When you’re a bootstrapped SaaS company, resourcefulness and creativity are a must for your company to survive. You’re going to have to learn things and do them yourself, even if you’re not an expert. That includes learning search engine optimization or SEO–after all, for you to get out of the bootstrapping stage, you need plenty of online visibility!
And don’t worry–not all SEO tactics are behind the paywall of a competent SEO agency. Read on for some SEO tips and tricks you can carry out by yourself so you can get more eyes on your product and drive conversions and business growth.
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Why Should SaaS Startups Work On Their SEO?
Why should you work on SEO though, when you need money fast? SEO isn’t exactly a tactic that gives you fast results. Shouldn’t you just set aside money for paid ads and email campaigns?
Well, if you are bootstrapped, you might not have the funds to spend on an actual strategic ad or pay-per-click campaign. And if you stop paying, you’ll stop getting leads. But with SEO, you already have tactics that you can do without spending or without shelling out a lot of cash.
And when you kickstart your SEO game early, you’re building a solid foundation for your product to get noticed by the right people. By optimizing your website and content, you make it easier for folks who are actively searching for what your product can do to find you.
One more thing to consider is that your competitors are probably already investing in SEO. That’s why it’s crucial for you to do the same! Otherwise, you risk falling behind in the online visibility race and losing out paying subscribers to them.
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SEO Tactics For Bootstrapped SaaS Startup Companies
Convinced about the power of SEO and itching to get started? Well, now is the best time to do so. Here are five that you can do to help the process along.
Build Backlinks
Usually backlinks mean getting sites to link to your site, but if you’re a new site, no one might want to link to you. Or they won’t have any content to link to in the first place. That’s a problem, right?
Well, focus on basic backlinks instead, those that all reputable businesses should have. These include a listing in Google My Business, review websites, and social media profiles. Make sure to be consistent with your name, address and contact number across all platforms to be as legitimate as possible.
Get your company also listed in websites that list startups (i.e. CrunchBase) as well as software review sites like ProductHunt and Capterra. You’ll get more backlinks and also enjoy additional credibility among potential visitors and customers who go through these sites.
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Learn Aspects Of Technical SEO
While you still don’t have the budget to hire anyone to do SEO for you, do yourself a favor and pick up some aspects of technical SEO. To start, find out how to:
- Optimize your site structure
- Make sure that your website is responsive to mobile
- Optimize title tags and meta description
- Manage site indexation
- Use site audit tools to find errors that need to be fixed
If all these sound alien and a lot of work, just know that the work is worth it in the long run to get your page to rank high in search engine results pages.
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Research For Keywords You Want To Rank In
As a SaaS startup with limited authority and brand recognition, you should fill up your site with keywords that people look for when they use Google. Use keyword research tools to look for keywords that are related to what your software can do.
But don’t go for just any keywords. For example, your SaaS is an email service provider. Don’t just go for the keyword “email service provider” as your competitors and other bigger business have already likely ranked for it.
Instead, go for low-competition keywords that you can rank for. Try to be more specific and consider user intent when it comes to keywords. The more you can match what people are looking for when they type in Google, the better.
Of course, the best way to go about it is to use keyword research tools. You’ll have to invest a bit, but again, it’s worth it.
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Start Making Content
Don’t just stop at finding relevant keywords. Incorporate them into your content in your website, such as “how-to” or “What are” articles. These types of articles align well with the needs and interests of SaaS users who are seeking solutions to their problems.
In addition to creating helpful content, you can also make comparison posts with your competitors. These posts allow you to highlight the unique features, benefits, and value propositions of your SaaS offering compared to others in the market. You also get the bonus of your article being results in searches that are looking for your competitors.
In making comparison posts, though, don’t just say your SaaS is better. Be unbiased, and focus on addressing the pain points and concerns of your target audience. Highlighting how your SaaS solution addresses those challenges after.
This way, you can build credibility and attract potential customers who are actively comparing different options in the market.
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Key Takeaways
While it is still best to get the expertise of an SEO agency to ensure success, there are already some tactics you can do for yourself as a bootstrapped company to improve the visibility of your SaaS website. As discussed in the article, you should:
- Build backlinks via Google My Business, review websites, and social media pages while making sure your company name and contact information are consistent.
- Learn some aspects of technical SEO to lay a good foundation for your SaaS SEO.
- Research for relevant keywords–compete for those that represent the user intent of searchers.
- Make content based on those keywords, as well as comparison posts so that you get associated with your competition and get hits on searches for them.
Try out these tactics, and don’t forget to stop and analyze the data you get after you’ve done the work. Adjust accordingly depending on the results. By continuously refining your SEO efforts, you can optimize your strategies and maximize the impact on your SaaS startup’s success.
