Success Cases:
Growing Domains from Zero via SEO & Authority
How we grow from scratch: case studies and SEO strategies for Google and LLMs.
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How We Grow from Scratch:
Case Studies, SEO Strategies, and Domain Authority Growth
Case Studies, SEO Strategies, and Domain Authority Growth
In this section, we’ll share how we develop new domains from scratch, work on their authority (Domain Authority), and promote them in search engines.
Project # 1
Startup Cities Directory
🔗 Startup Cities Directory
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What is this project?
At the beginning of 2025, we launched the Startup Cities Directory. The website serves as a directory of the best cities for startups, covering over 100 countries and 1,000 cities. We implemented two distinct approaches to evaluate startup ecosystems: a traditional approach and the MeanCEO Index, which assesses how favorable cities are for women entrepreneurs. The latter is our Unique Value.
Launched on January 1, 2025, and within just 4 months, we achieved significant results. -
Key features:
- Comprehensive global coverage (100+ countries, 1,000+ cities)
- Dual evaluation system:
- Overall score combining quantitative, qualitative and business metrics
- Unique MeanCEO Index specifically for female entrepreneurs
- Special focus on women's entrepreneurship factors like safety, work-life balance, and inclusivity
We use two approaches to evaluate startup ecosystems:
Overall Score
comprehensive assessment
comprehensive assessment
- Quantitative Score – ecosystem activity (number of startups, coworking spaces, accelerators).
- Qualitative Score – startup successes (unicorns, exits, pantheons).
- Business Score – national-level economic indicators.
MeanCEO Index
unique metric for women entrepreneurs
unique metric for women entrepreneurs
- Weather, location, safety, attitude toward foreigners.
- English as a business language, cuisine, family life.
- Healthcare, transportation, startup mindset.
What Challenges Did We Face?
Zero Domain Trust
Google didn’t trust the new domain.
Now Domain Authority (DA) = 2.4.
Now Domain Authority (DA) = 2.4.
Fierce Competition:
StartupCities.com (DA 22)
StartupBlink.com (DA 70)
StartupGenome (DA 75)
StartupBlink.com (DA 70)
StartupGenome (DA 75)
Need for Unique Content
You can't just copy what's out there.
We created the MeanCEO Index to stand out.
We created the MeanCEO Index to stand out.
What Did We Do to Grow?
Strategic actions that drove our domain growth from DA 0 to top search rankings in just 4 months
1. SEO and Technical Optimization
Loading speed 90+ on PageSpeed Insights
Optimized images, deferred JavaScript, and leveraged browser caching to achieve lightning-fast load times. This directly reduced bounce rates and improved our "Core Web Vitals" score in Google's ranking factors.
Alt-text for images → growth in Google Images rankings
Added descriptive alt attributes (e.g., "Berlin startup ecosystem infographic") to all images, capturing 23% of organic traffic from Google Images for niche queries like "startup city maps".
2. Mass Content Production & Automation
1,000+ videos via Canva Bulk
Automated templated videos (e.g., "Top 10 Cities for AI Startups") using Canva’s bulk-create tool. Published across YouTube, LinkedIn, X and Instagram. These short videos rank well and show up in Google's Short Videos tab.
RSS distribution to social media (backlinks → DA growth)
Set up automated RSS feeds to push blog updates to several platforms (LinkedIn, X, Instagram, etc.). This passively increases our presence in search results.
What is RSS and How Does It Help?
RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is an automatic content publishing to social media and aggregators.
What is Domain Authority (DA)?
DA: AhRef’s metric showing domain authority (0-100). Higher DA = better chances of ranking in Google.
RSS (Really Simple Syndication) is an automatic content publishing to social media and aggregators.
- Speeds up indexing.
- Provides backlinks (boosts Domain Authority).
What is Domain Authority (DA)?
DA: AhRef’s metric showing domain authority (0-100). Higher DA = better chances of ranking in Google.
3. Content Repurposing
Appearance on Medium, LinkedIn, LLMs
We repurposed our core research into 3 formats for different audiences:
Perplexity: Data-rich Q&A-style posts ("Which cities rank highest for female founders?") to capture AI search traffic
Medium: Long-form thought leadership ("Why Traditional Startup Hubs Are Declining")
LinkedIn: Bite-sized insights with infographics for founder communities
This earned 47 referral links and positioned us as industry experts.
Perplexity: Data-rich Q&A-style posts ("Which cities rank highest for female founders?") to capture AI search traffic
Medium: Long-form thought leadership ("Why Traditional Startup Hubs Are Declining")
LinkedIn: Bite-sized insights with infographics for founder communities
This earned 47 referral links and positioned us as industry experts.
Google considers social media mentions
By synchronizing content releases with social spikes (e.g., tweeting city rankings during #StartupEvents), we triggered Google's "Query Deserves Freshness" (QDF) algorithm. Our "Barcelona Startup Scene" report gained featured snippet status within 72 hours of viral LinkedIn discussion.
4. Working with Alternative Search Engines
Easier to rank in Bing
Bing's simpler algorithm and lower competition allowed us to rank for "best startup cities 2025" in just 6 weeks (vs. 4+ months on Google).
We optimized for:
• Bing Webmaster Tools submissions
• LinkedIn content syndication (which Bing prioritizes)
Result: 32% of our early traffic came from Bing users.
We optimized for:
• Bing Webmaster Tools submissions
• LinkedIn content syndication (which Bing prioritizes)
Result: 32% of our early traffic came from Bing users.
Featured Snippet in Bing = extra traffic
Bing's "Instant Answers" gave us prime real estate for high-value queries:
• Formatted content in bullet points/scannable headers
• Targeted question-based keywords ("How to choose a startup city?")
• Added 50+ FAQ Schema markups
Outcome: 128% more CTR for snippet-ranked pages (see screenshot of our #1 position for "startup city directory").
• Formatted content in bullet points/scannable headers
• Targeted question-based keywords ("How to choose a startup city?")
• Added 50+ FAQ Schema markups
Outcome: 128% more CTR for snippet-ranked pages (see screenshot of our #1 position for "startup city directory").
Key Takeaways:
How to Replicate Our Success?
- Create unique content (e.g., MeanCEO Index).
- Optimize technical SEO (speed, structure).
- Use RSS and backlinks to boost DA.
- Publish everywhere (social media, aggregators).
- Don’t ignore Bing - easier to rank there.
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