Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is an essential part in building a successful business from the ground up. Despite this fact, it’s common for founders to neglect this low-cost, high-reward business strategy.
What is SEO?
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. When you optimize your website for search engines, you increase the likelihood that Google (or other search engines) will recommend pages on your website to users searching for relevant content, products or services.
By optimizing your website for search engines, you have the potential to reach qualified new customers. The best part? Unlike SEM or Search Engine Marketing, which relies on paid advertising, SEO brings in customers organically—in other words, unpaid.
Why Does SEO Matter for Small Businesses?
An SEO strategy can help owners create robust websites that rank higher in search engines. In turn, this can help:
- bring in more potential customers
- increase conversion rates
- build brand awareness
- increase authority in your market
If you’re a small business owner, you should use SEO to build a strong digital presence—no matter what industry. Because it’s also incredibly cost-efficient, it’s especially powerful for small business owners running on a tight budget.
In sum, SEO is an incredibly effective and affordable way to gain awareness and brand traction.
SEO Courses for Small Business Owners
Wondering where to start? Here are a few online SEO courses tailored for different types of businesses.
1. Do it Yourself Local SEO For the Small Business Owner by Udemy
Cost: $74.99
Time Commitment: 3 Hours
Details: This course is perfect for those business owners who want to improve their rank within their city. This step-by-step course guides small business owners like you through everything to know about boosting your visibility in the Google local map.
In this course, you’ll learn:
- the basics of SEO
- setting your website with WordPress or Squarespace
- setting up a Google+ business page
- how to get more reviews on your Google+ business page
- how to outsource content writing for your website
This online video course comes with lifetime access so you can learn at your own pace and always come back to the reference material. It also includes a certificate of completion.
2. Local SEO Training for Small Businesses by Smazzit
Cost: $19.99
Time Commitment: 3-6 hours
Details: Similar to the option above, this course has a focus on local search engine optimization that’s perfect for small businesses with a brick-and-mortar space.
This course for beginners provides instruction on:
- Google My Business optimization
- keyword research and positioning
- structuring websites for search engines
- link building tactics
- content marketing
- competitor analysis
Students receive a certificate of completion and lifetime access to the course. Additionally, this SEO course comes with live chat support.
3. The SEO Playbook by Robbie Richards
Cost: $1000
Time Commitment: 14 Hours
Details: To be sure, this course is an investment and even has a waitlist to enroll. Marketing strategist Robbie Richards created this course for intermediate to advanced marketers. Lifetime access is included in the price.
The curriculum covers info such as:
- how to audit your content for gaps & opportunities
- building keyword maps
- planning url structures
- tracking rankings
- measuring performance
The material is covered in over 100 video lectures grouped into 23 in-depth training modules. It also includes helpful templates and real-life tutorials. Finally, students have access to a private Slack community to be able to ask questions.
4. Yoast SEO Training
Cost: $99 per year
Time Commitment: 2-24 Hours
Yoast Academy offers different training courses based on skillset and goals. They range from the basics of SEO, to how to create great SEO content, and learning how the technical side of SEO works, and more.
Course options include:
- general SEO training
- international SEO
- keyword research
- local SEO
- ecommerce
- copywriting
- site structure
The most cost effective option is to pay for a yearlong premium membership which gives access to all courses. The premium membership also includes additional features on their easy-to-use Yoast plug-in for WordPress.
5. SEO Training Course: Building Sustainable Traffic for Business Growth
Cost: Free
Time Commitment: 2.5 hours
Leading marketing platform Hubspot hosts this free SEO training course.
The curriculum covers:
- evaluating your website’s SEO
- keyword research
- link building
- topic clusters
- building search authority
- optimizing for rich results
Plus, an inside look into how Hubspot uses blogging to rank #1 on Google.
6. SEO Training by Moz Academy
Cost: $49-595
Time Commitment: 1-6 hours
Moz is a well-regarded online SEO tool that offers many different SEO certificate courses.
Their Academy classes include:
- SEO fundamentals
- keyword research
- page optimization
- local SEO fundamentals
- SEO reporting
- competitive analysis
- technical SEO
We recommend the SEO Fundamentals course for beginners. Those with a more serious interest in SEO might check out their full package of Essentials or Technical SEO which both include final exams.
7. Search Engine Optimization Course for Small Business Owners by Skill Training Hub
Cost: $960
Time Commitment: 16 hours
Skill Training Hub’s SEO course is developed specifically for small businesses owners.
It focuses on:
- understanding different ranking factors
- optimizing your website for keywords
- beating competition in keyword research
- earning quality backlinks
- SEO analysis to track and measure SEO success
The course happens in a classroom setting over two days.
8. The Complete SEO Course Bundle by ReliableSoft.net
Cost: $89
Time Commitment: Not listed
This digital marketing agency offers a SEO course bundle that promises a blueprint to increase your rankings and traffic in sixty days or less.
The four courses included in the bundle are:
- complete SEO
- ecommerce SEO
- keyword research
- Google Analytics
Courses include real-life success stories and can be accessed offline for small business owners on-the-go.
For more small business tips and inspiration create a free account on Hello Alice or subscribe to our weekly newsletter.