Small business
digital marketing
checklist

A small business digital marketing checklist should cover seven areas: a fast, mobile-friendly website with a clear next step, basic SEO and a complete Google Business Profile, a paid or organic channel that generates leads, social profiles your customers actually use, a reliable lead follow-up process, analytics that show what is working, and a routine for reviewing all of it. Below, each area is broken into specific tasks you can tick off this month, whether you do them yourself or hand them to a team.

Where to start: the order that matters

Everything on this list is worth doing, but not everything is worth doing first. If you only have a few hours a week, work in this order, because each step makes the next one more effective.

1. Week one: fix the website basics and claim your Google Business Profile.
2. Week two: set up lead capture, follow-up and tracking, so you can see what happens next.
3. Week three: tidy the SEO foundations and your listings.
4. Week four: turn on one channel, paid or social, and start measuring it.

Spending on ads before the first two steps are done is the most common way small businesses waste marketing money.

1. Website foundations

Your website is the one asset you fully own, unlike a social page or a directory listing. Before you drive traffic anywhere, make sure the destination can turn a visitor into an enquiry.

• The site loads in under three seconds on a phone (test it with Google PageSpeed Insights).
• It works on mobile without pinching or zooming, and HTTPS shows the padlock.
• A clear headline near the top says what you do and who it is for.
• Your phone number and a contact link are visible on every page.
• Each page has one clear call to action: get a quote, book a call, call now.
• The contact form works, confirms to the visitor and notifies you immediately.
• There are no broken links, and a helpful 404 page sends lost visitors somewhere useful.

If the site is slow, dated or hard to use on a phone, that is a rebuild rather than a tweak. Our web and software service builds sites that load fast on mobile with the on-page SEO included.

2. SEO and local search

SEO is the slowest channel to pay off and the one that keeps paying longest. The businesses that start now are the ones showing up next year.

• Every page has a unique title tag and meta description, not the default “Home – Business Name”.
• Each page has one H1 that includes a real search phrase, not just your business name.
• Your Google Business Profile is claimed, verified and complete: hours, photos, services and categories.
• Your business name, address and phone number are identical on your website, Google Business Profile and directories.
• Schema markup (Organization or LocalBusiness) is in place, which also helps AI tools understand who you are.
• An XML sitemap is submitted in Google Search Console.
• Your blog or resources section publishes useful, original answers, linked to your service pages.

This is the area where expert help usually pays off fastest. See our SEO service for what a proper setup includes.

3. Paid advertising

Paid ads are the fastest route to people actively searching for what you sell. The trade-off is that the traffic stops when the budget does, so ads work best alongside SEO rather than instead of it.

• You have a defined monthly budget, guided by the common benchmark of 7–8% of revenue for total marketing spend.
• Campaigns target commercial-intent searches, the ones that signal someone is ready to buy or hire.
• Ad traffic goes to a dedicated landing page, not just the homepage.
• Conversion tracking is on, so you know which ads produce leads and not just clicks.
• Negative keywords are added regularly to cut irrelevant searches.
• A retargeting campaign reaches people who visited and did not convert.
• You review cost per lead monthly and pause or rewrite what is underperforming.
• The ad accounts are in your name, whoever manages them.

Our performance marketing service runs campaigns inside your own accounts, with the same cost-per-result discipline across every channel.

4. Social media presence

Social media builds familiarity and trust long before someone is ready to buy, and active profiles are one of the signals Google and AI tools use to check that a business is real.

• You have claimed profiles on the platforms your customers actually use, not every platform that exists.
• Name, logo and bio are consistent everywhere, with a link back to your website.
• You have a posting rhythm you can sustain, whether that is twice a week or daily.
• The content mixes tips, behind-the-scenes and answers to customer questions, not only promotions.
• Someone is assigned to answer comments and messages within a business day.
• Reviews on Google and other relevant platforms are monitored and answered.

If posting keeps slipping, that is a staffing problem rather than a skills problem. Our guide to what a social media management company actually does explains what handing it over looks like, and the pricing guide covers what it costs.

5. Lead capture and follow-up

Traffic without a way to capture and follow up on interest is wasted spend. This is the step most small businesses underinvest in, and it is often the cheapest fix with the biggest payoff.

• A form or offer (quote request, consultation, guide) sits on every key page, not only the contact page.
• Forms ask only for what you need, because every extra field lowers completion.
• An automatic confirmation by email or text goes out the moment someone submits.
• Follow-up has a named owner and a target response time. Same-day response sharply improves close rates.
• A simple CRM or spreadsheet tracks every lead from first contact to close.
• You have a routine for asking happy customers for reviews and referrals.

Much of this can be automated. Our AI and automation service connects forms, follow-up messages and your CRM so nothing waits for someone to remember.

6. Analytics and tracking

You cannot improve what you do not measure, and many small businesses run ads or post for months without checking whether any of it produced a customer.

• Google Analytics, or a similar tool, is installed and confirmed to be tracking.
• Google Search Console is connected to watch rankings, clicks and technical errors.
• Conversions are set up for form submissions, phone taps and any online purchases.
• Call tracking is in place if phone calls are a main way customers reach you.
• You review traffic sources monthly to see which channels actually produce leads.
• Paid and social links carry UTM tags, so you can tell which campaign drove which result.

7. Reputation, listings and ongoing review

Marketing is not a one-time setup. Search, ad platforms and buyer behaviour all change, so the list needs revisiting rather than filing away.

• You are listed accurately on the main directories: Google Business Profile, Bing Places, Apple Maps and any in your industry.
• Customer reviews and testimonials are shown on your own site as well as on third-party platforms.
• Your About page says who you serve, what makes you different and who is behind the business.
• You plan content a month ahead and refresh older posts and service pages at least once a year.
• You hold a quarterly review of what worked, what did not and what to try next.
• Every channel has a clear owner, whether that is a team member or an agency partner.

How much of this should you do yourself?

Most owners can handle website upkeep, basic posting and answering reviews. The areas where mistakes cost the most are SEO strategy, paid ad management and analytics. If you would rather hand the whole list to one team, that is what we do: five services, one named account manager, and everything set up in your name. Our services start as low as $300–500, and we agree the number in writing before anything starts. Tell us where your marketing stands and we will tell you what to tackle first, even if the answer is that you can do most of it yourself for now.