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Joy Fairbanks provides a reminder on the importance of understanding and applying SEO in today’s online, digital world where algorithms decide what gets seen by whom. And while keywords play an integral role, SEO doesn’t stop there. 

Does SEO matter for an early stage company focusing on building social media connections first? 

It does.  Founders, how do you think you get visibility in the sea of social media posts?  The strategy that goes into social media optimization is at the core of search engine optimization (SEO).  SEO is the online viral result of everything you do online and offline to match your customer’s pain point to your solution.

I am a promoter of growth hacking.  That means that I advise startups on the ways to achieve maximum growth with the minimum required resources.  This growth hacking is part of an overall short-cycle, learning-based approach for companies validating product-market fit.

A digital marketing strategy begins by thinking of the ways to connect with the people you have targeted to serve.  In the early stages, you are making an extra effort to target customers whom you hope will best promote your product to go viral.  So how do you get these early customers to begin the journey to your solution?  You go to them.  You go to where your customers reside offline and online, and attract them with their own language.

What words do your customers use when beginning a search?  How do those customers want content?  Photos, videos, infographics, audio, podcasts?  Do your customers rely on user-generated content (UGC)?  Who do your customers go to for buying advice?  Your ability to figure out the content preferences and leverage the network of relationships offline and online will help bond you to your customers.  The result of doing this well raises your online presence in the ranks of SEO. 

Key points include:

• Understanding your customer
• SEO as an outcome of your strategy
• The benefits of buzz

Read the full article, Should Startups Care About Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?, on LinkedIn.