We Made These 10 SEO Mistakes As a Technology Startup That Killed Our Organic Traffic (So You Don't Have To)
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Working at a tech startup as their first marketing hire, I have burnt my hands with SEO and content development.
Over the last few years, I've learned a lot about SEO and made plenty of mistakes along the way. The acronym SEO has quite literally haunted my dreams and caused sleepless nights. That said, I was eventually able to tame it and make my peace with it.
So, if you’re a tech startup still trying to figure out your marketing and content strategy, we get you. We can help you build a content and SEO strategy so that you can get your innovative product or service in front of the right audience.
At Market Me More, we have the expertise and tools to help you avoid these SEO blunders. We learned it the hard way, so you don't have to.
PS: Did you know that 54% of web traffic comes from organic search!? If you've been neglecting your SEO efforts, this is your sign to get on board!
In this blog, we'll cover:
- Why is SEO important for your startup?
- The 10 deadly SEO mistakes that can cripple your organic traffic
- How to fix these mistakes and take your SEO game to the next level
Why is SEO important for your startup?
As a founder, you're thinking, "SEO? Why? My product is the next big thing. It will sell itself!" Well, my friend, let’s understand why you NEED SEO:
- Increased Visibility: With solid SEO, your website will rank higher in search results, making it easier for potential customers to find you.
- Cost-Effective Marketing: Sure, you can invest millions of dollars in ads that will get you leads immediately. But it is not sustainable. Paid advertising can get really expensive really quickly. Getting leads via SEO-friendly content development takes much longer, but it is a long-term investment that keeps paying dividends long after you minimize the investments.
- Credibility and Trust: Ranking high in search results establishes your brand as a credible and trustworthy authority in your industry. And you know, credibility sells!
- Competitive Edge: Even if your product/service is truly unique, you can bet that there are some competitors out there offering similar things. Effective SEO can give you an edge over competitors who are neglecting it.
The 10 Deadly SEO Mistakes that Can Cripple Your Organic Traffic
Ready to dive into the SEO mistakes that could be silently sabotaging your website's success? Let's get started.
1. Ignoring Technical SEO
[Mistake 1: When we first launched our website, we had no clue what technical SEO was. Later, we figured out that a low technical SEO score meant our site was slow and had too many broken links. If only we figured this out sooner we wouldn’t have lost out on so much potential traffic and conversions.]
In simpler terms, technical SEO is not as scary as it sounds. It is essentially the foundation of your website's performance in search results. Common technical SEO pitfalls include:
- Slow site speed
- Broken links and crawl errors
- Poor mobile optimization
- Duplicate content issues
- Improper SSL/HTTPS implementation
2. Inadequate Keyword Research
[Mistake 2: Initially, our content strategy focused on broad, competitive keywords without considering user intent or long-tail variations. We were fighting for scraps of traffic. That said, we did some courses on Semrush and HubSpot Academy, and hired an expert to understand and refine our keyword research process.]
Since then, we’ve realized that lack of initial research will cost you dearly, and you will waste valuable resources. Common keyword research mistakes include:
- Targeting overly broad or competitive keywords
- Overlooking long-tail and user-intent keywords
- Failing to analyze search volume and competition levels
At Market Me More, we can help you analyze your current keywords and create a quarterly content plan. We can help generate a comprehensive analysis of your industry's keyword landscape to identify new opportunities.
Pro tip: Keywords that have a high search volume, high CPC, and low difficulty are a goldmine. They are difficult to find, but once you do find some, you should capitalize the f out of it!
3. Poor Website Architecture
[Mistake 3: Most websites’ architectures messed up with multiple levels of subcategories and illogical page hierarchies. Ours was the same. If Google had a brain, it probably had nightmares trying to crawl and index our content effectively. We had to restructure our entire site to help Google and other search engines sleep better.]
Your website's architecture is like a roadmap for search engines and users. If it's too complicated or illogical, your audience will get lost and go elsewhere. Common website architecture mistakes include:
- Complex or deep category structures
- Lack of internal linking and site navigation
- Duplicate or thin content across multiple pages
We can help you redesign your website for optimal SEO. We'll ensure your website is easy to navigate, logically structured, and search engine-friendly.
Pro tip: We used a whiteboard (a literal whiteboard :P) to map the whole website and create a new structure from scratch. Try creating a Miro board of your website and see how many levels it has.
4. Neglecting Content Quality and Relevance
[Mistake 4: In our early days, we generated A LOT of content for the sake of having more pages on our site. We generated about 5-6 blogs a week using a team of freelancer blog writers. We didn't consider quality, relevance, or user intent enough. Google penalized us heavily. Our bounce rates went through the roof, and our rankings suffered. Later we got down to publishing just twice a week and it worked so much better.]
Content is king in the world of SEO, but not all content is equal. Simply having more pages won't cut it if the content is irrelevant, low-quality, or doesn't align with user intent. Common content mistakes include:
- Keyword stuffing or thin, low-quality content
- Lack of focus on user intent and topical relevance
- Failure to update or refresh outdated content
Need help with content that converts? We got you.
- Blog writing
- Copywriting
- Social media content
Our team can create relevant content that resonates with your target audience and search engines alike. Additionally, we don’t just stick to traditional blog writing. We create conversion-focused downloadable assets such as lead magnets, eBooks, how-to guides, and more!
5. Overlooking User Experience UX
[Mistake 5: Once we finished fixing the first few mistakes around technical SEO and content optimization, we realized, we have to work on user experience too! Our website was clunky, confusing, and therefore a high bounce rate. It wasn't until we hired a UX expert that our SEO efforts started paying off.]
We realized that user experience (UX) and SEO go hand in hand. If your website provides a poor UX, visitors will quickly bounce to some other website, and search engines will take notice. Common UX mistakes include:
- Slow page load times
- Poor navigation and confusing site structure
- Lack of mobile responsiveness
- Intrusive pop-ups or ads
Pro tip: Scrutinize your homepage like your life depends on it. Try to minimize the number of options to click on. You don’t want your customers to be faced with a paradox of choice.
6. Failure to Optimize for Mobile
[Mistake 6: In the early days, we created content only for desktops. We never even considered mobile optimization. Our website was a nightmare to navigate on a phone, and we believe we lost out on many potential mobile customers. It wasn't until I read about Google's mobile-first indexing that we realized our mistake.]
It's no news that the majority of web traffic comes from mobile devices, mobile optimization is no longer an option – it's a necessity. Common mobile optimization mistakes include:
- Unresponsive or non-mobile-friendly website design
- Slow mobile page load times
- Improper mobile layout and navigation
7. Not Leveraging Analytics and Data
[Mistake 7: We were flying blind, making SEO decisions based on gut feelings and assumptions rather than data. So, we started using advanced analytics tools to pinpoint our strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for improvement.]
SEO is a data-driven discipline, and neglecting analytics will result in wasted time and resources. Common analytics mistakes include:
- Failure to set up and monitor analytics tools
- Lack of data-driven decision-making
- Ignoring user behavior and engagement metrics
We can help you set up a regular SEO performance review cadence using advanced analytics tools. This comprehensive report will provide insights into your website's performance, user behavior, and opportunities for improvement.
8. Ignoring Local SEO Opportunities
[Mistake 8: As a tech startup with a global vision, we overlooked local SEO opportunities. We didn't realize that even in our niche (payments), there was a substantial local search demand that we were missing out on until we optimized for local SEO.]
While tech startups often have a global focus, neglecting local SEO opportunities can be a costly mistake. Common local SEO mistakes include:
- Lack of local listings and citations
- Inconsistent NAP (Name, Address, Phone) information across platforms
- Failure to optimize for local keywords and search intent
We understand the importance of local SEO, even for tech startups. Our team optimizes your online presence for local search, ensuring you capture the demand in your target markets.
9. Poor Link Building Practices
[Mistake 9: I’ll be honest with you. In the early days, we considered buying links and participating in link farms to boost our organic traffic. Thankfully we never did it. Since then we have studied the correct way of developing relationships that and generating content that gives you quality backlinks.]
Link building is a crucial component of SEO, but not all links are the same. Poor link building practices can do more harm than good. Common link building mistakes include:
- Buying links or participating in link schemes
- Focusing solely on quantity over quality
- Lack of a diverse link portfolio (guest posts, directories, etc.)
We'll help you create a plan and generate content to get diverse, high-quality link profile that boosts your authority and credibility.
10. Neglecting Social Media Signals
[Mistake 10: We completely underestimated social media's impact on SEO, thinking it was just a marketing channel. It wasn't until we integrated social media into our SEO strategy that we saw a significant boost in our organic traffic and rankings.]
While social media's direct impact on SEO is debated, its indirect effects cannot be ignored. Neglecting social media can hurt your organic traffic and overall online presence. Common social media mistakes include:
- Lack of an active, engaged social media presence
- Failure to leverage social signals (shares, mentions, etc.)
- Inconsistent brand messaging across platforms
Now, we take an integrated approach to SEO and social media marketing. Thankfully, we have an in house social media expert who can leverage different channels to amplify YOUR content, build brand awareness, and drive more traffic.
Conclusion
SEO is a complex discipline, but by avoiding these common mistakes, you'll be well on your way to dominating the search engine rankings and driving organic traffic growth.
Key Takeaways:
- Technical SEO: Lay a solid foundation with optimized site speed, mobile responsiveness, and a crawlable architecture.
- Keyword Research: Target the right keywords aligned with user intent and search demand.
- Quality Content: Focus on creating high-quality, relevant content that resonates with your audience.
- User Experience: Prioritize UX to keep visitors engaged and search engines happy.
- Analytics-Driven: Make data-driven decisions and continuously monitor your performance.
- Local and Social: Don't overlook local and social opportunities to amplify your online presence.
- Ethical Link Building: Build a diverse, high-quality link profile through sustainable practices.
Ready to invest in SEO? Our resident SEO expert will work closely with you to develop a customized strategy that gets you traffic AND conversions. Share this blog with your network and help other tech startups avoid these costly SEO mistakes.
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Let's crush those SEO goals together! Reach out to me at shubham@marketmemore.com or visit our SEO Services page to learn more.
