Welcome to this 52-Step guide to SEO or search engine optimization strategies and tactics for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).
This content is designed to be easily digestible with a clear progression from foundational concepts to advanced strategies which are explained in such a manner that makes them easy to understand.
SEO by definition involves optimizing your company’s digital assets (e.g., website, blog, local business profile, podcast) by means of organic (non-paid) marketing methods.
Please keep in mind that SEO may take anywhere from three (3) to six (6) months before you see any significant results from your optimization strategies and tactics.
However, unlike PPC (pay per click search advertising) which only lasts as long as your paid campaign, once you have established your website/blog through SEO, the results will remain for as long as you properly maintain and update these digital assets.
Be sure to bookmark our Free Marketing Guides for a ready reference.
Part 1: Actionable SEO for SMBs (Steps 1-32)
Part 1 will be focused on SEO strategies and tactics for SMBs.
Foundational SEO & User Experience
Step Nos. 1-8 of this 52-Step guide will be about establishing the strategic foundations of SEO for small and medium-sized business owners.
Create a Google Business Profile (GBP) – Step 1:
This is arguably the most important step for any small and medium-sized business with a brick-and-mortar operation, or one that serves a specific geographic area. Your Google Business Profile (formerly Google My Business) is free to set up – although there are certain steps you’ll need to take to properly establish your profile, by verifying the existence of your business and complying with Google’s rules and regulations.
This professional business listing will help to ensure that your product and service offerings show up in Google Maps and local search results. It’s the best way for localized customers and clients searching online to find your address, phone number, hours of operation, website link, public reviews, and to set an appointment (if the GBP feature is activated).
Set Up Google Search Console (GSC) – Step 2:
This is a completely free SEO tool provided by Google, and not related to any third-party tools. GSC is therefore a direct way to measure your site’s performance based upon Google’s own search data.
It will tell you things like which keywords you’re ranking for, any technical errors on your site, what web domains are linking back to your website, how many impressions your website has (i.e., how many people are seeing your site link), and how many people are clicking through on your SERP or search engine result page listing as a byproduct of those impressions (i.e., what is your site’s CTR or click-through-rate).
Set Up Google Analytics (GA4) – Step 3:
This is another completely free SEO tool offered by Google. GA4, which is the latest version of Google’s analytical SEO product, essentially helps you understand what types of actions your visitors engage in once they are on your website or blog. This differs from Google Search Console tells you how people found you in the first place.
You can track everything from web visitor location, which type of web browser is being used, user demographics (e.g., age, gender, and language), how long visitors stay on your site, the number of currently “active” users, and what types of conversion events take place (e.g., newsletter subscriptions, product purchases, survey responses, video engagement, and webinar sign-ups).
Optimize Your Title Tags & Meta Descriptions – Step 4:
Optimize the title tag (the main heading) and the meta description (the short summary of content) of your homepage – then do the same exact thing for every other page or post on your website/blog.
The title tag should be limited to no more than 60 characters (including spaces), and should include the keyword(s) you are trying to target. It is the clickable headline on a search results page. The meta description should be limited to no more than 155 characters (including spaces), and should be a good descriptive summary of the contents of a webpage or blog post. It appears just below the title tag on a search results page.
These two components are the first impression on a potential visitor scrolling through traditional search engine results. They can also have a big impact on CTR (click-through-rate) – i.e., whether or not a person actually clicks through to visit your website or blog.
Ensure Your Website Is Mobile-Friendly – Step 5:
Why? As of mid-2025, mobile devices (e.g., smartphones, tablets and smartwatches) account for 60%-65% of global website traffic; while desktop devices makeup around 35%.
If your site is hard to navigate on a mobile device, one or both of the following issues are happening:
- You are losing customers to your competitors who are mobile-friendly.
- You are conveying to major search engines like Google and Bing that your site’s UX (user experience) is poor.
Improve Your Site’s Overall Speed – Step 6:
If your website is too slow to load (i.e., greater than 3 seconds), users will become frustrated and “bounce” back to the SERPs (search engine results page) or referring page they came from, without ever reaching your landing page (e.g., homepage).
Another result of a website that loads too slowly – your search rankings can be harmed. Google not only wants to send users to high-quality sites, but they also want to send them to sites which load quickly.
Mobile devices can load slower than desktop devices – primarily due to network connection speeds, slower CPUs and less memory – but the target load time for both should be to keep them at 3 seconds or less.
Create a Great User Experience (UX) – Step 7:
SEO isn’t just about keywords or backlinks or structured data (schema) —it’s also about making your website easy and enjoyable for people to navigate.
A good user experience or UX keeps visitors on your site longer, which is a positive signal to search engines. It also allows you to benefit more often from your important or “money” pages – such as a service offering subscription page or a product offering purchase page.
Fix Any Broken Links – Step 8:
Broken links, which typically appear as a “Not Found (404)” error on a webpage, carry no value for a website. They are essentially a dead end for both your site visitors and search engine crawlers. They create a poor user experience and signal to Google that your site might be outdated or not well-maintained.
On-Page SEO & Content Creation
Step Nos. 9-16 of this 52-Step guide will focus on on-page or on-site optimization strategies and the actual creation of content that will be experienced and viewed by your visitors.
Perform Basic Keyword Research – Step 9:
Use the point of view of your customer, and start by thinking about what they would type into Google to find your products or services.
These are the keywords or “seeds” that will create the foundation of your research.
Optimize Your Main Services/Products Pages – Step 10:
For each of your core services or products, create a dedicated page. Use the keywords you found in Step 9 to optimize your title tags (e.g., H1 heading), subheadings (e.g., H2-H6), the body content, and service or location specific pages.
This is how you establish on-site topical authority, along with pillar and cluster formatted content, which is critical for being ranked by traditional search engines in your service or product area.
Write High-Quality, In-Depth Content – Step 11:
Content is a major ranking factor – more specifically, quality content is a major ranking factor.
In addition to listing key areas such as your about section, contact information, services, and prices on your website, you should also create blog posts, guides, and case studies, that answer the most common and pressing customer questions.
Set Up a Strong Internal Linking Network – Step 12:
Internal links are hyperlinks that connect various pages on your own website through relevant anchor text. They are now considered to be as important as backlinks for spreading link equity and authority signals throughout your website and blog.
They also help search engines understand the structure or architecture of your website.
Add Alt Text (Alternative Text) to Images – Step 13:
Alt Text (alternative text) is a short description of an image. It’s used by screen readers for visually impaired users, and by search engines to understand what your images are about. If the image is purely decorative, then you may leave the alt text field blank.
Use a Clear URL Structure – Step 14:
Your URLs should be clean and descriptive in order to optimize browsing (by users) and crawling (by search engines). They help both users and search engines understand what a page is about before they even click or land on your content.
Bad URL Structure: yourwebsite.com/page-123?siteid=88&channelid=99
Good URL Structure: yourwebsite.com/blog/how-to-start-freelance-consulting
Note: All URLs should begin with the secure web protocol of https://
Add Schema Markup – Step 15:
Schema markup (also known as Structured Data) is a type of code you add to your website to help search engines better understand the content. It may lead to “rich snippets” which appear as additional portions (e.g., star ratings, price ranges, hours of operation) in your SERP (search engine results pages) listings.
This makes your listing more visually appealing and can increase both your click-through and conversion rates.
Optimize for “Featured Snippets” – Step 16:
Featured snippets (different from rich snippets) are the short, highlighted answers that appear at the top of Google’s search results. You can increase your chances of getting one by clearly answering specific questions in your content.
Local SEO and Technical SEO
Step Nos. 17-24 of this 52-Step guide will focus on creating content for Local SEO purposes, as well as addressing key Technical SEO issues which are designed to positively move the SEO needle for your business’s website and/or blog.
Build Local Citations – Step 17:
A local citation is any online mention of your business’s name, address, and phone number (also referred to as NAP) in a localized directory. Making sure your NAP citations are consistent across all platforms is key to optimizing for Local SEO.
Note: If you include your company’s website and/or blog address, make sure they are also identical to what’s listed in your Google Business Profile.
Get Consumer Reviews – Step 18:
Reviews are a major local SEO ranking factor. Your Google Business Profile should be actively seeking reviews from consumers you have served.
The more positive reviews you have on platforms like Google, Yelp, and your Facebook page, the more trustworthy your business appears to AI models, search engines, and clients/customers.
The ideal timing of when to send a review request can vary depending the type of product or service offering. Generally speaking, the “sweet spot” for requesting a review is usually 24 to 48 hours after the product has been delivered or the service has been rendered.
Create Localized Content – Step 19:
Whether or not you serve a large geographical area, creating brand content that is specific to all the cities, communities, and neighborhoods to which you provide products or services, will help you rank for relevant local searches.
Professions that serve local communities (e.g., HVAC, plumbing, legal, medical, dental, food services, retail operations, etc.) are all great examples of businesses that should be creating consistent local content such as blog posts or forum topics.
Fix All On-Site Technical SEO Issues – Step 20:
The primary way that you should check technical SEO issues is by opening up Google Search Console (GSC).
This will show you the main issues that are hurting your site’s technical performance, such as crawl errors (e.g., 301 Redirect and 404 Not Found), pages that are crawled but not currently indexed, duplicate content, or pages that are blocked from being indexed.
GSC will also give you insights into other potential SEO problems such as whether there are any pages that are showing up as non-HTTPS (i.e., pages without a secure connection), the status of your submitted XML sitemaps, and if there have been any manual actions taken by Google against your website.
Audit Your Site for Duplicate Content – Step 21:
Make sure each page on your site has a unique purpose and message. Duplicate content on a website can lead to the following:
- Wasted crawl budget (search engine bots have limited resources; crawling duplicate pages wastes this budget)
- Keyword cannibalization (when two or more webpages compete for the same keywords it divides ranking power)
- A poor user experience (visitors who encounter duplicate content may become frustrated; leading to high bounce rates)
- Search engine confusion (search engines can struggle with which URL should be indexed and prioritized in search results)
- Diluted link equity (backlinks pointing to different versions of the same page; better to combine authority onto one page)
Add an XML and HTML Sitemap – Step 22:
An XML sitemap lists all of the pages on your website, is submitted to Google and Bing for processing, and is designed to be read and understood by search engines.
An HTML sitemap should also list all the pages on your site, is a dedicated page built on your website which organizes and lists all the URLs that comprise your website, and is designed to be read and understood by both site visitors and search engines.
They are both like roadmaps, helping search engines and users find and navigate all of your site’s content. Special Note: It is important for every website to have both types of sitemaps, and there are numerous beneficial SEO reasons why this is the case.
Implement an SSL Certificate or HTTPS – Step 23:
A secure website that uses an SSL certificate or HTTPS protocol, is a must in today’s environment.
SSL stands for Secure Sockets Layer, and is a standard security protocol used to establish an encrypted link between a web server and a browser. It ensures that all data transmitted between the two is protected.
This would include login credentials, credit card numbers, and personal info – which would remain private and protected from hackers. While it’s small, it is still considered an important ranking factor, for Google.
Use a Properly Configured Robots.txt File – Step 24:
A robots.txt file is a set of rules which tells search engine crawlers which sections (pages or files) of your website they are and are not allowed to access. It can be used to prevent search engines from crawling low-value pages, and wasting your site’s crawl budget.
If you are using a managed Content Management System (CMS) and hosting service like WordPress[.]com, your robots.txt file will be automatically configured for you.
Special Note: Do NOT attempt to modify this file unless you are working alongside a knowledgeable professional – the wrong type of text symbol added into this file may end up causing your entire site to be blocked from crawling and indexing by major search engines and AI models.
Off-Page SEO and Analytics
Step Nos. 25-32 of this 52-Step guide will focus on the practice of off-page SEO which involves establishing authoritative backlinks from relevant websites, maintaining a cross section of social media accounts, and monitoring key metrics such as keyword rankings and click-through rates (CTRs).
Understanding Off-Page SEO – Step 25:
While on-page SEO is what you do to optimize your website itself, off-page SEO is what you do everywhere else online to signal authority and trust to search engines. The biggest factor is backlinks.
These should be active links from authoritative sites (preferably within your industry), and the page from which each backlink emanates, should be highly relevant to the page being linked to on your own website.
Definition: A backlink is a link from another website to your website. Think of it as a “vote of confidence” which sends signals to search engines that your content is valuable to its’ users.
Create Shareable Content to Earn Backlinks – Step 26:
Earning high-quality backlinks is a long-term process – and is still one of the most important ranking factors for SEO. The best way to get them is to create content that other people naturally want to link to. This is commonly referred to as creating “linkable assets” on your own website or blog.
Participate In Relevant Online Communities – Step 27:
Look for online forums (e.g., Reddit, Quora, Discord), industry-specific blogs like Hubspot Marketing Blog and Social Media Today, and social media groups (e.g., Facebook, LinkedIn) where your target audience or ideal customer profile spend their time.
Provide valuable advice, and where appropriate, a link or reference back to your brand.
Monitor Your Performance With Analytics – Step 28:
Now that you potentially have weeks and weeks of data, you can start to measure the results of your SEO efforts. Here are three (3) key initial metrics you should be tracking as a starting point:
Organic Traffic – The number of visitors who found your site through search engines. You can measure this metric using a combination of Google Search Console and Google Analytics 4, alongside any one of these top professional tools: 1) Similarweb, 2) Semrush, 3) Ahrefs
Keyword Rankings – Where your site shows up for important keywords. You can measure this metric using any one of these top professional tools: 1) Semrush, 2) Ahrefs, 3) Moz
Click-Through Rate (CTR) – The percentage of people who click on your listing in the search results. You can measure this metric using a combination of Google Search Console, alongside any one of these top professional tools: 1) Similarweb, 2) Semrush, 3) Ahrefs
Analyze Your Competitors’ SEO Strategies – Step 29:
See what your competitors are doing well, and find opportunities where you can do it better.
The key areas to focus on when performing a competitive SEO analysis are as follows:
- Backlink counts
- Keyword rankings
- Domain authority
- AI citation frequency
- Structured data (Schema) use
- Featured snippet assets (e.g., FAQs, tables, listicles)
- Good UX/UI (e.g., mobile responsiveness, accessibility, click depth)
- EEAT signals (e.g., original research, case studies, expert credentials)
- Topical authority (e.g., pillar and cluster content, keyword intent gaps)
- Multi-platform visibility or omnichannel presence on social media and online forums
Use Social Media to Promote Content – Step 30:
Social media links aren’t considered to be a direct ranking factor by Google (unlike authoritative backlinks), but they do send social engagement signals to search engines which indirectly impacts rankings.
They also help your content reach a much wider audience, which can lead to an increase in brand awareness, brand engagement, brand collaborations, authoritative backlinks, and overall web traffic.
Seek Out Guest Blogging Opportunities – Step 31:
Guest blogging is the practice of writing a blog post for another website in your same industry. It’s a great way to earn valuable backlinks, and build online topical authority for your website and/or blog.
Find well-known, high-quality blogs in your industry and pitch them valuable article ideas on current topics or recent developments.
Track Your Return on Investment (ROI) – Step 32:
Ultimately, SEO success is not about just traffic or leads, it is about the overall success of your business operations.
Use free analytics tools such as Google Search Console and Google Analytics 4, and paid analytics tools such as Ahrefs and Screaming Frog, in order to connect your SEO efforts to your business goals (e.g., customer growth, lifetime value, revenue, and profits).
Part 2: Working with an SEO Agency or Consultant (Steps 33-52)
Part 2 will focus on the process of how a small and medium-sized business can best work with an SEO agency or individual SEO consultant, and what to expect during the relationship.
Research and Preparation
Step Nos. 33-40 of this 52-Step guide will address the timeliness, vetting, goals, and expectations involved with the hiring of an SEO agency or consultant by small and medium-sized business owners.
Acknowledge When It’s Time to Hire an Agency or Consultant – Step 33
Doing initial SEO yourself is great for a start, but at some point, you may need an individual or a team of experts to accurately and professionally assess your efforts and help you complete your search objectives.
Recognizing this is the first step toward significant growth.
When to hire: There are five (5) primary reasons why you should consider retaining an outside SEO professional:
1) You’ve hit a plateau
2) You’re too busy to do it yourself
3) You are operating in a highly competitive market
4) You need the input of an SEO professional to be sure you are on track
5) Your previous agency or consultant did not live up to your expectations
Define Your Goals Before Contacting an Agency or Consultant – Step 34
Prior to reaching out and speaking with a single agency or consultant, you should spell-out what particular objective(s) you are seeking to accomplish.
Instead of saying “I want our brand to rank higher” or “I want to raise brand awareness,” be more specific with your goals.
Examples of well-defined goals:
“Increase organic search traffic from Google and Bing by 20% in the next 12 months.”
“Get fifteen (15) new qualified leads from traditional organic search over the next ninety (90) days.”
“Increase conversion rate 25% from traditional organic search by the end of the current fiscal year.”
Understand the SEO Industry’s Red Flags – Step 35
Similar to any major or minor industry, there are good players, and there are bad players.
Knowing which red flags to monitor will save you time, money, and help you weed out any “bad apples.”
Red flags to watch for:
- Using “secretive” tactics or software
- Guaranteeing top rankings (e.g., Top 3 of Google)
- Relying upon “hacks” that are novel and untested
- Focusing only on a high-volume of backlinks, from lower-quality sites
No agency should be offering guarantees regarding positioning in search results. The algorithms and SERPs (search engine results pages) across Google and Bing are too inherently volatile.
Legitimate SEO is always transparent and does not rely upon secrets.
Narrow Down Your Choice of Agencies or Consultants – Step 36
Start your search by looking at agencies or consultants that understand the following: i) businesses like yours (e.g., small and medium-sized), ii) your particular niche industry (e.g., real estate), and iii) offer services in your particular defined geographic area (e.g., Southern Nevada).
Check Their Own Website’s SEO & UX/UI Design – Step 37
1) Do a Google and Bing search for their target keywords (e.g., “SEO agency or SEO consultant in [Your City]”) and see how they show up in the SERPs (search engine results pages).
2) Then go to the actual website, and see…
A. What type of user-experience (UX) they offer (i.e., how user-friendly it is to navigate the site itself), and
B. If the user-interface (UI) is engaging enough to make you want to remain on the website and explore more beyond the homepage.
UX and UI are both important factors that impact user signals and the ability to rank a website well over the long term.
Important Note: Newer or younger agencies/consultants may legitimately not be ranking as high as older more established agencies/consultants, for industry related keywords. SEO is a very competitive niche and established brands that have had time to develop backlink profiles, content depth, and user signals, may indeed be ranking higher for most industry terms. It does not mean less established agencies or consultants are less competent or knowledgeable about SEO best practices.
Ask for Case Studies and References – Step 38
A reputable agency or consultant will be glad to show you a portfolio of their work and put you in touch with certain willing clients.
Important Note: Similar to the above step, newer or less established agencies or consultants will have far fewer case studies, portfolio examples, and former clients to offer, compared to older, more established agency or consultant. This does not mean they are less competent or knowledgeable about SEO best practices.
Understand Their Communication and Reporting Process – Step 39
You should know exactly what to expect as a client.
How often will they report to you? What metrics will they focus on?
Actionable Tip: Ask for regular, easy-to-understand reports that show how efforts are directly impacting your marketing and business goals.
Set a Realistic Budget – Step 40
SEO is a longer term investment, not a one-time cost. SEO is more of a “marathon,” as opposed to a “100 meter dash.”
Be prepared to invest a monthly retainer for at least six to 12 months to see a significant impact. You may see some significant results as early as three to six months.
Actionable Tip: A high-quality agency or consultant will be transparent about their pricing and be able to explain what you’re paying for. Ask them for a complete breakdown of pricing (e.g., hourly rates and flat fee amounts) for your particular engagement.
Hiring & Vetting
Step Nos. 41-48 of this 52-Step guide will focus on the process of screening the various agency or consulting candidates.
Conduct a Vetting Phone Call – Step 41
This is your opportunity to ask questions and get a feel for their expertise and approach.
Some questions to ask:
“What is your SEO philosophy?
“What is your process for creating a strategy for a new client?”
“How do you stay up-to-date with Google’s algorithm changes?”
“Do you offer any ranking guarantees?” [The answer should be an emphatic NO]
Pay Attention to Their Questions for You – Step 42
A great agency or consultant will be sure to ask you detailed questions about your business, including your ideal customer profile, SEO/marketing goals, and stakeholder expectations.
Actionable Tip: If an agency or consultant only talks about what they can do for you, and doesn’t bother to ask about your business and its goals, that’s a sign you should continue to screen for other candidates.
Get a Technical SEO Audit – Step 43
Prior to starting any type of engagement, a good agency or consultant will perform a technical audit of your website/blog to identify any issues, which will set a baseline for future improvements.
Example: They will check the technical SEO aspects of your website such as site speed, 301 redirects, alt text, mobile-friendliness, and broken links, to ensure your site has a solid foundation for their work.
Finalize The Contract for Services – Step 44
Read the contract carefully prior to signing.
It should clearly outline the scope of work, the agreed-upon fees, length of engagement, communication methods, client expectations, and any dispute resolution parameters, to name a few typical provisions.
Actionable Tip: Make sure the contract does not contain any “guarantees” of rankings (a major red flag) or unrealistic objectives.
Discuss Expectations & Communication – Step 45
Agree on the following: i) how you’ll communicate, ii) how often you’ll meet, iii) your main point of contact, and iv) how to contact each other after “regular hours.”
One other important thing to define is how long it should take for the agency or consultant to return your communications (e.g., within one-hour, half-a-day, 24-hours).
Actionable Tip: Establish a clear chain of command so you know who to talk to if you have a question.
Understand the Timeline for Results – Step 46
SEO is a long-term strategy. It takes time to see significant results, and a good agency or consultant will set realistic expectations.
General timeline:
1-3 months: Fix technical issues, initial keyword research, and on-page optimization.
4-6 months: Start to see organic traffic and keyword rankings increase.
6-12 months: See significant growth in leads and sales from organic search.
Be Prepared to Collaborate – Step 47
You know your business better than anyone. Be ready to share your expertise and insights with the agency or consultant.
The agency/consultant and SEO client relationship is a “two-way street.”
Each party has to be prepared to contribute their fair share of knowledge to ensure the engagement is successful.
Actionable Tip: Provide them with your unique insights into your customers and industry. This will help them create more effective content and strategies.
Celebrate Early Wins – Step 48
Even small improvements in the beginning are a sign of a good partnership.
Examples: A jump from the second page to the first page of Google for a specific keyword(s), an increase in pages being crawled and indexed, a rise in website impressions, or an increase in the CTR (click-through-rate), are all important milestones to celebrate.
Collaboration & Success (Client Roles)
Step Nos. 49-52 of this 52-Step guide will focus on working together with your agency or consultant to help ensure the success of your ongoing working relationship.
Continue to Provide High-Quality Content – Step 49
Your agency or consultant might create content, but as a client, you should also continue to add your own valuable insights to your website.
Examples: You might share your particular expertise through a blog article, announce a significant change to your company personnel/company structure, or introduce a case study about a recent consumer success your company achieved.
Note: It is always a good idea to inform your agency or consultant whenever you modify your content in any way during the engagement period. They may have some ideas about how the changes can best be optimized for maximum search visibility.
Engage in Link-Building Opportunities – Step 50
Your agency or consultant will handle the heavy lifting, but you can also contribute.
You should actively be promoting your content, and building professional relationships with other businesses in, and related to, your specific industry.
Actionable Tip: Suggest other businesses you know that would be a good fit for a guest post or a high-quality backlink.
Review Performance Reports Regularly – Step 51
Don’t just glance at the reports; especially technical SEO audit reports which can be filled with all types of datapoints.
Ask questions, understand the data, and make sure your SEO efforts continue to align with your marketing and business goals.
Actionable Tip: If you don’t understand a metric, key performance indicator (KPI), or any other feature in a report, ask for clarification. A good agency or consultant will be happy to explain.
Plan for the Future – Step 52
SEO is a marathon, and not a sprint. Work with your agency or consultant to plan for the next campaign, or the next fiscal year’s optimization strategies.
Algorithm changes, technology advancements, and constant marketing innovations require SEO professionals and their clients to be forward-looking and remain flexible in their approach to promoting products and services.
Examples of planning activity:
Identify new keywords to target
Create a content calendar for the next four quarters
Discuss new opportunities and trends in your industry
Attend SEO and marketing conferences presented by innovators
Plan to optimize your content on newer and unchartered platforms
*************************
Should you have any questions about the content of this 52-Step guide to SEO that we’ve compiled, or if you’d like a free consultation, we can be reached through our Contact page.
Thank you – Romanelli Digital