Are you looking for the benefits of SEO for small business? If so, you’re in the right place!
If you’ve been in the online business space for a while, you’ve most likely heard of the illusive SEO, whether from a business friend, in a Facebook group, or by doing your own searches online. SEO stands for “search engine optimization” and refers to the process that goes behind making your website visible to online search engines, including Google.
This matters because the higher your website ranks in search results, the more likely people are to find it, peruse the rest of your site, and then potentially work with you. SEO can have benefits that you’ll be able to enjoy for years, which is much longer than an Instagram post.
There are lots of benefits of SEO for small businesses. Keep reading to learn more about them!
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I’ll receive a commission if you purchase through my links, at no extra cost to you.
Attract Your Dream Clients Organically
Truthfully, the best benefit of SEO for small business is that it allows you to attract your dream clients organically by showing up on Google for keywords.
For instance, let’s say you wanted to reach clients who were looking for branding photography because brand photography is a service you offer. So, you write a blog post all about the benefits of why small business owners should get brand photography instead of using stock.
You do the SEO keyword research and find your primary keyword as well as secondary keywords that you should use to make sure that your blog post shows up in the rankings. As time goes on, you end up ranking first on Google for that search term.
Now, every time someone is looking for the benefits of brand photography, they’re probably going to click on your post first because it’s so high up. This, in turn, can lead to people reading your post and then clicking the contact button to end up booking your services.
This can all happen while you sleep, too, and posts rank on Google for way longer than your Instagram post stays relevant. Using SEO properly can help you continue to reach your ideal audience without keeping up with the latest algorithm update.
Build Trust & Credibility
The higher up in Google you rank, the more credible you are. That’s because when you’re ranked higher up, and people continually come to your website to check out the answer to whatever query they are searching for, Google takes that as a signal that you’re an authority on that topic.
Plus, if you end up having lots of blog posts about branding photography (going back to that example), then Google is gonna be like, hey, they really know their stuff when it comes to brand photography, and someone searching for brand photography is going to think the same.
This is even moreso true if they continually search for multiple keywords related to the topic, and they keep seeing you show up on the first page of the results.
And think about it, aren’t you more likely to work with someone who has lots of credibility?
Increase Your Organic Traffic
One of the most obvious benefits of SEO for small business is that it can increase your organic traffic. Truthfully, so many businesses tend to get most of their traffic from ads and social media. This isn’t organic because people are being referred to your pages from a third-party source.
By using SEO practices well and doing proper research, you can begin to see growth in your traffic from Google.
Now, these people tend to be colder leads because they just want a quick answer, but by just visiting your site once, they will likely visit again, especially if you use an email capture (like the one I’m including below) to keep them around.
Psst… this is a great resource if you want to DIY some of your SEO on your website!
Creates New Fans of Your Business
Going off the last point, another of the benefits of SEO for small business is that it creates new fans. You’re attracting new leads who are actively searching for something you can help with, which in turn helps to increase brand awareness.
Plus, the odds of someone visiting your website, taking the time to search around, and then either subscribe and/or follow you elsewhere on social media are pretty high, especially if they vibe with your brand’s values and mission.
Helps You Grow Your Email List
I sort of touched on this a bit, but using SEO especially for blogging as a small business can help you grow your email list. That’s because if you can create a free opt-in related to what they are searching for, odds are high that someone is going to put in their email in order to download it.
Now, you don’t want to go crazy creating tons of opt-ins (because, let’s be honest, who has the time?), but be sure to have at least one opt-in for each of your categories or brand pillars.
For instance, at Inkpot Creative, we have a few pillars: SEO for blogging, website design, and designer education. I have at least one freebie related to each of these categories.
Be sure to use a tool like Convertkit to add these to your blog post strategically. (Check out my resources page for a 50% off Converkit discount!)
Works for You Even When You’re Sleeping
One of the beautiful things about SEO in comparison to posting nonstop on social media is that it truly works for you while you are sleeping.
That’s because once you start to rank on Google, unless someone comes along and writes a better post than you, you’ll pretty much hold that spot. Just be sure to update it regularly – Google loves updated content.
In addition, let’s say you decide to take a vacation for a month and you stop posting on social media. The good thing about blog posts is that even when you’re not working, your blog posts and SEO throughout your site are, so you can rest assured your business is sustainable.
Is an Affordable Marketing Funnel
SEO truly is an affordable marketing funnel. That’s because it’s literally way cheaper than paid ads.
You just have to put the time in to do proper keyword research with a keyword tool. There are free tools out there, though I don’t recommend them. I use and love Keysearch and it’s only $17/month.
The best part is that you could just pay for one month and do all of your keywords for an entire year of content if you want to! Just make sure you organize all of your keywords strategically and plan for trends throughout the year (i.e. don’t post holiday content for Thanksgiving in springtime).
Increases Your Conversions with Ideal Traffic
When you post on social media, your followers see it. However, your followers aren’t always looking for what you’re offering. In fact, they probably already know what you offer, and if they wanted to buy something from you, they probably would have by now.
One of the benefits of SEO for small business is that people are landing on your site who are actively searching for what you can help them with.
So, going back to that branding photography example, if you’re writing a lot about small business branding photography, then people searching for that are going to land on your site. Even though it’s technically a colder lead because they haven’t interacted with your brand before, they very well may be ready to buy, especially depending on the keywords that you are using.
You can also use buyer-intent keywords when writing your posts. Often, posts like product vs product serve as great buyer-intent keywords, because people searching for product comparisons are ready to buy one of those products.
Helps User Experience
Lastly, SEO truly helps with user experience. Things like alt text help those who use screen readers when they visit your website and using proper text tags for your pages helps organize your content.
Many people sleep on SEO for their site not realizing how big of a difference it can make on user experience; don’t be like them.
This post was all about the benefits of SEO for small business. If you’re ready to finally start to reach your dream clients organically, be sure to check out our blogging services!
Keep the party going:
- Why Your Business Needs SEO for Business Growth
- How to Plan Blog Content as a Small Business Owner
- How to Write a Blog Post Fast in Just One Hour
- What to do if a Client Ghosts You
- Why You Need Brand Photography For Your Website
- 9 Best Blogging Tools for Beginners & Small Business Owners
- Fun Freebie Ideas for Small Businesses
- Is Showit good for SEO?
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KP’s design journey began in book publishing, but she fell in love with the truly limitless possibilities that web design presents. Since then, she’s been helping photographers and creatives become the no-brainer option for their dream clients before they even get on a call.
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9/07/22
Published On:
Krystianna Pietrzak
