Search Engine Optimization is the process of advancing and developing your online content so that the search engine shows it as a top result when searchers type specific keywords. It is the art of ranking high on a search engine platform in the unpaid section, known as the organic listings.
A career in SEO has huge prospects in today’s world as almost every company wants an SEO expert or scholar to help them build their content. It has been around for almost 20 years but gained high recognition and was perceived as a real profession in the last few years.
Hence, we will provide you with a step to step guide to building a successful career in Search Engine Optimization.
10 STEPS TO START A CAREER IN SEO
Building an SEO career needs good communication analytical and development skills, and not to forget basic HTML skills (if not a developer)
Hence here are the steps-
STEP 1: Building up SEO skills
STEP 2: Improving writing skills
STEP 3: Obtaining basic development skills
STEP 4: Building up analytical skills
STEP 5: Learning to use Search Engine Optimization tools
STEP 6: Mastering Google Webmaster Guidelines
STEP 7: Building SEO experience
STEP 8: Become Google Ads Certified
STEP 9: Acquiring your first client
STEP 10: Preparing for the SEO interview
In the end, we will confront the following popular questions regarding SEO-
- Succeeding step to advance your SEO Career?
- Is SEO a good career choice?
- Money made as an SEO professional
STEP 1- BUILDING UP SEO SKILLS
Search Engine Optimization is all about developing a website for search engine so that it ranks higher in the search results. Hence opening time over gathering knowledge on how search engines work, link building, backlinks, what and black hat SEO, keyword researching and technical SEO, on-page and off-page SEO will help in honing up your skills.
One of the easier, reliable faster ways is to expert in an SEO course.
STEP 2- WRITING SKILLS
Advancing and enhancing your content headers, page title, content body and meta description is one of the most common of all SEO tasks. Hence, your writing skills should be on- point to build a successful career out of SEO.
You must undertake courses to improve your English writing skills if you are planning to work with foreign customers.
STEP 3- OBTAINING BASIC DEVELOPMENT SKILLS
An SEO profession does not necessarily require you to be a developer, but basic development skills are a must You. must be familiar and comfortable with reading and understanding HTML language and coding [refer to W3schools], JavaScript and how a website is structured and placed.
You need to possess the skills to work with WordPress to edit titles and descriptions as well as sitemaps, permalinks, comment settings, etc.
STEP 4- BUILDING UP ANALYTICAL SKILLS
One must have good reading, interpreting and presenting skills when it comes to SEO. A good SEO report includes structured information from sources such as Google Analytics, Google Search Console and SEMRUSH. Knowledge of how to use tools like Excel and Google Sheets is also necessary.
STEP 5- LEARNING TO USE SEO TOOLS
Provided you know how to use them, the right SEO tools can make your life better and easier.
Following are some of the important tools of SEO-
- YOAST SEO- the most popular SEO tool – Without knowing the insides and outsides of this tool, one cannot master SEO!
- CHROME DEVELOPER TOOLS- Used to assess and examine the HTML coding of a page.
- SEMRUSH- Used for many tasks such as link building, PPC campaigns, competitor analysis, keyword research, etc.
- Other tools- Page Speed Insights, Lighthouse
STEP 6- MASTERING GOOGLE WEBMASTER GUIDELINES
Google Webmaster Guidelines is a set of rules designed by Google to explain about their quality standards and rules. These rules are of high importance and if one does not follow these guidelines, their website can be given penalty and castigated(loss of traffic and rankings)
Hence in an interview, you might be asked to read and understand the Google Webmaster Guidelines.
STEP 7- BUILDING SEO EXPERIENCE
In order to become an SEO professional, one must practice SEO and prove their employers that you can improve their rankings od a website in the SERPS. Always remember, an SEO company will hire you for your experience and abilities far more than your educational qualifications.
If a new user, start by picking up a niche, doing your keyword as you can. Keep learning from your mistakes, learn from them research, starting a website and trying to get high rankings for your website for as many keywords and strive for perfection.
This can be your one-way ticket to secure your first job as an SEO.
STEP 8- BECOME GOOGLE ADS CERTIFIED
Search Engine Marketing includes Paid Search Advertising and hence Google Ads is the most sought after PPC platform in the market.
Google Ads is shown on the top of the search results page and below the organic results, hence it is good to know what conditions an ad can appear higher than the organic results.
SEO and Google Ads work vey well together and it is an opportunity for you to prove your digital marketing skills as well to your clients.
STEP 9- ACQUIRING YOUR FIRST CLIENT
Your main and primary goal is to now acquire clients. You should now test your skills in a real-life scenario and enhance your resume with hands- on experience.
Registering on job portals like fiverr and peopleperhour as a freelancer account can help you get many clients. Filter the requests, apply for job profiles and keep your prices low to secure a couple of contracts. Always remember, at this point, your goal is to gain work experience and get ready for upcoming job interviews.
STEP 10- PREPARING FOR THE SEO INTERVIEW
Finally, after honing your skills and gaining work experience, comes the time for the SEO interview.
Introducing yourself, always elaborate cases of SEO work you did for employers and how much did you better their rankings on search engines. The mention about SEO certifications and courses that you followed can also be done.
Be prepared for questions on Google Webmaster Guidelines and questions like-
- “How to enhance, develop and optimize a page for a particular keyword?”
- “Do we need links for higher website ranking?”
FAQ ON SEO CAREER
Is SEO a good career choice?
If you are passionate about learning about the Internet and Digital Marekting, then SEO is a good career choice.
Advantages-
- Self-paced- can set own hours
- As the Internet grows, more SEO professionals will be required and hence its importance will grow.
- Golden opportunity to meet people from different lands
- You can work from home and start your own business or freelancer or SEO agency
Disadvantages-
- Some people might find it difficult to adopted to the frequent changes as SEO is a fast- changing industry.
- Impatient, ill-mannered clients and over the top expectations can be a disadvantage for SEO professionals.
- Regardless of how well you design the SEO Campaign, there are some uncontrollable factors which might hinder your performance
What is the next step to advance your SEO career and how much money can you make?
The next crucial step to advance your SEO career is to learn and hone skills to become a digital marketing manager.
Amount of money made by a SEO professional largely depends on your experience, country of residence and other major factors. Average hourly rate for solo SEO consultants is between $50- $125.
If you are starting with zero experience, you should not expect to get paid since this develops over time with work experience.
Hence, this summarizes what it takes to build a successful career in Search Engine Optimization.