SaaS SEO is the act of performing search engine optimization to assist in pages moving higher up on SERPs (search engine results pages) by improving a webpage's overall quality, helpfulness, and relevance to specific keywords or search terms. In particular, “SaaS SEO” is the technique of using SEO tactics in a way that attracts software shoppers for particular industries, pain points, and other relevant buyer personas.
Key Takeaways
- SaaS SEO is the act of performing search engine optimization to assist in pages moving higher up on SERPs (search engine results pages) by improving a webpage's overall quality, helpfulness, and relevance to specific keywords or search terms.
- Enterprise SaaS SEO and B2B SaaS SEO both use the same techniques as any other SEO campaign, however, usually target thought leadership keywords that speak to highly specific industry terms. Usually containing no monthly search volume to the terms themselves.
- SaaS SEO techniques still include content production, on-page optimizations, backlink building, technical SEO issue resolution, and all other common SEO techniques that help search engines find websites and pages more easily.
SaaS SEO Meaning
SaaS SEO is the act of using SEO techniques to assist SaaS subscription businesses in growing revenue (MRR/ARR) by attracting audiences and software shoppers that would be ideal fits for the software. SaaS SEO techniques are identical to traditional SEO techniques. However, the strategy of which an SEO performs their tactics should be radically different.
SaaS SEO techniques will still consist of the following:
- Technical SEO: Ensuring that the website is easily crawled by search engines so that pages are recognized, read, and indexed by the search engine processors.
- On-page SEO: Ensuring that webpages are optimized and helpful for both Users and search engine queries to help with relevance to match specific pages to keywords.
- Backlink building: Ensuring that a website or domain has plenty of brand references and brand recognition to suggest EEAT (Expertise, Experience, Authority, and Trust) signals that Google and other search engine processors want to see history of.
- SEO content strategy: The act of producing informational and service page content to better help address unmet customer needs and keywords and build trust between the User and the brand.
- EEAT building: SaaS terms are usually highly competitive in the SERPs and will require a heavier investment to ensure that Google and other search engines trust domains enough to put them higher up in rank position. EEAT stands for Expertise, Experience, Authority, and Trust.
These techniques are the same regardless of whether an SEO team is addressing the needs of a SaaS company or an e-commerce company. However, what’s truly different is what types of keywords are getting targeted and the overall strategy that the SEO team enacts.
Difference between regular SEO and SaaS SEO
The main difference between regular SEO and SaaS SEO comes in the strategy itself. Think about the last time that you purchased software. And think about your experience with how you discovered that software through Google or other search engines.
Most likely, your storyline was something like the following: you performed a search around a particular pain point that you had. You read a tutorial from a blog that told you how to solve that particular problem. The blog post discussed tools that helped to address that problem. One of the tools happened to be the website that you were currently on.
As a result, you signed up for a free trial to test out the software. Then, you loved it. And became a full-time subscriber.
This is a storyline that would suggest a fixed-price SaaS business model. However, the strategy is very similar for enterprise or B2B SaaS.
Key differences with the SEO strategy:
- SaaS SEO should target pain points where software shoppers are going to be. Using tutorials, informational topics, and other unique insights that develop trust with the readers, making them want to sign up for trials or schedule a demo.
- SaaS SEO should always bring high amounts of information gain to the internet so that references, natural backlinks, and referrals are generated through the content marketing itself.
- SaaS SEO should always have a type of thought leadership associated with the content or service page creation. Suggesting to the reader that there’s a healthy amount of expertise and understanding around a very specific niche or industry.
Enterprise SaaS SEO Meaning
Enterprise SaaS SEO is the act of performing search engine optimization tactics for highly specific pain points and extremely niche issues that target buyer personas that will have larger contract values associated with them.
An enterprise SaaS SEO strategy will be one that targets keywords where there may be very little to no historical monthly search volume, given that the audience that’s aware of certain terms may be extremely limited.
For example, let’s say you’re targeting the construction industry. “PEMB Construction” is something that’s a thing in that industry. However, if we asked any regular person on the street if they knew what that was, chances are they wouldn’t know. That’s because it’s a term that’s only relevant to professionals who are in a specific industry.
Enterprise SaaS SEO may use the same approach and strategy as any other SaaS SEO campaign, however, what terms and keywords it targets may change.
B2B SaaS SEO Meaning
B2B SaaS SEO is the act of performing search engine optimization tactics for pain points that buyer personas might be looking for, regardless of monthly search volume and direct acquisition of leads from the SEO work.
Often, B2B SaaS SEO will target highly specific keywords that don’t have high monthly search volumes. Or any search volume. The concept is that a type of thought leadership around the space encourages B2B software shoppers to want to learn more.
Most enterprise and B2B SaaS businesses don’t have fixed-price models. Meaning, they want to generate MQLs (marketing qualified leads) for their sales team to connect with. This usually happens through demonstrations of the software. Or complete integrations of the software based on information gathering from the sales team.
Because of that model, much of the B2B SaaS SEO techniques will embrace a type of thought leadership. Making it so that the reader will want to connect with that person over the phone and learn about their expertise. In most cases, the software buyer is wanting to connect with the person on the blog post rather than anything else.
Common Questions
Common questions about SaaS SEO and what it means:
Is SaaS SEO effective?
Yes, it can be a highly effective channel for fixed-price SaaS businesses (like a consumer SaaS business), enterprise, and B2B SaaS businesses. In most cases, a certain type of thought leadership should get brought to the internet, which encourages readers to learn more about the brand or offering.
Why doesn’t SaaS SEO work for everyone?
Usually, it’s the execution. If you aren’t producing unique insights that make a reader go, “Wow, that’s what I was looking for!” then it’s going to fall short of drawing them into signing up for a free trial or asking for a demo. While SEO helps get you onto the front page of Google, you still need to think about the blog post as a type of conversation. It’s your first point of contact when it comes to the sales process. Rather than just writing a blog post or producing a page that appears on Google itself.
Other SaaS SEO Resources
Written by Joshua Davis - VP of SEO
Updated on:
October 19, 2024
💬 Editorial policy
Why trust SERPdojo? All of our content is written by SEO experts with more than 8+ years of experience.
In addition, our team has been able to trace back of all our findings to more than 100+ clients over the past 5-years.
While some of our opinions in these are articles are just that, we have extensive experience in SEO and have backtested many of the strategies we discuss.
🕵️ Fact checked
This article was fact-checked for the accuracy of the information it disclosed on:
October 19, 2024
Fact-checking is performed by a board of SEO specialists and experts.
Please contact us if any information is incorrect.
