There is no standard way to learn search engine optimization (SEO). Ask anyone who works here at SEJ how they got started in SEO and you’ll get a lot of different stories.
It can be frustrating because if your business has an online presence, you need to know at least a little bit about SEO.
Maybe you just launched that awesome new website and you want Google to rank you on the first page.
Or maybe your existing website isn’t getting the traffic you want. Or you just want to start a new in-demand career.
Whatever your reason for wanting to learn SEO, you’ve come to the right place.
Right now, some of you are probably a little intimidated. All this talk about search algorithms and keyword research and reciprocal links sounds complicated.
Relax, despite all the technical jargon, SEO is not that difficult to learn, even for a complete beginner. You just have to be willing to put in the time and effort.
This article will give you a step-by-step plan you can follow to build your SEO skills from scratch or improve your existing knowledge.
And while we can’t promise you a higher ranking in Google, we promise that if you put in the work, you’ll see results.
Your Guide To Learning SEO
Contents
Before we dive into the first step on your path to becoming an SEO Jedi, let’s take a quick look at what exactly we mean by search engine optimization.
According to Google’s developer guide:
“Search engine optimization is the process of making your site better for search engines.”
In other words, it’s figuring out exactly what changes you need to make to your website to make it more relevant to search queries.
SEO elements fall into two main categories: on-page and off-page.
As you might expect, on-page SEO elements are the parts of your website. This includes:
Off-page SEO elements, on the other hand, are the ranking factors that come from outside your domain. This mainly focuses on link building and getting other high quality websites to link to your content.
Now that we have that out of the way, let’s dive into the step-by-step process for mastering SEO.
Step 1: Master The Basics
One of the best things about Google is the sheer amount of information available. While they won’t reveal the secret sauce of what exactly drives their algorithm, the search engine giant is surprisingly knowledgeable about what does and doesn’t count in rankings.
And even better, they’ve provided a very helpful SEO starter guide for people just starting out in the field. This is a high-level look at how search engine optimization works, including definitions of common terms and the basics of ranking.
If you’re starting your SEO education completely from scratch, this is the perfect place to start.
It will explain how to get your site on Google, the best ways to control crawling so that the search engine can find your content, and indexability, which will help it understand what your content is about and what kind of queries it is getting. will try good for
Every year at SEJ, we produce several eBooks on various SEO and digital marketing topics. One such eBook is our Beginner’s Guide to SEO, a complete getting started guide and instructions for many common SEO tasks.
Step 2: Dive Deeper Into The Technical Side
Once you feel confident that you have the SEO basics down, it’s time to move on to more technical concepts.
Once again, Google has provided several excellent resources for your educational purposes.
A good place to continue your education is Webmaster Guidelines for Maintaining Your Site’s SEO. It can help you get started with intermediate to advanced techniques to improve your rankings or tackle other SEO issues.
This includes information on dealing with duplicate content and canonical pages, using robots.txt files to tell Google which pages to crawl and index, creating and submitting sitemaps, and other ways to help Google understand your site better .
Depending on the type of content you have on your site, you may need to use different strategies to maximize its exposure.
For example, videos are a popular form of content that requires additional SEO work to ensure they rank as well as possible.
If you’re using anything outside of plain text (and you should—no one wants to scroll through a wall of text), be sure to check Google’s content-specific guidelines.
Step 3: Create An SEO Process
At this point, we hope you have a reasonably good understanding of what SEO is and how it works.
And now, it’s time to put that education into practice by developing and implementing your own SEO process.
If you’re working on an existing site, the first thing you should do is perform an SEO audit. This is quite a large undertaking, but once again, Search Engine Journal to the rescue!
We’ve created an eBook that will guide you through the entire process of evaluating your current SEO efforts using a helpful checklist.
After you understand where you stand now, it’s time to build a strategy. If only there was another helpful e-book you could use to guide you through this process, oh wait, we have one.
This is a step-by-step guide (plus a template) to creating your year-round SEO strategy, with month-by-month guidance to help you measure results and improve your rankings.
And when it comes to performance monitoring, Google Search Console gives you tons of analytics and insights that you can use to improve site traffic. It would be very convenient for you to familiarize yourself with this tool.
Step 4: Optimize Your Content
It’s impossible to overstate the importance of your website content. Content is what drives people to your site, encourages them to take action, and is the entire reason your site exists in the first place.
So, after you’ve done the background, technical, and strategic work needed to increase your rankings, it’s time to focus on your content.
Your content strategy should have been an important part of your overall strategy as discussed in the last step, but this is where the rubber meets the road.
This is where you’ll create keyword-rich (but not content-heavy) copy, create a solid structure that’s easy for bots and humans to read, and improve your overall content experience.
For detailed information on how to do this, watch this webinar.
Step 5: Build Your Backlinks
This has already been touched upon, but it warrants its own passage.
Your inbound links tell Google a lot about how trustworthy your site is.
For example, if you fall for one of those link farms, pay-per-link scams (which of course you would never do), Google will probably ignore those links.
On the other hand, if the Chicago Tribune is directing people to your page, Google may see that endorsement in a good light and consider that link valuable.
But how exactly do you build links? Did you really expect us to ask this question and then not have another great e-book that answers this question in depth?
Download and read to find everything you need to know about creating and maintaining a successful link building campaign.
Step 6: Don’t Forget About Humans
With all the technical parts to SEO, it can be very easy to forget about the main purpose of your website: to provide value to real people.
And lest you think that Google search is completely integrated by a variety of computer programs, don’t forget that real humans are verifying the work of the algorithm.
These people are known as search quality raters. They follow an extensive guide to determine how well Google search results meet the needs of the query and assess the quality of your pages.
So always keep this in mind: even with all the title tag and image optimization and responsive design work you’ve done, at the end of the day, SEO is about people .
Step 7: Never Stop Learning
Wow, that was a lot. Now you can just sit back and relax, enjoying your new Sixth Degree SEO Black Belt title, right? Not a bit
Search engine algorithms are constantly changing.
Some of these are so small that you won’t notice, while others make a big difference in the type of return queries they generate. And this state of constant flux means the last thing you can do is rest on your laurels.
Fortunately, there is a vast ocean of SEO resources, including this very website, where you’ll find all the news as well as regular updates and blog posts on a variety of search engine related topics.
But we’d be remiss if we didn’t tell you about some of the great online courses that will help you take your SEO skills to the next level.
For your convenience, we’ve provided a curated list here, and you can check out some of them in more detail in this post on SEO certifications.
Free SEO Courses For Beginners
Coursera Search Engine Optimization Fundamentals: This 13-hour, 4-module digital course (created by the University of California, Davis) is designed to help you understand how search algorithms affect search results organic It covers everything from creating an effective strategy to analyzing and optimizing your existing website.
Ahrefs SEO Training Course – Presented by SEO tool software provider Ahrefs, this program consists of 14 lessons divided into four modules, with a total duration of two hours. It will teach you the basics of SEO, including how to perform keyword research, technical SEO, and link building for beginners.
Shopify SEO Training for Beginners: Ecommerce platform Shopify offers a 30-minute course designed to help online entrepreneurs quickly learn the basics of SEO. This course will give you a repeatable framework that you can apply to help improve your company’s search engine rankings.
Yoast SEO for Beginners Training – Another SEO tool provider, Yoast’s SEO Beginners course includes two hours of instructional videos, PDFs, and quizzes to practice what you’ve learned.
Intro to Search Engine Optimization by WP Courses – This free course is designed to teach you how to improve your site for both search engines and human visitors. It covers the basics of SEO, including conducting keyword research, creating great content, and optimizing your site for maximum rankings and traffic.
Bruce Clay SEO Training: Bruce Clay is known as the developer of the first web page analysis tool. Now, he runs a search marketing company (Bruce Clay, Inc.) that offers a wide range of digital marketing services. This online course will teach you how to improve your website rankings by emphasizing E-A-T. Includes over 15 hours of instruction in 48 videos.
Intro to Next.js SEO – This text-based course powered by the Next.js production framework provides a quick four-page overview of SEO. Covers search engines and bots and web performance topics, with an emphasis on using them in conjunction with Next.js.
Hubspot SEO Training Course – This short course offers free certification and focuses on the business impacts of SEO. With six lessons built around 22 videos and three quizzes, he uses Hubspot’s blogging strategy as a core example when explaining how SEO works.
Intermediate To Advanced SEO Resources
Got the basics down and ready to move on to more advanced topics? There are many great resources including:
Semrush Digital Courses – Online Visibility & Content Marketing SaaS provider Semrush has built one of the best libraries of SEO content available anywhere. These free lessons, which are usually one hour long, are hosted by a variety of experts and cover almost every aspect of digital marketing you can think of, including a dozen search engine optimization.
Ahrefs Advanced Link Building Course – This 14-lesson course can be completed in less than two hours. It is designed to equip you with strategies for building links at scale, which go beyond traditional backlinking tactics. It will teach you how to structure and distribute outreach emails, validate campaigns, and manage your link building team more effectively.
Advanced Search Engine Optimization Strategies from Coursera: This free 25-hour course focuses on technical, mobile, and social strategies to improve your website traffic. It will teach you more advanced SEO skills, such as improving site architecture, evaluating competitors, and developing overall strategies.
LinkedIn Learning – Formerly Lynda.com, the educational part of the social networking site LinkedIn offers a variety of SEO topics, from beginners to advanced. It offers a free trial, but then costs $19.99 per month for unlimited access. LinkedIn Learning has 86 SEO-related videos, many of which specialize in a particular aspect, such as SEO for e-commerce sites or structuring data for web crawlers.
Advanced Technical SEO: A Complete Guide – You really didn’t think we’d make this list and not include another one of our ebooks, did you? We may be biased, but this free downloadable ebook will teach you everything you need to know about technical SEO, including finding the best hosting company, structuring your site for web crawler compatibility, and best practices for pagination, along with a wealth of other useful information.
Google Analytics Academy – While not strictly an SEO course, if you are serious about SEO and improving your skills, this certification is worth earning. This free course will help you better understand the content and digital marketing industry while ensuring you get the most out of the tools the search engine giant has to offer.
Stay Up To Date And Get Optimizing
As you can see, there is a lot to do in search engine optimization. And even experts learn new things every day.
Hopefully, at this point, you’ve learned a little about the basics of SEO and where you can learn more about them.
And after you’ve read some of the linked materials, it’s time to put your newfound knowledge into action.
Don’t be discouraged if you don’t see results right away; remember that search engine optimization is a marathon, not a sprint. Sometimes it can take months for your changes to show up on search engine results pages (SERPs).
Just remember that this is a constantly changing environment, and what worked yesterday may not work today. This is partly due to weird SEOs who played with the algorithm through things like keyword stuffing and article rotation (i.e. recreating content with different words).
But the main reason you need to stay on top of SEO is Google’s never-ending quest to deliver better, more relevant results.
Currently, this means focusing more on search intent than keywords, but who knows what that will mean tomorrow?
The only way to stay on top is to keep working once you get there. Because if you kick up your heels, it won’t be long before your hard-earned ranking goes to a more diligent and intelligent optimizer.
Never stop learning, and now get out there and get to the top of the search results!
Featured image: fizkes/Shutterstock
How do I find SEO keywords?
How to find and choose keywords for your website
- Use Google Keyword Planner to narrow down your keyword list. …
- Step 2: Prioritize the low-hanging fruit. …
- Step 3: Check the monthly search volume (MSV) of your chosen keywords. …
- Step 4: Consider SERP characteristics as you choose keywords.
How do I find SEO keywords for my website? The easiest way to find out what keywords your competitors are using is to visit their website and then look at the page source or the underlying HTML code for their home page. In Google Chrome, just click the toolbar (the three lines in the upper right corner) and then select Tools > Developer Tools.
How do I find SEO content keywords?
Once you’ve identified your goals, topics, and an initial keyword list, it’s time to use keyword research tools to further refine your search terms. One option is to use Google Keyword Planner. Unfortunately, Google only provides approximate search volumes. Instead, you can use a tool like the Keyword Tool.
How do I check SEO content?
The SEMRush SEO Writing Assistant is a very useful tool for checking your SEO for a piece of content. Simply paste your content into the editor (or type it there), then enter your focus keyword to get suggestions for readability, SEO, tone of voice, and originality.
How do I find SEO keywords for my business?
Generate high-potential keywords for your business It’s as simple as this: enter a keyword or a list of keywords and discover keyword ideas based on one of three search engines, Google, Amazon or YouTube. For keyword research, go to Keyword Search > Keyword Generator.
Is SEO course easy to learn?
Learning SEO is difficult because there is so much information to read about search engines and how the optimization process works, and it can be overwhelming at first.
Is the SEO course difficult? SEO is not necessarily difficult to learn, but it does take time, effort and persistence. If you’re just starting out and don’t know anything about search engines and how they work, you can expect to feel a little overwhelmed at first, especially if you’re trying to learn SEO on your own. However, it is important to keep trying.
How much time it will take to learn SEO?
If you can learn SEO for a couple of hours every day, you can master SEO basics in 4-8 weeks and land your first SEO job in 3-6 months. If you can learn SEO full time, you can master the basics even in 1-2 weeks.
Can I learn SEO in month?
Although it’s a career-long journey, you can actually learn SEO in about a month, enough to make a huge impact on your website and therefore your business as a whole.
Can I learn SEO in 2 months?
You want to blog for at least six months to two years to see results. At this point, you’ll know you understand SEO and can grow an organic audience. But once you get good results, keep building that momentum and keep posting regular blog posts.
Can I learn SEO in 2 months?
You want to blog for at least six months to two years to see results. At this point, you’ll know you understand SEO and can grow an organic audience. But once you get good results, keep building that momentum and keep posting regular blog posts.
Can I learn SEO in a month?
Although it’s a career-long journey, you can actually learn SEO in about a month, enough to make a huge impact on your website and therefore your business as a whole.
How long does it take to get Google SEO certified?
On average, it takes students a week to complete the lessons and get certified. The cost of this course is $89 (one time payment) and is offered as part of the SEO course package which includes 3 other courses (Keyword Research Course, Ecommerce SEO Course and Google Course Analytics).
Can I learn SEO on my own?
SEO is not easy. But it’s not rocket science either. There are things you can implement right away and there are concepts that require much more time and effort. So yes, you can do SEO on your own.
Can I learn SEO without coding?
The short answer is: no, SEO usually doesn’t require much (if any) hands-on coding. You can do a good SEO job without touching the code. But the longer answer is yes, a good understanding of how programming works, or even the ability to do a bit of coding, is always a useful skill.
Is SEO hard to do yourself?
SEO is not hard to learn if you start getting your basics right. You just have to be willing enough to allocate enough time and effort in the right directions when learning SEO concepts. The main problem, however, is that people don’t realize that SEO is a process that takes time. It is not a matter of one day or two days.
Does SEO have a future?
SEO will only grow rapidly in the future. Just make sure you follow SEO best practices like creating useful content, having a faster website, and following Google’s guidelines for better rankings.
Is SEO worth it in 2022? Yes, SEO is worth it… in 2022, in the future, in the past and always. As long as websites and search engines exist, SEO is necessary. SEO in 10 years will probably be very different than SEO today, but you should always make sure that your website is sending the right signals to search engines so that they can find you.
Is SEO a good career for future?
‘Yes. SEO is a good career choice as it is among the most sought after careers in the field of digital marketing. There are several organizations around the world that hire SEO professionals to generate better content and thus produce more business leads.
Will SEO exist in 5 years?
SEO is not going away in the next five years because social media and search engines will probably merge. Facebook has already started to do this: it averages more than 1.5 billion searches every day. Twitter has done the same; they came together in partnership with Google.
Is SEO in high demand?
Digital Marketing Specialist Master’s Program SEO professionals are in high demand as businesses need search engine optimization to compete in most niches.
Is SEO a high paying job?
The highest salary an SEO can earn is 11.2 lakhs per annum (€93.3k per month).
What is the future of SEO in 2022?
In 2022, expect SEO rankings to become more competitive by providing high-quality content that is useful to internet users. Content that only tries to capture its audience by linking to unnecessary feeds will not be effective as it is today.
Is SEO still important in 2022?
The fact that SEO works perfectly even in 2022 as a method of delivering improved business results for business websites and their owners, combined with the need for ongoing research into what works, makes it still relevant as a method of digital marketing, but even more. as a valuable and rewarding service…
Will SEO exist in 5 years?
SEO is not going away in the next five years because social media and search engines will probably merge. Facebook has already started to do this: it averages more than 1.5 billion searches every day. Twitter has done the same; they came together in partnership with Google.
Does SEO have a future?
SEO is now considered a long-term investment for businesses, with results appearing gradually over time. SEO is considered almost dead by many webmasters and business owners due to recent search engine algorithms. They believe that SEO is no longer effective and will never yield fruitful results.
Will SEO exist in 5 years?
SEO is not going away in the next five years because social media and search engines will probably merge. Facebook has already started to do this: it averages more than 1.5 billion searches every day. Twitter has done the same; they came together in partnership with Google.
How long will SEO last?
Most professionals expect to see results in as little as 2 months, but SEO can take up to 12 months to work. While every company’s SEO strategy is different, most companies can expect to see significant results within 6 to 12 months.
Does SEO have a future?
SEO is now considered a long-term investment for businesses, with results appearing gradually over time. SEO is considered almost dead by many webmasters and business owners due to recent search engine algorithms. They believe that SEO is no longer effective and will never yield fruitful results.
Will SEO be obsolete?
SEO is still a vital web marketing tactic in 2022.
Does Google have an SEO course?
Google does not offer an official Google SEO certification. You can take any of Google’s official SEO courses to learn SEO, but there is no way to get certified in Google SEO.
How many months it will take to learn SEO?
If you can learn SEO for a couple of hours every day, you can master SEO basics in 4-8 weeks and land your first SEO job in 3-6 months. If you can learn SEO full time, you can master the basics even in 1-2 weeks.
Is SEO hard to learn? SEO is not that hard to learn. All you have to do is be willing to put in the time and effort needed to learn the various concepts of SEO. If you’re just getting started with SEO and wondering what it takes to go from beginner to expert, this post is for you.
Can I learn SEO in a month?
Although it’s a career-long journey, you can actually learn SEO in about a month, enough to make a huge impact on your website and therefore your business as a whole.
Can I learn SEO in 2 months?
You want to blog for at least six months to two years to see results. At this point, you’ll know you understand SEO and can grow an organic audience. But once you get good results, keep building that momentum and keep posting regular blog posts.
Can I learn SEO in 2 months?
You want to blog for at least six months to two years to see results. At this point, you’ll know you understand SEO and can grow an organic audience. But once you get good results, keep building that momentum and keep posting regular blog posts.
How long does it take to get Google SEO certified?
On average, it takes students a week to complete the lessons and get certified. The cost of this course is $89 (one time payment) and is offered as part of the SEO course package which includes 3 other courses (Keyword Research Course, Ecommerce SEO Course and Google Course Analytics).