Why SaaS Founders Should Invest in SEO Early (Before It’s Too Late)

Elliot Bolland

Mar 33 min read

Most SaaS founders love paid ads. They’re fast, predictable, and scalable—until they aren’t.

People in a conference room watching a presentation. Laptops are on the table, with gift bags and bright paper. Mood is focused and attentive.

The reality? Paid ads are a leaky bucket. You pour money in, but the moment you stop spending, the leads dry up. Meanwhile, SEO is the ultimate compounding growth channel. Done right, it keeps delivering high-intent leads for free long after you’ve put in the initial work.

Yet, too many SaaS founders treat SEO as an afterthought.

Big mistake.

If you’re not investing in SEO early, you’re setting yourself up for higher CAC, weaker

retention, and long-term growth struggles. Here’s why—and what to do instead. 🚀

1. SEO is a Growth Asset, Not an Expense

Every penny you put into SEO makes your company stronger over time.

Unlike ads (which stop working the moment you stop paying), SEO is an investment that compounds. Once you rank for a keyword, you get traffic month after month—without spending another cent.

Example: HubSpot built an SEO empire by ranking for every question marketers have.

Now, their blog brings in millions of visitors per month—for free. Why wouldn’t you build an asset that works while you sleep?

2. SaaS Buyers Trust Organic Search (Not Ads)

The numbers don’t lie:

90% of B2B buyers start with Google
SEO leads convert 2.5x better than PPC leads
Paid ads only get 2-3% of clicks—organic results get the rest

Think about your own behaviour: Do you trust an ad, or do you click on an in-depth article that actually helps you? Your customers do the same.

SEO builds trust, authority, and long-term relationships. Ads just interrupt people.

3. The Best SaaS Companies Dominate Google (And You Can Too)

Let’s talk strategy.

Most SaaS founders screw up SEO by making one of these mistakes:

Writing “feature” pages instead of problem-solving content
Ignoring high-intent comparison keywords (like “X vs. Y”)
Treating their blog like a random content factory

Here’s how to win with SEO instead:

Rank for “Best [Software] for [Use Case]” Keywords

Example: “Best project management tools for remote teams”
This is high-intent traffic—people ready to buy

Create Comparison Pages (“X vs. Y” and Alternatives Lists)

Example: “Airtable vs. Notion: Which One is Best in 2024?”
Buyers compare before they commit. If you’re not in the conversation, you lose.

Turn Blog Traffic into Revenue

Add CTAs to book demos or start trials
Use lead magnets to capture emails
Retarget visitors with smart email sequences

This isn’t just about getting traffic. It’s about turning that traffic into money.

4. SEO Helps You Lower CAC (And Outlast Competitors)

Customer acquisition cost (CAC) is the #1 killer of SaaS startups.

As paid ad costs skyrocket, SEO becomes the ultimate cost-efficient growth lever. Why? Because once you rank, you own the traffic.

Meanwhile, competitors who rely on ads are trapped in an endless spending cycle. Long-term? SEO = survival.

5. The Future of Search is AI (Adapt Now or Die)

Google is changing. AI-powered search (SGE) will soon dominate how people find information. If you don’t adapt, your business will disappear from search results.

Here’s what winning SaaS companies are doing now:

Focusing on EEAT (Expertise, Experience, Authority, Trust)
Creating high-value, first-hand content (AI spam won’t rank)
Leveraging AI + programmatic SEO to scale 100s of pages efficiently

If you’re waiting to start SEO, you’re already behind.