SEO tips for startups in a competitive industry

Search engine optimization (SEO) has become a familiar term in digital marketing lexicon. Most businesses recognize the function and importance of SEO, but many aren’t sure how to use it for their websites’ advantage. When it comes to the tech market in particular, a high SEO ranking is essential because your website is competing against others for internet traction and real estate.

You’re fighting to be noticed by users in the vastness of cyberspace which especially becomes a challenge if you’re a startup taking on companies with an established online presence. The competition is fierce, and the options are immense, so it’s crucial to be relevant on a search engine results page.

The position of this ranking is determined by the effectiveness of your SEO strategy. In order to maintain a strong, competitive edge in the digital tech sphere, integrate these pointers for a website that gains more traffic and generates new business leads—no matter how fresh on the scene your tech startup is!  

Build your content around keywords

Let’s start with the basics (which many of you probably already know). SEO tracking software examines whatever content you publish online, scanning for words that users frequently search in Google. The more these words are identified—without being over-saturated which Google reads as spam—the higher your piece of content will be ranked in a search engine result for that particular keyword. Because of this, keywords are the foundation of SEO strategy, and using the right keywords is imperative. There’s an exact science to choosing them, but the formula is basic. Gravitate toward keywords that competitors overlook, but produce a high search volume and correspond to your services. Google AdWords or AgencyAnalytics are helpful keyword planning resources.   

Have a consistent publishing schedule

The more often you publish content on your website, the greater your chances of being noticed for authoritative writing. If you’re posting on a regular basis, this consistency establishes your website as a credible resource which increases its presence on Google. The easiest method for enlarging your scope of content is to attach a blog to the website and update it with engaging posts on a weekly schedule. Write about topics relevant to your industry—market trends and forecasts, industry events, or opinion pieces on how your audience can benefit from your services. Remember to use those keywords in each post and embed a link to the website’s landing page.

Optimize the performance of your site

In addition to skimming through your individual pieces of content, search engine crawlers will assess the website’s overall efficiency too. When determining a rank for your website on a results page, Google measures the user experience which includes factors such as loading speed, mobile optimization, pop-up management and readable formatting. If these elements are not in working order, Google deducts this from your search engine position. To ensure the website’s functionality aligns with SEO standards, it’s beneficial to run a Site Performance Test frequently. This tool produces insights and metrics in real-time to gauge how your website is operating, both on a desktop and mobile configuration.   

Take advantage of social media outlets

Once you’ve created a body of work around SEO-driven practices, it’s time to make sure your content is shareable. The most effective means of promoting your content is on social media because the reach potential is diverse. You can target all kinds of demographics and generate more traffic to the website as your social media contacts and followers notice the shared post on their newsfeeds, then decide to click on it or even share it themselves. While it’s not clear if it is directly tied to SEO rankings, social media is arguably the most efficient and accessible marketing tool for businesses that occupy the online tech space. For this reason, your content needs to be available on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other platforms.

When it comes to SEO, there is no instant gratification or silver bullet—a successful ranking and increased traction is a long-term process. But if you’re consistent and intentional about utilizing these strategies, over time, you will notice a difference in how your website performs on search result pages which ideally turns into clientele for your business.