How to do SEO: a simple step by step guide for business owners
In short
Do SEO in this order: set up Google’s free tools, pick the searches that matter, fix your site basics, give each service its own page, set up your Google Business Profile, get reviews, then add one helpful page a month. New to the idea? Start with What is SEO?
Step 1: Set up Google’s free tools
Before you change anything, connect Google Search Console. It’s free, and it’s the only place Google tells you which searches bring people to your site and what’s broken. Go to search.google.com/search-console, add your website, and follow the steps to verify it. Most website builders have a one-click option.
If you don’t already have it, add Google Analytics too, so you can see how many people visit and what they do.
Step 2: Pick the searches that matter
Write down what you sell and where you sell it. Then put them together the way a customer would type them.
Example · A plumber in Aurora
Services: emergency plumbing, water heater repair, drain cleaning. Places: Aurora, Centennial, Parker. So the searches that matter are things like emergency plumber Aurora, water heater repair Centennial and drain cleaning near me.
To find more, type one of your services into Google and look at the suggestions that drop down and the “People also ask” box. Those are real searches.
Step 3: Fix your website basics
- Make sure Google can see you. In WordPress, go to Settings, then Reading, and make sure “Discourage search engines” is not checked.
- Check your phone experience. Open your site on your phone. Can you read it and tap the buttons easily?
- Check your speed. Run your homepage through Google’s free PageSpeed Insights and fix the top items it flags.
- Write clear page titles. Your page title is the blue headline people see in Google. “Home” tells nobody anything. “Emergency Plumber in Aurora, CO · Smith Plumbing” does.
Step 4: Give each main service its own page
One page that lists everything can’t show up for everything. Start with your top two or three services and give each one a page that covers:
- What the service is, in plain words
- Who it’s for and where you offer it
- What it costs, or how pricing works
- Answers to the questions customers ask most
- Real photos and a reason to trust you, like reviews or results
- One clear next step: call, book or get a quote
Step 5: Set up your Google Business Profile
If you serve a local area, this is one of the fastest wins in SEO. Claim your profile at business.google.com and fill in every field: services, hours, service area, photos and a description that says what you do and where. Then keep it active by adding photos and replying to reviews.
Step 6: Get reviews and mentions
- Ask every happy customer for a review. Pick one moment, like right after a job is done, and send a direct link.
- Get listed where your customers look. Industry directories, your chamber of commerce, Yelp, and associations you belong to.
- Ask partners to link to you. Suppliers, local businesses you work with, and anyone who already recommends you.
Step 7: Add one helpful page a month
Pick one question customers ask and answer it well on your site. Then once a month, open Search Console and look at what people searched to find you. Those searches tell you what to write next. Steady beats big: one good page a month adds up.
Do this week
1. Connect Google Search Console. 2. Rewrite your homepage title so it says what you do and where. 3. Send a review request to your last three happy customers.
Free tools
Get a plan made for your business
Where should I start? turns 13 quick questions into your own step by step plan. Not sure you have the time? Should I do my own SEO? helps you decide. Both free, no email needed.
Common questions
How much time does it take to do my own SEO?
Steps 1 to 5 are mostly one-time setup. After that, plan on an hour or two a week for reviews, updates and new pages.
Do I need to pay for SEO tools?
Not to start. Google Search Console, Google Analytics, PageSpeed Insights and Google Business Profile are all free and cover the basics.
What should I do after the basics?
Make your content easy for AI to quote with AEO, then work on getting AI tools to recommend you with GEO.
Keep reading: SEO and AI search basics
- What is SEO? A plain-English guide →
The basics behind this guide, with simple examples. - How to do AEO →
Step by step: get your content picked as the direct answer. - How to do GEO →
Step by step: get AI tools to recommend your business.
