SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) is a powerful tool for small businesses looking to improve their online presence, attract more customers, and increase revenue.
However, despite its potential benefits, many small businesses make common SEO mistakes that can hinder their success. Whether you’re new to SEO or looking to refine your strategy, understanding these pitfalls is crucial.
By utilising SEO correctly, business owners can avoid these mistakes and ensure their website performs well in search engine rankings.
Here are 10 points that every small business should use.
1. Don’t forget to Optimise Your Website for Mobile
In today’s digital age, mobile optimisation is not optional; it’s essential. Many small businesses make the mistake of not making their websites mobile-friendly. This oversight can lead to a poor user experience and negatively impact your search engine rankings.
Google’s mobile-first indexing means that the mobile version of your site is considered the primary version, making it crucial that it’s optimised for mobile users. Most website builders will allow you to update mobile and desktop separately in the back end making this easier for you.
2. Remember to Conduct Keyword Research
One of the foundational elements of SEO is keyword research, yet many small businesses forget to do this. Without proper keyword research, you risk targeting the wrong audience or missing out on valuable traffic.
Focusing on the right keywords is essential for attracting the right visitors to your site. We recommend regularly updating your keyword strategy to stay competitive and align with changing search trends, seasons and products.
3. Work on Your Local SEO
Local SEO is vital for small businesses that rely on local customers. Neglecting local SEO means you may not appear in local search results, causing you to miss out on potential customers in your area. Ensure your business is listed on Google My Business, and optimise your content for local search terms.
Additionally, we recommend encouraging satisfied customers to leave positive reviews, as these can significantly impact your local search rankings..
4. Produce High-Quality Content
Content is a critical component of SEO, and producing low-quality content is a common mistake. Search engines prioritise websites that provide valuable, relevant information to users that show you are an expert in your field. Content that is poorly written, irrelevant, or stuffed with keywords can negatively effect your rankings.
Focus on creating high-quality content that addresses the needs and interests of your audience.
5. Check Your On-Page SEO
On-page SEO involves optimising individual pages on your website to improve their search engine rankings. Common mistakes include not optimising title tags, meta descriptions, headers, and images with relevant keywords.
Each page on your site should have unique, keyword-rich meta tags and well-structured content. You should regularly review and update your on-page SEO for an optimal performance.
6. Don’t Ignore Your Analytics and Performance Monitoring Tools
Failing to monitor your SEO performance is a critical mistake. Without tracking your website’s traffic, rankings, and conversion rates, you won’t know if your SEO efforts are paying off. Regularly analysing your performance allows you to identify what’s working, which pages customers are visiting and where you need to make adjustments.
We set up Google Analytics and Google Search Console to track our customers progress and gain insights into their audience’s behaviour. By monitoring your SEO performance, you can make data-driven decisions to enhance your strategy.
7. Build High-Quality Backlinks
Backlinks, or links from other websites to your site, are a significant factor in SEO. Many small businesses neglect to build high-quality backlinks, missing out on a valuable opportunity to boost their rankings.
Backlinks from reputable sites signal to search engines that your content is trustworthy and authoritative. Focus on creating shareable content and building relationships with other businesses and influencers in your industry.
8. Avoid Keyword Stuffing
While it’s important to include keywords in your content, overusing them—known as keyword stuffing can do more harm than good. Search engines can penalise your site for keyword stuffing, leading to lower rankings.
Instead, focus on using keywords naturally and sparingly within your content.
9. Remember to Optimise for Voice Search
With the rise of digital assistants like Siri and Alexa, optimising for voice search has become increasingly important. Many small businesses overlook this aspect of SEO, missing out on potential traffic.
Voice search queries are often longer and more conversational, so it’s essential to include long-tail keywords and phrases in your content to stay ahead of the competition.
10. Update Your Content Regularly
Search engines favour websites that consistently update their content. Failing to refresh your content regularly can lead to lower rankings and reduced traffic. Regularly updating your blog posts, articles, and other content ensures that it remains relevant and valuable to your audience.
If SEO is an area you feel your business needs help with and you don’t have the time or headspace, we are here to help.