Search engine optimization is a challenging yet rewarding way to bring traffic to your website. SEO for startups in Cyprus is no different from SEO for any other company but, as a startup, you may not have the resources that other, larger companies in your industry have. So, we are going to give you some tips on how to grow organic traffic for long-term use through SEO techniques and how it can be cost-effective.
What is SEO, and How will it Benefit your Startup?
Search Engine Optimization, also known as SEO, is the process of increasing traffic to your website through organic search engine results. If done correctly, you will increase the quality and quantity of traffic to your site so you gain more leads, sales, clients, whatever it is you’re aiming for.
So, let’s look at how it works: Search engines have bots that go through all the content published on the internet and builds an index that is then placed into an algorithm. This then matches the content with a query (keyword/phrase) that is entered into the search engine. There is a lot of factors that the algorithm looks at, including:
• Domain-Level, Link Authority Features (quality of links to this domain, domain-level page ranking).
• Page-Level, Keyword-Agnostic Features (content length, readability, load speed).
• User, Usage, and Traffic (traffic and usage signals from browsers).
• Social Metrics (quantity and quality of Facebook shares, links twitted).
• Domain-Level Keyword Usage (exact-match keyword domains and partial-keyword match).
We will go into more detail about how to obtain the above factors further on in this post. But for now, we are going to tell you why SEO will benefit your startup.
To start, SEO is cost-effective. Unlike other digital marketing sphere practices, such as social media marketing and PPC advertising, SEO is more affordable, especially considering the long-term effects. Think of it as a smart, long-term investment where you dedicate time in order to see results rather than spending an insane amount of money over 6 months through advertising. However, you really do need dedication. There is no quick way to build a credible online presence on search engines. If you do try quick fixes such as ‘black hat techniques’, then the algorithm will soon catch on and search engines will never trust your site.
By using SEO for startups in Cyprus, you also have the opportunity to compete with the most prominent organizations in your field. With the right, engaging content and a strong SEO strategy, you can outrank your competitors because, as we have said, Google doesn’t care about the money you spend. It cares about your strategy.
And of course, we have to mention the huge market potential if you use SEO techniques for your startup. There are more than 3.5 billion searches on Google on a daily basis. Imagine how many potential leads you could lose if you are not employing an SEO strategy.
How to Create a Quality SEO Strategy
Luckily, as we’ve previously mentioned, SEO for startups in Cyprus is no different than SEO for large, long-running organizations. This is because Google (or other search engines) does not care how big or successful your company is. They only care that you match the algorithm. Now, we’ve listed the factors that the algorithm takes into account. But, how do you accomplish this?
The first challenge is keyword research (Domain-Level Keyword Usage). In terms of SEO, keywords are the words or phrases that match search engine queries. So, you need to be building content around keywords that your audience searches for and that is relevant. There are multiple ways to do this. Of course, teaming with an agency with experience is ideal however, it can be completely free if you decide to do the research yourself.
The most simple and free ways to do this research include:
• Finding out what keywords your competitors are using
• Use free tools such as Google Trends and Ubersuggest
• Search keywords relating to your market in Google and see what suggestions come up at the bottom under ‘Searches related to…’
Of course, some tools give more advanced data. However, the suggestions above are ideal if you want to keep your budget to a minimum.
Next, we are going to discuss content (Page-Level, Keyword-Agnostic Features). Although content has always been king, the algorithm is constantly changing. Now, instead of writing short articles on a weekly basis, Google cares more about well written, high-quality and UX friendly content. To make sure your content is going to help your SEO efforts, tick off the following for each blog post, article, FAQ page:
• Make it visual so they are appealing to read. This may mean using GIFs, images, graphs and videos.
• It needs to be valuable. The Google algorithm looks to match valuable information with search queries. So, make sure you are providing prized information that answers/relates to the keyword you have chosen to focus on.
• Make your content link-worthy (Domain-Level, Link Authority Features). You want other sites to be linking to your content as this will signal to Google that you are a trust worthy source that provides quality information. We have written an article about gaining quality links, so check it out if you are struggling.
• Share your content on social platforms (social metrics) as this will help you gain more readers. Again, this signals to the algorithm that your content is worth reading.
Again, this does not have to cost you anything if you decide to do it yourself. However, if you choose to hire someone to write your content make sure they are knowledgeable on topics that relate to your business.
Finally, there is the technical side of optimization. There are 2 main reasons why this is important; one reason is so that search engines can index your site correctly and recognize the elements and secondly, to improve your site’s user experience and its content. We’ve created another quick checklist to help you out.
• Title Tags: Include your keyword in the title tags and remember every title tag must be different.
• Meta Description: These need to be written for your audience and although they are not a direct rank signal, having eye-catching descriptions of your content makes people more likely to go ahead and read your post. This will heavily influence your click-through-rate (CTR), signaling to search engines that your content is of a high-quality.
• Page load speed: We will never get tired of explaining why this is so important. If your page does not load within 3 seconds, more than 50% of visitors will bounce. That is a lot of potential sales, clients or leads you could lose.
• Mobile-friendliness: It is no surprise that Google will prioritize mobile-friendly sites as most traffic comes from mobile usage. So, make sure you test how your site looks and responses to mobile devices.
Conclusion: SEO For Startups in Cyprus
As we’ve mentioned, search engine optimization is a long-term investment. It takes dedication to bring organic traffic to your site. But, once you have committed to it, you will reap the rewards. By employing the techniques we have written about regarding SEO for startups in Cyprus, you have the opportunity to outrank your competitors without using mass amounts of money. And finally, SEO helps your overall site ranking, not just singular pages.
