Compared to larger organizations, small businesses have their work cut out for them when developing an SEO strategy. While there may be some drawbacks for small businesses, there also are some distinct advantages.

In a blog post and book titled Small Is The New Big, marketer extraordinaire Seth Godin says, “Small is the new big only when the person running the small thinks big.”

It’s time for small businesses to think outside the text box on search engines and get serious about SEO.

Due to budget constraints, however, small business may find they need to rely on internal staff for D-I-Y SEO as opposed to outsourcing the task. Often, this means staff are given extra responsibilities on top of their existing duties. As a result, SEO can suffer. Then you’re left with just OMG.

Darcy Grabenstein has covered SEO challenges small businesses can face in 2014.  Let’s take a look at some of the opportunities in this post.

Less Red Tape

Let’s face it; larger companies often get bogged down in the paperwork. Something as basic as starting an SEO program can take weeks if not months to get off the ground at bigger businesses.

Focus On A Niche

Bigger companies often are more diversified in their products and services. As a small business, you can be an expert in your own niche. That will make it easier when you’re selecting keywords for SEO.

Content Is More Important Than Ever

For higher rankings, small businesses can build relevant content around keywords to give them a leg up on the competition. Small businesses can devote pages of their websites to this type of content. (The key, however, is relevant content – not just content for content’s sake.)

Management Buy-In

Larger companies often require numerous layers of approvals. For a project such as SEO, top-level executives may need to be convinced about the importance of such an initiative. With small businesses, there’s less of a gap between levels of management – which can mean you’ll get the green light quicker. (Of course, that also may mean management expects to see results sooner; reaping the benefits of SEO can take months to realize.)

Open to Change

Small businesses are typically more nimble than their larger counterparts. Of course this is dependent on management, but many small businesses are more open to change (or at least drag their feet a lot less than the big guys). That’s a good thing for SEO. Instead of encountering “We’ve always done it this way” (as in website structure and content), you’re more likely to hear “Let’s give it a try.”

So Long to Silos

In bigger companies, the SEO team often works in a silo. With small businesses, SEO is more likely to be part of a larger marketing team with a common goal.

Size Matters

The size of a company’s website is often proportional to the size of the company. With larger websites, there are more pages to maintain, links to build and the like. Small businesses typically have smaller, more manageable websites.

Personality Plus

Small businesses can let their personality shine through on their website, blog and social media pages. That personality – that brand identity – can be used to tailor keywords and overall SEO.

Go Local

Small businesses with brick-and-mortar locations can use local search to their advantage. Larger corporations, with multiple physical locations, will find this too cumbersome. (And don’t forget mobile SEO while you’re at it.)

Final Thoughts

Don’t use the fact that you’re a small business as an excuse to be an SEO slacker.

You can pull together what resources you have at your disposal to create an SEO plan that works for your business. Focus on the things the bigger companies can’t like niches, local marketers and personality.

Use those to your advantage to build a nice business for yourself with SEO.

What are the challenges and opportunities you see for small businesses? I want to hear from you in the comment section.