You're probably tired of hearing that you just need to "be online." It’s a bit of a lie, or at least a massive oversimplification. Thousands of people are currently making a website for a business and almost all of them will fail to get a single click from a real human being.
Why? Because the internet is crowded. It's noisy.
Most business owners treat their site like a digital brochure. They put up a "Home" page, an "About" page, and a "Contact" page, then sit back and wait for the phone to ring. It won’t. If you want Google to notice you—and more importantly, if you want to land in that elusive Google Discover feed—you have to stop thinking about your site as a destination and start thinking about it as an answer engine.
Google’s 2024 and 2025 algorithm updates, particularly the "Helpful Content" shifts, killed the old way of doing things. The robot-written, keyword-stuffed garbage is getting purged. What’s left? Sites that actually help people. Honestly, that's the whole secret. But let's get into the weeds of how you actually pull that off without losing your mind.
The Foundation: Why Fast and Boring Usually Wins
Speed is a feature. If your site takes four seconds to load, half your audience is gone. They’ve bounced back to the search results before your beautiful high-res hero image even finished rendering.
When you start making a website for a business, your first priority should be Core Web Vitals. Google tracks LCP (Largest Contentful Paint) and CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift). Basically, does the page load fast, and does the "Buy Now" button jump two inches down the screen right as someone tries to click it? If it jumps, Google hates you.
Choose a lean host. Avoid the cheapest shared hosting plans that cost $2 a month because they're slow. Look at something like Cloudways or WP Engine if you’re using WordPress. Or, if you want zero maintenance, platforms like Shopify or Framer have built-in speed optimizations that handle the technical heavy lifting for you.
- Mobile first is the only way. More than 60% of searches happen on phones. If your site looks clunky on an iPhone, you aren't just losing customers; you're invisible to Google’s mobile-first indexing.
- Accessibility isn't optional. Use high contrast for text. Ensure your alt-text for images actually describes what’s in the image. This helps screen readers for the visually impaired, but it also tells Google’s crawlers what your pictures are about.
- Security matters. If you don't have an SSL certificate (the little padlock in the browser bar), Google will literally flag your site as "Not Secure" to users. That’s a trust killer.
Content That Google Discover Loves
Google Discover is a different beast than Search. Search is "pull"—users ask for something. Discover is "push"—Google suggests content it thinks you'll like based on your history.
To get there, you need high-quality imagery and high-interest topics. Discover loves "evergreen" advice and timely news. If you’re a plumber, a page about "How to Fix a Leaky Faucet" might rank in search. But a story titled "The 3 Signs Your Water Heater is About to Explode" might trigger Discover because it’s high-stakes and visually evocative.
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Visuals are the currency of Discover. You need a high-resolution feature image that is at least 1200 pixels wide. Don't use generic stock photos of people in suits shaking hands. Everyone sees through those. Use real photos of your team, your work, or your products. Authenticity is a ranking signal now, even if it’s an indirect one.
The E-E-A-T Factor (It’s Not Just Jargon)
Google uses a framework called E-E-A-T: Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness.
Experience is the newest part. It means Google wants to see that you’ve actually done the thing you're writing about. If you’re making a website for a business in the landscaping niche, don't just write about "how to plant roses." Show photos of your crew planting roses in the specific soil types of your local area. Mention the local climate. Mention the 2025 drought.
Establish Your Authority
- Author Bylines: Don't post as "Admin." Use a real name. Link to a bio page that shows why that person knows what they’re talking about.
- External Links: Link out to high-authority sources. If you’re citing a statistic about small business growth, link to the SBA or a study from Harvard Business Review. It shows you’ve done your homework.
- Customer Reviews: Embed real reviews from Google Business Profile or Trustpilot. Third-party validation is a huge trust signal for both users and algorithms.
What Most People Get Wrong About Keywords
Keywords aren't about repeating a phrase 50 times. That’s "keyword stuffing," and it’s been a fast track to a penalty since 2012.
Today, it's about entities and semantic search. Google understands that if you're talking about "running shoes," you should probably also mention "arch support," "marathons," "treadmills," and "Nike." This is called Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI).
Instead of obsessing over one keyword, think about the "topic cluster." If your main service is "HVAC Repair," create a pillar page for that. Then, write smaller, specific articles about "weird noises your AC makes," "how to change a filter," and "cost of a new furnace in 2026." Link all these back to your main service page. This creates a web of relevance that proves to Google you are a topical authority.
The Technical "Boring" Stuff That Actually Ranks You
You need a Sitemap. It’s a simple XML file that tells Google, "Hey, here is a list of every page on my site." Without it, the crawler might miss your most important content.
Then there's Schema Markup. This is a bit of code that helps Google understand exactly what your data is. If you have a "Contact" page, Schema tells Google: "This is a phone number, this is an address, and this is our opening hours." This is how you get those cool "Rich Snippets" in the search results, like the star ratings or the FAQ dropdowns that take up more screen real estate.
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Don't ignore the robots.txt file. Sometimes, by mistake, developers leave a tag on the site that says "noindex." This is basically a "Keep Out" sign for Google. If that’s on, you could have the best content in the world and it will never, ever show up. Check your Google Search Console. It’s a free tool, and it will tell you exactly what’s wrong with your site from Google's perspective.
Why Branding is Your Best SEO Strategy
In 2026, Google is heavily favoring brands over anonymous niche sites. Why? Because brands are harder to fake with AI.
When people search for your business by name—that’s a huge signal. If users search for "Joe’s Pizza" rather than just "pizza near me," Google realizes Joe’s Pizza is a trusted entity.
How do you build that? Social media. Email lists. Real-world networking.
It sounds counterintuitive, but the best way to rank on Google is to get people to look for you specifically. When you are making a website for a business, ensure your brand voice is consistent. If you're snarky and funny on Instagram, don't be a dry, corporate robot on your website. People (and algorithms) crave consistency.
Handling the AI "Problem"
Let's be real: everyone is using AI to write content now. Google has stated they don't necessarily penalize AI content as long as it's useful.
The problem is that most AI content is boring. It’s average. It’s the "mid" of the internet.
If you use AI to draft your pages, you must go back in and add "the human element." Add a personal anecdote. Mention a specific client you helped last Tuesday. Add a controversial opinion that an AI wouldn't dare take. If your content looks like everyone else’s, you will never rank on page one, and you certainly won't make it to Discover. Discover wants "thumb-stopping" content. "10 Tips for Better Sleep" is boring. "Why I Stopped Sleeping 8 Hours a Night and Feel Better Than Ever" is a story.
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Actionable Steps to Take Right Now
Stop reading and start doing. SEO isn't a "one and done" project; it's a habit. If you want to actually see results, follow these steps in order.
Audit your current speed. Go to Google PageSpeed Insights. Type in your URL. If you’re in the red, fix your images first. Compress them. Change them to .webp format. This alone can jump you up several spots in the rankings.
Set up Google Search Console. It’s the only way to see what keywords people are actually using to find you. You’ll often find you’re ranking for things you didn't even intend to, which gives you a roadmap for what to write next.
Claim your Google Business Profile. This is the box that shows up on the right side of the search results with your map and photos. Fill out every single section. Upload a new photo every week. Businesses that stay active on their profile get a massive boost in local search results.
Write one "Power Page." Pick the single most important question your customers ask. Write the absolute best, most detailed answer on the internet for it. Don't worry about length; worry about depth. Use videos, diagrams, and clear headings.
Check your internal links. Make sure your homepage links to your services, and your blog posts link back to your contact page. A site with no internal links is like a house with no hallways; the Google bot gets stuck in one room and can't find the rest of your value.
Monitor your "Discovery" potential. Check your Search Console "Performance" report specifically for the Discover tab. If it's not there, you aren't hitting the threshold yet. Start experimenting with more provocative, high-quality images and more "story-driven" headlines to see if you can trigger that traffic.
Success in making a website for a business comes down to being more useful than the guy next to you. Google wants to provide the best experience for its users. If your site is the best experience, you win. It's a simple concept that's incredibly hard to execute, but the rewards—free, consistent traffic—are worth the grind.