We think search engine optimization is so important that we’re going to give you this blog post’s key takeaway first. Here it is:

SEO helps your small business to be not so small.

Only if you have no interest in growing or maintaining your business, can you rightfully ignore SEO. If those things are important to you, please listen up. Note: if you’re not sure what SEO is, tune in here. At the most basic level, here’s what SEO can do to help you grow your business…

1. Be visible.

This one’s a no-brainer. The easier you are to find, the more likely you are to sell your stuff. It’s worth putting in the time and effort on your end to save your potential customers time on theirs.

2. Earn credibility.

Mark yourself as an industry thought-leader and an expert in your field by making your online presence stand out. This may be digitally accomplished on your:

• Website
• Blog
• Social media pages
• YouTube
• Guest blogs
• Podcasts

3. Beat your competition.

The better managed your SEO practices are, the more likely you are to outshine your competition in online searches. And what good entrepreneur doesn’t want to beat out their competition?

The Best Part of SEO? It’s Cost-Effective and Measurable.

Cost-effectiveness and measurability are a match made in entrepreneurial heaven, so let’s focus on what you can do (and there’s plenty) without even spending a dime on this love affair.

Here are four steps to take right now to build a solid SEO foundation:

1. Make a list of keywords.

These are the words that people type into search engines like Google to find your business. Give yourself an advantage by more specifically targeting what people might search at the moment they’re ready to purchase your services. Keyword brainstorming helps you to not only master your SEO plan, but how to set up your brand and content strategy.

Pro tip #1: Include both short and long tail keywords.

• Short tail keywords – These are generic keywords that often target large groups of potential customers. Example: “content marketing,” “coffee shop”

• Long tail keywords – Long-tail keywords are longer phrases that target more niche demographics as opposed to mass audiences. These are more specific and typically less competitive. Example: “nutrition solutions for women over 40 Cleveland” 

Pro tip #2: Use Google AdWords Keyword Planner to help find what your customers might be searching for.

2. Get a domain name that makes sense for your business.

Use the keywords from #1 to inform your final naming decision, but be sure to avoid obscure or cutesy names. If you own a coffee shop, the word coffee should be somewhere in the title.

3. Create and share your content.

Use those keywords and pepper them throughout all of your brand messaging. It’s okay if these words change over time. As your business grows, this is certain to happen. But right now, use what you have found!

4. Measure!

The glorious part about SEO and digital marketing is that you can measure how well it performs for you. You can test different keywords/content/social networks — really, you can test everything to figure out what you should be doing more of. Google Analytics is free. Pop the code into your website and use it!