Learning SEO is the most practical step for your business this year. Search engine optimization allows businesses to generate targeted traffic and directly respond to the needs of paying customers. Unlike search marketing/PPC, SEO can generate long-term results that put your business in front of the right people-potentially for good.
A well-optimized website eventually becomes an authoritative website. Once you attain a good ranking in your market, your pages and content will continue to rank for years to come. If PPC is like renting a space for your business, SEO is like building a skyscraper that will stand alongside competitors, and the ceaseless flow of PPC ads is a staple of different search engines.
But where does SEO education begin? How do you know that you will be in good hands after?
SEO Blogs and Related Websites
The web is rich with free online resources about SEO. You’re reading one right now! In addition, you will find many fascinating and helpful posts on this blog that directly tackle different subjects related to search engine optimization.
Blogs are accessible resources that anyone with an internet connection can access. While blogs can’t always exhaustively discuss all the details related to a central topic, these digital properties benefit beginners because they provide glimpses of important updates or changes to the search landscape.
Websites and blogs dedicated to search engine optimization will always prioritize fresh news about Google, Bing, and other websites. They do this because readers want to be in the know and want information about search engine changes that could potentially impact their businesses.
Books and Manuals
You can’t knock books and manuals because everyone learns from books. Moreover, there’s nothing wrong with learning some theories and application methods from books. However, as SEO is a specialized field, you may have trouble locating updated titles about the field.
The search landscape changes so often that an SEO book last year could already be outdated in the current year due to a substantial algorithmic update.
Then again, don’t let this discourage you.
Just as we study history to grasp what might happen in the future, there is nothing wrong with reviewing the many changes in search engine optimization over the years. However, being patient with the process would be best since you will be learning alone.
Self-studying is not for everyone, and not having anyone to ask if you’re stuck on a step or concept is no fun.
YouTube
YouTube is the fastest resource for anyone who needs bite-sized discussions about SEO. You can also find longer podcasts and recordings of webinars on the platform.
Like reading blogs, you will find various search engine optimization topics on YouTube; it’s a fun place to get started. However, if you need an introduction to the basic concepts and jargon related to SEO, you should start subscribing to different channels on YouTube so you can start learning SEO.
The main problem with learning SEO on YouTube, however, is there is no clear starting point. If you visit different channels dedicated to SEO, you will see that there is barely any organization. As a result, you will jump from one section or topic to the next, and you wouldn’t know if you are working on an introductory or advanced topic.
When you feel that you need more structure and more means to apply what you have already learned, that would be the time that you need to start working with an SEO coach or SEO mentor.
SEO Coach
Partnering with an SEO coach is the most effective way to learn search engine optimization for your business site. All the knowledge you already possess from reading books and watching webinars will all come to fruition when you begin working with someone who has been in the trenches of the search for years.
SEO coaches or SEO mentors had often worked as SEO consultants or SEO directors for years before they became mentors. As a result, they know what works and what doesn’t, and the best ones continue learning about search technology every day.
They are constantly experimenting with the best ways to improve their search strategies, and they love innovating and spending time sharing their knowledge. A mentor-mentee relationship is unique because the mentor will also become your accountability buddy for accomplishing goals and hitting those milestones.
Since SEO takes a while, you as a business owner must hit the ground running ASAP when you start learning about all the areas that need work on your website.
A good SEO coach will also give you strategies to work “under the hood” immediately to address the most common issues affecting a website’s optimization status.
SEO Certification Courses
Individuals interested in learning about SEO to improve their websites or to find a path to a new career in SEO often sign up for various SEO certification courses on the internet. Big names like Moz often offer free and paid courses on SEO.
While there is nothing wrong with getting these certification courses, it’s essential not to wholly depend on them for the strategies you can implement when you are finally working on your website or a client’s website.
They will take you some distance in terms of the broad strokes of SEO, but as for the molecular adjustments and the additional steps needed for the endless adjustments, it’s vital that you still work with someone who can teach you SEO in a hands-on manner.
Practical SEO is 100% beneficial to anyone who wants to learn serious SEO. With just theory, you won’t understand that SEO is different for every market and every website, and much of what you must learn and see can be found when you perform SEO for your website or a client.
Summary
Anyone can learn SEO through books and the internet. However, for the best results, you must work with an SEO professional who has been working hard for years, developing the right strategies, and implementing them on websites for clients. The more you work with SEO experts, the better off you will be in the long term.
