SaaS (Software as a Service) is a model for the delivery of software. SaaS is a downloadable application that is accessible solely through the Internet. SaaS applications are popular because they tend to be more reliable and more secure than applications downloaded to a local computer. In addition, SaaS applications have low ongoing costs. These factors make SaaS an attractive option to small businesses.
The best SaaS companies are built on scalable technology. SaaS companies should plan to grow with their markets. To achieve this goal, it’s essential to design your SaaS company with scalability in mind. This means creating a scalable website and marketing techniques.
Marketing a SaaS company generally follows the same principles as traditional software marketing but is adapted to reflect that SaaS applications are downloaded via the web. The most successful SaaS companies have a unique product and approach to marketing. While your marketing message may be similar to your competition, your marketing strategy will be distinctive.
Today, let's explore one of the most powerful ways to market SaaS: SEO. Take a closer look at how SEO can help grow your SaaS company.
Here's what you need to know:
SEO for SaaS
SaaS companies need to ensure that their websites are optimized for search engines. Sites optimized for search engines can be found using search queries by potential customers. Most SaaS companies have a home page and at least one other page optimized for SEO. Most SaaS companies strive to rank highly in organic search results, but ranking highly in paid search results (Google Adwords, for example) is also commonly done.
SEO Strategy for SaaS
Your SEO strategy should be unique to your company and product. However, there are a few general SEO strategies that are commonly followed.
Generating traffic through creating and distributing valuable content is a common SEO strategy. The strategy entails sharing content with your target audience through social networking and media outlets, such as YouTube, SlideShare and other video-sharing websites.
Another common SEO strategy is developing a website optimized for search engine results. Be sure to follow the following SEO strategies for your SaaS website:
Use short, keyword-rich phrases that search engines understand.
Site navigation should be user-friendly, and content should be easy to locate.
Use description meta tags in your website source code.
Include your keywords in all website text and content added to your website.
Create blog posts that are keyword-rich and include your target keywords.
Use your target keywords in title tags and the body of every post.
Use the same keyword phrases for on-page optimization of your website and repeat this process for each page.
Steps to Develop Your SEO Strategy
Conduct Keyword Research
Keyword research is a critical component of any SEO campaign. Keyword research will help you identify target keywords and provide insight into the traffic volume that can be attracted using each keyword. Additionally, keyword research and analysis can help you identify the best ways to use your target keywords in content, title tags and URLs, and meta tags.
Once you've done keyword research and analysis, you'll want to build a keyword list. You don't want to include every possible keyword from your research. Focus on the high-value keywords most likely to help you reach your goal.
When building a list of keywords, include a wide range of keyword phrases. Use broad and specific keywords, and use keywords relevant to your company, your industry and your product.
SEO Audit
Once you've built your SEO keyword list, performing an SEO audit is time. This is an essential part of your SEO campaign. When you perform an SEO audit, you'll be able to identify the strengths and weaknesses of your site's SEO.
Conducting an SEO audit will help you identify which pages on your site are optimized for SEO. You'll also be able to determine which keyword phrases you currently rank for and which keywords you should focus on for future optimization.
Backlink Audit
Backlinks are one of the most influential factors in SEO. Backlinks from other sites provide 'link juice,' which sends targeted traffic from other sites to your website. A backlink audit will help you identify the quality of your site's backlinks. This analysis will also help you identify opportunities to attract additional backlinks.
Asses Business Goals and Performance
Analyzing your business goals and performance is essential in developing an SEO strategy for your SaaS company. It's important to understand your business goals and how SEO can help you reach those goals. Your SEO strategy will be based on the goals you set.
You should also understand how your existing SEO campaign is performing. This analysis will help you know where to invest your time and resources.
Review Conversion for SaaS
When you develop your SEO strategy, consider that conversion is the key. It is essential to focus your SEO strategy on improving your conversion rates for each keyword phrase identified. Conversion rates can be measured differently, depending on your business goals.
A conversion audit will help you understand how visitors reach your site. This audit will also help you know how current visitors interact with your site. You'll be able to identify which pages and aspects of your website are working well and which are not.
You'll also be able to identify conversion goals for each page on your site. Once you've identified your conversion goals, you'll be able to focus your SEO campaign on the website pages that will help you meet those goals.
Create a Content Plan
Content is a critical component of any SEO campaign. SEO begins with the development of a content plan. The content plan will help you determine which types of valuable content you should create to attract different keyword phrases.
The content plan should also include an overview of how you will distribute your content. The distribution plan will help you determine how you plan to distribute your content and how you will measure the success of your content marketing campaign.
