Page 1 Rank (1st page SERP) for your top 2 to 5 keyword phrases and leapfrog the competition. The document covers SEO from a B2B SaaS Perspective: (1) Basic overview of how B2B SEO works (2) Basic overview of free tools and software to help with SEO (3) How to select keywords for which you will optimize your website (4) How to implement keywords into your website to drive SEO (5) How to create backlinks to your website to improve SEO

1. B2B
Product
Marke/ng
Search
Engine
Op.miza.on
(SEO)
for
B2B
Websites
Keyword
Selec,on
and
Website
Implementa,on
Michael
Fertman
B2B
SaaS
Product
Marke/ng
Leader
August
13,
2014

2. Topics
2
• B2B
Search
Engine
Op.miza.on
(SEO)
Basics
• Keyword
Selec.on
• Website
Implementa.on
• Generate
Backlinks

3. B2B
Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
Basics
Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
for
Business
to
Business
websites
is
far
simpler
than
many
think.
The
mission
is
simply
to
create
highly
relevant
content
for
people
seeking
to
solve
the
problems
that
your
product(s)
solve.
2
Simple
principles
drive
SEO
from
a
search
engine
and
a
website
perspec.ve
1. Search
engines
seek
to
serve
the
most
relevant
web
pages
based
on
the
keyword
search
2. The
most
relevant
web
pages
include
content
that
addresses
the
informa/on
sought
We
can
break
the
SEO
process
down
into
3
steps
1. Keyword
Selec.on:
Iden/fy
the
most
relevant
keywords
for
a
relevant
prospect
2. Keyword
Implementa.on:
Web
page(s)
rich
in
relevant
content
for
the
keywords
3. Generate
Backlinks:
Increase
the
number
of
relevant
web
pages
that
link
to
yours
3
Keyword
Selec.on
Keyword
Implementa.on
Generate
Backlinks

4. B2B
Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
Basics
–
Ini/al
Requirements
Website
Analy.cs
SoKware
• You
will
need
informa/on
about
site
visitors
before,
during
and
aRer
you
implement
changes
to
improve
Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
(SEO)
• Google
Analy/cs
is
easy
to
use,
powerful
and
free
o Setup
Google
Analy/cs
account
o Place
Google
Analy/cs
code
on
web
pages
o Analyze
site
visitors
and
web
pages
! Benchmarking
– How
many
visits
and
visitors
does
your
site
currently
aUract?
– How
many
are
finding
your
site
without
entering
your
company
name?
This
is
your
key
benchmark
! Which
keywords
currently
drive
people
to
the
website?
And
keep
them
there?
– Filter
out
keywords
that
include
your
company
name
and
key
employees.
These
site
visitors
already
know
your
company
– Which
keywords
result
in
the
longest
site
visits?
– Which
keywords
do
we
want
to
con/nue
to
focus?
– Which
pages
are
visitors
finding
when
not
searching
on
the
company
name?
4

5. Topics
5
• B2B
Search
Engine
Op.miza.on
(SEO)
Basics
• Keyword
Selec.on
• Website
Implementa.on
• Generate
Backlinks

6. B2B
Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
–
Keyword
Selec/on
Spend
/me
where
it
counts,
focusing
first
on
keywords
most
closely
associated
with
prospects
later
in
the
purchase
cycle
Keyword
Selec.on
Consider
what
poten/al
prospects
will
be
seeking
to
find
at
different
stages
of
the
purchase
cycle,
focusing
on
the
latest
stages
first
–
i.e.
those
more
likely
to
purchase
sooner.
Purchase
Stages
and
Keywords
-­‐
Marke/ng
Automa/on
SoRware
Website
Example
• Early
Stage
–
Problem
Solving:
What
Keywords
used
when
trying
to
solve
a
problem?
E.g.
“B2B
Lead
genera/on
tac/cs
and
tools”
• Middle
Stage
–
Solu.on
Iden.fica.on:
What
keywords
are
used
when
narrowing
down
poten/al
solu/on
categories?
E.g.
“B2B
Email
Marke/ng
Best
Prac/ces”
• Late
Stage
–
Advanced
Solu.on
Iden.fica.on:
What
keywords
are
used
when
trying
to
find
“known
solu/ons
to
the
known
problem”
E.g.
“Marke/ng
Automa/on
SoRware
Comparisons”,
“Lead
Nurturing
SoRware”
6
Keyword
Selec.on
Website
Implementa.on
Generate
Backlinks

7. B2B
Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
–
Keyword
Selec/on
Brainstorm
to
find
addi/onal
important
keywords
Free
Tools
Google
Adwords
has
keyword
planning
tools
• Enter
a
website
address
and
find
out
which
keywords
are
performing
• Enter
a
product
category
and
find
out
keyword
sugges/ons
• Find
out
expected
search
volume
for
specific
keywords
• Get
website
traffic
es/mates
for
a
list
of
keywords
• Get
new
keyword
ideas
based
on
the
ones
you
plan
to
use
Think
Like
a
Customer
Use
the
words
and
phrases
that
a
customer
or
prospect
would
use.
7
Keyword
Selec.on
Website
Implementa.on
Generate
Backlinks

8. Topics
8
• B2B
Search
Engine
Op.miza.on
(SEO)
Basics
• Keyword
Selec.on
• Website
Implementa.on
• Generate
Backlinks

9. B2B
Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
–
Keyword
Implementa/on
Countless
websites
fail
in
this
step
–
it
is
your
opportunity
to
leapfrog
the
compe//on
This
is
the
set
of
steps
that
will
help
you
leapfrog
over
the
compe..on
Countless
websites
fail
to
consider
SEO.
• Billion
Dollar
Companies
outsource
website
development
to
agencies
and
oRen
don’t
consider
SEO
in
the
planning
• Hundred
Million
Dollar
Companies
do
the
same.
Or
build
the
website
in
house.
The
effort
is
daun/ng
even
without
considering
keywords
• The
rest
of
us
oRen
struggle
to
create
a
professional
looking
website.
Note
that
this
sec+on
focuses
on
content
crea+on
required
but
does
not
cover
instruc+ons
for
a
web
developer
on
how
to
implement
9
Keyword
Selec.on
Website
Implementa.on
Generate
Backlinks

10. B2B
Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
–
Keyword
Implementa/on
General
Overview
Following
are
the
key
components
of
Keyword
Implementa.on
General:
Op/mize
each
individual
page
for
1
to
3
closely
related
keywords.
Ensure
they
appear
with
metatags
and
within
page
content
I. Metatags:
There
is
code
in
the
website
that
plays
a
key
role
for
search
engines
in
iden/fying
which
websites
are
relevant
for
given
keywords
II. Page
Content:
Modify
content
to
ensure
search
engines
find
your
web
pages
for
relevant
queries
III. Geo
Tagging:
If
your
business
is
a
local
one,
it
is
important
for
the
address
and
loca/on
to
be
prominent
10
Keyword
Selec.on
Website
Implementa.on
Generate
Backlinks

11. B2B
Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
–
Keyword
Implementa/on
Title
Tags
Metatags:
The
“/tle”
tag
and
the
“descrip/on”
tag
should
be
keyword
rich.
They
do
not
appear
on
the
web
page,
but
oRen
appear
in
a
google
search
result
TITLE
TAG
DOs
and
DON’Ts
• Size
MaXers:
50
to
60
Characters
or
fewer
• Don’t
use
your
company
name
unless
it
is
descrip/ve
and
includes
the
keywords.
You
will
be
was/ng
valuable
characters
on
a
search
term
that
needs
no
op/miza/on
o
Bad
–
“Acme
Incorporated
LLC”
|
About
Us
<this
/tle
will
not
improve
search
results>
o
Good
–
“Upper
Eastside
Imago
Therapy
|
Couples
Therapy
|
NYC”
<1st
page
for
NYC
Imago
Therapists>
• Do
Include
Important
Keywords
more
than
once,
and
include
loca.on
if
important
o
Good
–
“Upper
Eastside
Imago
Therapy
|
Couples
Therapy
|
NYC”
11
Keyword
Selec.on
Website
Implementa.on
Generate
Backlinks
Search
Term
NYC
Imago
Therapists
Title
Tag
Descrip.on
Tag
Search
Results

12. B2B
Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
–
Keyword
Implementa/on
Descrip/on
Tags
DESCRIPTION
TAGS
Descrip/on
tags
no
longer
play
the
role
that
they
once
did.
In
the
past,
the
text
was
a
cri/cal
driver
of
search
algorithms
and
almost
always
displayed
in
the
search
result.
Both
are
no
longer
true.
"
So
why
are
/tle
tags
s/ll
important?
–
They
tell
the
searcher
what
they
fill
find
on
the
page
if
they
click
through
–
In
my
own
prac/cal
experience,
pages
with
good
descrip/on
tags
con/nue
to
perform
well
DESCRIPTION
TAG
DOs
and
DON’Ts
• Size
MaXers:
150
to
160
characters
• Include
varia.ons
of
your
Keywords
2
to
3
.mes
o <Keyword:
Primary
Research
Firms
>.
Descrip.on
Tag:
Guidepoint
enables
primary
market
research
and
qualita/ve
research
via
access
to
over
200,000
subject
maUer
experts
in
Healthcare,
CPG,
Retail,
Tech
and
More
o <Keyword:
NYC
Imago
Therapists
>.
Descrip.on
Tag:
Cer/fied
Imago
Therapist
|
Imago
Therapy,
Couples
Therapy
and
Marriage
Counseling
in
NYC
Upper
Eastside
|
10128
12
Keyword
Selec.on
Website
Implementa.on
Generate
Backlinks

13. B2B
Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
–
Keyword
Implementa/on
H1,
H2,
H3
Tags,
General
Text,
Pictures
and
Loca/on
Informa/on
Keyword
Selec.on
Website
Implementa.on
Generate
Backlinks
PAGE
CONTENT
Content
should
be
geared
towards
providing
the
ideal
informa/on
for
a
person
who
has
used
a
specific
keyword
or
keywords.
And
a
good
site
with
excellent
relevant
content
for
the
keywords
will
likely
perform
well,
even
if
the
page
isn’t
explicitly
designed
for
SEO
performance.
H1
Tags
• “Heading”
type
content
is
typically
placed
inside
an
“H1
Tag”
for
formanng
purposes.
• Search
Engines
treat
the
content
within
H1
tags
as
“more
important”
than
untagged
content
!
Keywords
should
be
included
in
the
heading
within
the
“H1
Tag”
H2
and
H3
Tags
are
similar
to
H1
tags
but
are
lower
priority.
Ensure
keywords
appear
within
them
also
General
Text
should
include
your
keyword
varia/ons
3
to
5
/mes
on
the
page,
and
should
fit
naturally
with
the
page
content.
If
the
page
truly
addresses
the
informa/on
one
would
seek
with
a
given
keyword
search,
then
it
is
likely
to
rank
well.
Pictures
can
also
be
tagged
with
a
descrip/on.
Where
appropriate,
use
keywords
within
the
“alt
tags”
that
describe
pictures
Loca.on
informa/on,
such
as
as
the
address,
should
be
included
on
the
page
or
in
the
footer
if
it
is
a
local
busin1e3s
s

14. B2B
Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
–
Keyword
Implementa/on
Example
for
top
search
result
for
<Document
Management
Services>
14
Keyword
Selec.on
Website
Implementa.on
Generate
Backlinks
Search
Term:
<Document
Management
Services>
h4
h4
TITLE:
Document
Management
Solu/ons,
Document
Management
Services,
Document
Imaging
Services
–
Iron
Mountain
DESCRIPTION:
Looking
for
Document
Management
Solu/ons?
At
Iron
Mountain,
we
specialize
in
Document
Management
Services.
Check
out
our
Document
Imaging
Services!”
ALT
TAG:
8
Reasons
to
Outsource
Document
Management
h1

15. Topics
15
• B2B
Search
Engine
Op.miza.on
(SEO)
Basics
• Keyword
Selec.on
• Website
Implementa.on
• Generate
Backlinks

16. B2B
Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
–
Generate
Backlinks
Generate
links
to
your
website
BACKLINKS
OVERVIEW
• Backlinks
are
links
to
your
web
page
from
other
web
pages.
There
are
two
types:
o Internal:
Links
from
web
pages
on
your
site
to
other
web
pages
on
your
site
o External:
Links
from
other
websites
to
your
site’s
web
page(s)
• Anchor
Text
is
the
text
that
appears
in
the
hyperlink.
For
example,
Primary
Research
Firm
is
a
link
to
hUp://www.guidepointglobal.com
and
the
Anchor
Text
is
“Primary
Research
Firm”
INTERNAL
BACKLINKS
• For
your
most
important
keywords
and
web
pages,
your
top
2
or
3
overall,
3
or
more
of
your
web
pages
should
have
a
link
to
the
relevant
page,
with
the
relevant
keyword
as
the
anchor
text:
Examples
from
Iron
Mountain
Website
16
Keyword
Selec.on
Website
Implementa.on
Generate
Backlinks

17. B2B
Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
–
Generate
Backlinks
Generate
links
to
your
website
EXTERNAL
BACKLINKS
Every
step
thus
far
is
within
your
control.
Your
website.
Your
content.
These
steps
alone
are
usually
enough
to
gain
first
page
Search
Engine
Result
Page
(SERP)
for
at
least
two
or
three
cri/cal
keywords.
You
will
have
gained
80%
of
the
poten/al
result
with
20%
of
the
poten/al
effort.
Backlinks,
or
links
to
your
site
from
other
sites
will
help
you
gain
that
extra
edge,
but
the
effort
required
is
substan/al.
And
the
more
“authorita/ve”
the
site,
the
more
impact
it
will
have
on
your
SEO.
BACKLINK
DOs
and
DON’Ts
• Do
list
your
site
in
relevant
directories:
o
Local
Services:
Yelp,
Yahoo,
Google,
Manta,
etc.
o
Industry
Specific:
Directories
of
providers
in
your
industry
–
e.g.
“Psychology
Today”
for
a
psychotherapist
o
Press
Releases:
Include
links
to
your
site
with
keywords
in
anchor
text
–
e.g.
“Document
Management”
17
Keyword
Selec.on
Website
Implementa.on
Generate
Backlinks

18. B2B
Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
–
Generate
Backlinks
Content
Marke/ng
BACKLINK
DOs
and
DON’Ts
• Do
develop
a
content
marke.ng
program
o Content
Marke.ng
is
any
marke/ng
that
involves
the
crea/on
and
sharing
of
media
and
publishing
content
in
order
to
acquire
and
retain
customers
o Two
key
components
are:
! Content
Crea.on
such
as
new
stories,
white
papers,
blog
posts,
videos,
webinars,
speaking
engagements
! Content
Distribu.on
via
corporate
website,
blogs,
social
media,
email,
press
releases,
YouTube,
Vimeo,
etc.
o The
undertaking
is
significant:
! Content
Management
resource(s)
required
to
spearhead
the
content
development
calendar
! Digital
Marke.ng
resource(s)
required
to
distribute
the
content
! Marke.ng
Automa.on
and
CRM
SoKware
(e.g.
Marketo
and
SalesForce.com)
are
required
to
execute
an
efficient
content
marke/ng
program
o Business
Impacts
! SEO:
Distributed
content
includes
links
with
anchor
text
from
outside
authorita.ve
websites
to
relevant
web
pages
! Overall
Brand
Image
and
Lead
Genera.on:
Establishes
your
organiza/on
as
a
thought
leader
on
relevant
topics
and
generates
inbound
leads
18
Keyword
Selec.on
Website
Implementa.on
Generate
Backlinks
Content
Marke.ng
will
be
covered
in
greater
detail
in
a
separate
document

19. Michael
Fertman
–
About
the
Author
Michael
Fertman
is
a
B2B
Product
Marke/ng
Expert
whose
20+
year
career
has
included
leadership
roles
in
B2B
Corporate
Marke/ng,
Product
Marke/ng
and
Product
Management,
primarily
for
SaaS
and
Informa/on
Services
companies
and
products.
He
is
currently
providing
product
marke/ng
consul/ng
services
to
B2B
firms
with
10-­‐200
employees
and
$0mm
to
$50mm
in
annual
sales.
Previously,
as
CMO
of
an
interna/onal
market
research
firm
serving
the
Investment
community,
he
built
the
marke/ng
func/on
from
the
ground
up.
During
his
tenure
the
firm
generated
double-­‐digit
growth
in
a
flat
market
two
years
in
a
a
row,
taking
share
from
the
compe//on.
Before
his
CMO
role,
He
held
a
variety
of
Product
Marke/ng
roles
at
D&B,
where
his
teams
more
than
doubled
the
growth
rate
of
six
different
product
lines.
His
career
also
includes
marke/ng
strategy
consul/ng
at
Booz
&
Company
and
Strategic
Marke/ng
for
New
York
Life.
He
began
his
career
as
a
Naval
Officer,
serving
as
Navigator
of
a
Nuclear
Powered
Cruiser
during
the
First
Gulf
War,
aRer
aUending
the
Wharton
School
of
the
University
of
Pennsylvania
on
a
Navy
ROTC
Scholarship.
He
also
holds
an
MBA
in
Marke/ng
from
the
University
of
Chicago
Booth
School
of
Business.
19

20. Michael
Fertman
–
Areas
of
Exper/se
• Search
Engine
Op/miza/on
o Gain
first
page
Google
and
Bing
rank
for
3
to
5
cri/cal
keywords
o 5x
to
10x
increase
in
keyword-­‐driven
site
visits
o Strategy,
Planning
and
Execu/on
o Examples:
Primary
Research
Firms
(Guidepoint
Global);
B2B
SaaS
CMO
NYC
(Michael
Fertman)
o Engagements
ranging
from
2
days
to
3
weeks
• Sales
Growth
Diagnos/c
and
Ac/on
Plan
o Company
must
have
200+
clients
o Customer
Segmenta/on
by
growth
category
(new,
growing,
lost,
declining)
o Root
cause
analysis
o Priori/zed
ac/on
plan
• Integrated
CRM
and
Marke/ng
Automa/on
procurement
and
implementa/on
o Suitable
for
companies
with
$10mm+
annual
sales
and/or
200+
clients
o Map
sales
process
to
CRM
and
Marke/ng
automa/on
o Procure
suitable
systems
based
on
company
maturity
and
growth
trajectory
o Manage
implementa/on
and
rollout
(requires
some
outside
programming
support)
20

21. Michael
Fertman
–
Areas
of
Exper/se
(con/nued)
• Product
Launch
Management
o CraR
comprehensive
launch
plan
! External:
PR,
Adver/sing,
Customer
and
Prospect
Communica/ons,
Case
Studies
and
Tes/monials
! Internal:
Internal
launch
communica/ons
plan,
sales
enablement
o Launch
Plan
Execu/on
! Marke/ng
Materials
(see
above)
! PR
! Website
changes
o Engagements
ranging
from
weeks
to
months
21