How to Use SEO for Sustainable Business Growth

SEO, sustainable, business growth — are you still with me? Hope you are, as not all articles on business topics have to be boring, even though they may look like scarecrows to you straight away with pompous words and phrases. Don’t judge a book by its cover.

Why is SEO important for long-term business growth? Because SEO is about business visibility in an ever-changing online world. And let’s face it — if your business isn’t online, does it even exist?

Long-term SEO isn’t just about strategy; it’s about tangible techniques you can apply today to stay relevant, discoverable, and ahead of the competition. Because if your audience can’t find you, they’ll find someone else.

The purpose of this post is to show how keyword research creates timeless content, why backlinks boost authority and relationships, and how SEO connects to long-term business growth. Let’s dive in!

Building Authority Through High-Quality Backlinks

I start with backlinks — the ultimate SEO street cred. A backlink is basically another website pointing to yours, saying, “These folks know their stuff.” And when trustworthy websites vouch for you, Google listens. Think of backlinks as word-of-mouth for the internet — except instead of neighbors gossiping, it’s search engines boosting your rankings.

Why Backlinks Matter

Here’s the deal: backlinks build trust. The more high-quality sites that link to yours, the more credibility you get from both Google and your audience. It’s like getting a shoutout from the cool kids at school — it raises your profile.

Start with your immediate county, state, or the whole country, whatever works best for you and your SEO processes. Opportunities for link building in the USA are immense, and you should start building relationships already today, to avoid chasing your competitors tomorrow.

How to Get Backlinks For Your Business Needs

• Create Content People Can’t Resist Sharing. Write stuff people actually need, like “5 Easy Ways to Boost SEO on a Budget” or a handy checklist for solopreneurs. Good content = free links.
• Be a Guest Star. Pitch guest posts to blogs in your niche. Share your wisdom, and casually slide in a link to your site. No shame — it’s smart business.
• Incorporate data & insights. Tools like Google Analytics (GA4 is a free version) let you see a lot of cool stats about your site and the sites of your competitors. If you like stats, why wouldn’t your audience like it? Not your site’s stats, of course, but other stuff useful to your readers.

Backlink Strategies That Don’t Work

Not all backlink strategies are worth your time. Some sound smart but end up being a waste of energy — or worse, undermining the impact of SEO on business, harming its reputation. Here are a few to avoid:

• Mass-Link Exchanges. You know the deal: “You link to me, I’ll link to you.” It sounds harmless, but when overdone, it looks unnatural to Google. Instead of boosting your credibility, it can signal that you’re gaming the system. A few reciprocal links are fine — just don’t turn it into a full-blown link swap operation.
• Comment Spam. Dropping your website link in every comment section you find is not a strategy — it’s annoying. Not only will most sites block these links, but search engines also don’t count them as legitimate backlinks.
• Chasing Low-Quality Directories. Submitting your website to every free directory on the internet might feel productive, but it rarely moves the needle. Many of these directories are outdated or irrelevant, and links from them won’t add value.
• Irrelevant Links. Getting a backlink from a site that has nothing to do with your niche is like a pizza shop getting recommended by a mechanic. Sure, it’s a link, but it won’t help your audience or your rankings. Focus on backlinks that make sense for your business.

Quick Win Example

I once wrote a blog on “Simple SEO Hacks for Busy Entrepreneurs” and spiced it with some cool statistics on the topic. A popular small biz site linked to it in their resource roundup, and my traffic spiked overnight. One backlink. Big difference.

If I had written a boring narrative in an academic style, with long paragraphs and complex terms, the chances it would’ve been picked by anyone for link-building would be low. Understanding the difference between compelling writing and the rest is the key to an effective SEO strategy.

What is the moral of the story? Focus on creating great content, establish strategic relationships through link-building, and watch your authority (and rankings) grow.

Keyword Research for Evergreen Content

Let’s talk about keyword research. After all, no SEO can live without the main stuff, i.e., keywords. If you want your content to show up on Google forever (or at least longer than your latest TikTok post), you’ve got to nail this step.

Why You Should Care About Keywords

Keywords are basically what people type into Google when they’re looking for answers, solutions, or random midnight thoughts like “Can plants feel pain?” After all, it all boils down to this — if you pick the right keywords, you can stand out from the crowd, and your content will remain relevant for years.

Imagine this: You write an article titled “How to Organize Your Workspace Without Losing Your Mind.” Five years from now, people are still Googling it because cluttered desks and chaotic home offices aren’t going anywhere. That’s the power of choosing evergreen keywords.

How to Do Keyword Research for Effective SEO Strategy

• Find Keywords That Last. Avoid trendy stuff like “Best Business Tools for 2025.” Instead, go for something timeless like “How to Build a Powerful USP.” Trends fade; good advice doesn’t.
• Use (Free) Tools Like a Pro. Tools like Google Keyword Planner, Ubersuggest, or even AnswerThePublic are your best friends. For example, type in “email marketing,” and you’ll get a goldmine of phrases people search for.
• Think Long-Tail Keywords. These are those super-specific phrases like “how to create a newsletter for small businesses.” Sure, fewer people search for them, but the ones who do? They’re your people.
• Spy on Your Competitors. Check out what your competitors are writing about and the keywords they’re ranking for. If they’re ranking for “simple social media tips,” you can write something better, like “Simple Social Media Hacks for People Who Hate Social Media.”
• Use Google Trends to Play It Safe. Before committing to a keyword, plug it into Google Trends to make sure it’s not a sinking ship. If interest is steady or growing, you’re good to go. If it’s tanking like Beanie Babies in the 2000s, move on.

A Quick Example:

Let’s say your long-tail keyword is “personal data privacy for busy entrepreneurs.” Instead of stuffing it into every other sentence, write something like this:

“Look, I get it. You’re busy building your empire, and you’re not as long in this type of business as VISTA InfoSec to take information security seriously. But trust me, these simple tips will save you time, money, and your reputation.”

See what I did there? Natural, helpful, with an authoritative brand mentioned, and on point.

Morale of This Chapter’s Story?

Keyword research doesn’t have to be a chore. Think of it as a treasure hunt, where the treasure is a steady stream of traffic to your website. And once you’ve found the right keywords, you’re well on your way to creating content that keeps working for you — long after you’ve moved on to your next big idea.

Alright, your turn: What evergreen topics are your audience searching for? Start there, and you’re already ahead of the game.

The Key Takeaways for Sustainable SEO

SEO isn’t just a new fancy word in a business vocabulary. It’s a competitive advantage waiting to be tapped into with a few simple techniques.

This post turned out to be just short of 5 minutes of your reading time, hopefully not too long and tedious. Anyway, I’m happy to reiterate the key points for your convenience:

• Backlinks act as portals, transporting link value and authority (called “link juice”) from one website to another.
• Quality content with data and insights that resonate with the audience’s pain points is the foundation for successful link-building.
• Staying away from spammy link-building strategies (e.g., mass link exchanges, targeting dubious reputation directories) is no less important.
• Keywords, especially conversational and long-tail ones, help you connect your content with the target audience through search engine algorithms.
• Don’t be shy to spy on your competitors when researching for keywords. Competitor monitoring is part of every effective SEO strategy.
• In link-building and keyword research, you should rely on modern tools and AI to make the whole process easier and more productive.

SEO is not rocket science, isn’t it? That makes it even more impressive. And a huge bang it can make on your long-term business growth and prosperity! If done in time, of course

Jump into the SEO train now, enjoy the ride, and get ready for the next station, which is already looming around the corner — generative engine optimization, or GEO. However, that’s a story for another post. Stay on your toes!

The post has been written in collaboration with Adsy.