, interlinking pages within your website accomplishes two main things: It
helps crawlers understand and better rank your website and logical links make it
easier for visitors to navigate (and therefore stay) on your website.

Build a network of high-quality external backlinks: Backlinks are a key factor that
search engines use to evaluate your website. But today, backlink quality rather than
quantity is more important than ever. Instead of spending money on cheap links that
will negatively affect your traffic, website owners should create quality content that
will solicit backlinks on its own and build relationships with businesses big and small
in relevant fields can help you grow your backlink profile.

Though buying links may have been an effective tool in the early days of search engine
optimization, black hat SEO tricks like this no longer work. In fact, buying low-quality
links in bulk is a sure way to have Google demote your website, which will decrease
your traffic. When choosing your next SEO firm, make sure they’re not doing anything
resembling that.

5. Delete anything that slows down your site.

One of the top SEO tips for gaining and maintaining traffic is improving site
speed. Google has made it known that site speed is a factor in ranking websites. And
research also shows that a half a second delay in page load time translated to a 20
percent decrease in traffic. For entrepreneurs, this means that cutting out elements
that slow down your website is key to customer and search engine satisfaction. Some
effective tools include:

Compressing images

Cashing your browser

Getting rid of unnecessary elements in CSS

Stop using JavaScript

6. Always consider mobile Urst.

Google rolled out mobile first indexing in the summer of 2018. But designing websites
for mobile has been a focal point for web designers since mobile traffic outpaced
desktop in 2016. Still, whether you’re designing a website or creating content, it’s
important to design a responsive mobile website — even if you’re designing it on a
desktop computer. This means placing even more emphasis on mobile UX and mobile-
oriented site structure.

Optimizing your website can be a massive undertaking — but that doesn’t mean that
you have to (or should) do it all at once. The best place to start is by focusing on key
SEO tips and addressing issues within your website one by one.

No matter where you are in the process of optimizing your website, make sure that you
approach it methodically. Monitor everything you do so that you can replicate your
success with future businesses.

More From Entrepreneur

Entrepreneur Select: A Fund For Entrepreneurs,
By Entrepreneurs
Entrepreneurs require more than just money,
which is why we aim to empower you, as well as
act as a catalyst for value creation.

Learn More

Discover the franchise that’s right for you by
answering some quick questions about

Which industry you’re interested in
Why you want to buy a franchise
What your :nancial needs are
Where you’re located
And more

Find Your Franchise Match

Discover a better way to hire freelancers. From
business to marketing, sales, :nance, design,
technology, and more, we have the freelancers you
need to tackle your most important work and
projects, on-demand.

Learn More

Related Books

Ultimate Guide to Link
Building

Buy From

Entrepreneur Voices on
Elevator Pitches

Buy From

Entrepreneur Voices on
the Science of Success

Buy From

Entrepreneur Voices on
Growth Hacking

Buy From

The Innovation Mentality

Buy From

Ultimate Guide to
Platform Building

Buy From

PLBY Group Stock is Speculative
Collectibles Play Riding the NFT Hype
Train
Iconic Playboy brand owner PLBY Group (NASDAQL
PLBY) stock has been on a parabolic squeeze-like
rally up nearly 400% in a matter of months riding the
non-fungible token (NFT) hysteria.

www.marketbeat.com

These Are The Top Consumer
Cyclical Mutual Funds
Markets usually perform in cycles. This means that
there is a growth and decline cycle, but the timing of
each stage may vary.

www.valuewalk.com

ESG Penny Stocks to Buy? 3 to Watch
As Markets Push Up Today
Are ESG penny stocks worth buying? Take a look at
these 3 to :nd out

pennystocks.com

Latest On Entrepreneur

Dell Technologies
Advisors listen,

Image credit: Irina_Strelnikova | Getty Images

Dell Technologies
Advisors listen,

Franchise Your
Schedule a FREE one-on-one session with
one of our Franchise Advisors today and
we’ll help you start building your franchise
organization.

Get Started

C O M P A N Y

Advertise

Brand Licensing

Help Center

Entrepreneur Media Departments

Staff

Contribute

Reprints & Licensing

P R O D U C T S

Entrepreneur Insider

Entrepreneur Leadership Network

Franchise

Webinars

Publish Your Book

Entrepreneur Store

Product Help

Subscription Help

E D I T I O N S

United States

India

Asia Paci:c

Middle East

Europe

Español

Georgia

South Africa

G E T T H E M A G A Z I N E

J O I N O U R N E W S L E T T E R

! ” # % $ &

Terms of Use Privacy Policy Cookies Policy Help Center Site Map

Copyright © 2021 Entrepreneur Media, Inc. All rights reserved.
Entrepreneur® and its related marks are registered trademarks of Entrepreneur Media Inc.

Subscribe

Email… Submit

NATIONAL SMALL BUSINESS WEEK

‘Million Dollar Listing’ Real Estate
Expert Ryan Serhant on How Small
es Can Make a Big Impact

NATIONAL SMALL BUSINESS WEEK

How the SBA Helped My Small
Survive Hurricane Maria

SPONSORED CONTENT

Maximum Observability, Minimum
Effort!”
By IBM | IBM Content

NATIONAL SMALL BUSINESS WEEK

It’s National Small Week. Is
Your Phone Ringing Off the Hook?

NATIONAL SMALL BUSINESS WEEK

Are You a Small Owner or an
Entrepreneur?

# V I D E O W E B I N A R S S TA RT A B U S I N E S S S U B S C R I B E B O O K S $%

National Small Week Sale: 20% off of an annual Entrepreneur Insider membership through 5/8/21. Save 20% Now →

Fe
ed

ba
ck

https://www.entrepreneur.com/author/scott-mcgovern

https://www.entrepreneur.com/topic/national-small-business-week

https://www.facebook.com/scottpmcgovern

Tweets by scottpmcgovern

https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottpmcgovern/

https://www.instagram.com/scottpmcgovern/

https://www.instagram.com/scottpmcgovern/

https://www.entrepreneur.com/author/scott-mcgovern

https://www.entrepreneurselect.com/?utm_campaign=EntSelect&utm_source=Entrepreneur&utm_medium=Article&utm_content=MFE-Ad

https://franchisehelp.entrepreneur.com/franchise-quiz/Industry/??utm_campaign=FranQuiz&utm_source=Entrepreneur&utm_medium=Article&utm_content=3-Ad-Unit

https://www.entrepreneur.com/next?utm_campaign=EntrepreneurStore&utm_source=Entrepreneur&utm_medium=Site&utm_content=3ColumnAdUnit

https://feed.exchange.entrepreneur.com/event?t=clk&r=M0-1-1620168278-607cb&p=0

https://feed.exchange.entrepreneur.com/event?t=clk&r=M0-1-1620168278-607cb&p=1

https://feed.exchange.entrepreneur.com/event?t=clk&r=M0-1-1620168278-607cb&p=2

https://www.entrepreneur.com/media-kit

https://www.entrepreneur.com/brand-licensing-program

https://help.entrepreneur.com/hc/en-us?source=ent_footer

https://help.entrepreneur.com/hc/en-us/categories/360003772932-Entrepreneur-Media-Departments?source=ent_footer

https://www.entrepreneur.com/staff

https://www.entrepreneur.com/leadership-network

http://www.entrepreneurreprints.com/

https://www.entrepreneur.com/insider/learn-more?utm_campaign=Insider&utm_source=Entrepreneur&utm_medium=Website&utm_content=Footer

https://www.entrepreneur.com/leadership-network?utm_campaign=ELN&utm_source=Entrepreneur&utm_medium=Website&utm_content=Footer

https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchise

https://www.entrepreneur.com/events

https://www.entrepreneur.com/press

https://store.entrepreneur.com/?utm_campaign=Ent-Store&utm_source=Entrepreneur&utm_medium=Website&utm_content=Footer

https://help.entrepreneur.com/hc/en-us/articles/360046842052?source=ent_footer

https://help.entrepreneur.com/hc/en-us/articles/360058283091?source=ent_footer

https://www.entrepreneur.com/us

https://www.entrepreneur.com/in

https://www.entrepreneur.com/ap

https://www.entrepreneur.com/me

https://www.entrepreneur.com/eu

https://www.entrepreneur.com/es

https://www.entrepreneur.com/ga

https://www.entrepreneur.com/sa

https://subscription.entrepreneur.com/servlet/OrdersGateway?cds_mag_code=ENT&cds_page_id=240204&utm_source=Entrepreneur&utm_medium=Site&utm_campaign=MainSubPage&utm_term=Global&utm_content=Footer_MagCover

http://entm.ag/OxS7Pu

http://entm.ag/magappgplay

http://entm.ag/kindle

https://www.entrepreneur.com/

https://www.facebook.com/EntMagazine

Tweets by Entrepreneur

https://www.linkedin.com/company/entrepreneur-media

https://www.instagram.com/entrepreneur/

https://www.youtube.com/user/EntrepreneurOnline

https://www.entrepreneur.com/terms-of-service

https://www.entrepreneur.com/privacy-policy

https://www.entrepreneur.com/cookie-policy

https://help.entrepreneur.com/hc/en-us?source=ent_nav_footer

https://www.entrepreneur.com/topic/national-small-business-week

https://www.entrepreneur.com/topic/national-small-business-week

https://www.entrepreneur.com/topic/national-small-business-week

https://www.entrepreneur.com/topic/national-small-business-week

https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/332416#

https://www.entrepreneur.com/

https://www.entrepreneur.com/video

https://www.entrepreneur.com/events

https://www.entrepreneur.com/franchises/featured-opportunities

https://www.entrepreneur.com/insider/learn-more?utm_campaign=Insider&utm_source=Entrepreneur&utm_medium=Website&utm_content=Top-Nav

https://aerbook.com/store/EntrepreneurBooks

https://www.entrepreneur.com/login?intended=/article/332416

https://www.entrepreneur.com/insider/learnmore?utm_campaign=Insider&utm_source=Entrepreneur&utm_medium=Article&utm_content=NSBW_Banner#pricing