Even if you have graduated from school ten years ago, it does not mean you can’t obtain a new profession or upgrade your skills. It is never too late to study. Moreover, the diversity of educational opportunities in the digital era is mind-blowing. People from various corners of the planet can virtually gather in one classroom to study Machine Learning or Artificial Intelligence. Today, we are going to talk about becoming an SEO specialist and review online courses that can assist you in this.
Search engine optimization (SEO) is one of the most dynamic spheres in digital marketing. New trends appear daily and it’s hard to follow all the changes. However, there is fundamental knowledge that practically doesn’t change. These are the essentials necessary for a person who aims to dive into this sphere. Let’s start with a simple question.
What is Search Engine Optimization (SEO)?
SEO is a combination of strategies that aim to increase the visibility of a website and improve its positioning in search engines. In other words, this is a way to inform search engines about the quality of the website with the purpose to attract a bigger amount of organic (free) traffic owing to the enhancement of the website’s rank in search engines. Does it still sound complicated? To make it extremely simple, you work on producing a website that would appear on the first page of results in Google.
For the most part, everything depends on the type of content, structure, and links to the website. That’s the direction that you need to develop.
However, keep in mind, that SEO is aimed to enhance the interaction with the search engine but you must never forget about your audience. The user experience is above everything.
Why does a website need SEO?
SEO increases the visibility of any website and attracts traffic which eventually enhances the profit of a business.
Search engines are the largest and the best sources of Internet Traffic. You definitely use the most renowned of them almost daily:
- Bing
- Yahoo
Sure, such social networks like Facebook, Twitter, Google +, Instagram, Reddit, etc. are also capable to draw plenty of users to your website. Still, search engines remain to be the basic source. Some people even use a search string in Google to find Facebook or YouTube.
The beginners in the SEO sphere always use Google for finding information. When you want to read an article, buy a product, order pizza or services you address Google.
Another reason for the search engines’ uniqueness is their opportunity to provide you with targeted traffic. People are looking for something we are offering them.
Users’ search requests are the works they enter in the search string. These words and phrases are crucial. If you don’t optimize your website properly and set the wrong keywords or produce poor content, search engines will ignore you.
Targeted traffic is key to increasing your level of income. SEO won’t bring you millions of views, clicks, and dollars in one day and requires investments but the results are worth it. Don’t even hesitate to put up money for this marketing instrument if you want to have a growing income.
Can I become an SEO specialist?
Without doubts, SEO is a challenging and complicated sphere unless you put all your efforts into learning it and keeping up with the upcoming trends. SEO fundamentals are quite simple. The main issue is the way you plan to realize the chosen strategies. There are plenty of free sources online that will help you do this in the right way. Just make sure you don’t keep all the knowledge in theory and practice a lot. Becoming an SEO guru is easier than you think.
What is the salary of an SEO specialist?
Many people consider changing their jobs not only because they feel they haven’t found a genuine calling yet. The financial aspect can be quite a motivational reason as well.
BrightLocal made research that indicates the average salaries of SEO specialists in the United States of America. Thus, SEO marketers earn around $81,103 annually. Small agencies and freelancers have an income worth about $1779 from one client.
The average hourly rate is $119. The minimum wage of specialists in the USA is $500–699. Search marketers work around 44 hours per week. Agencies and freelancers devote 25 hours of their time to solving SEO tasks a week.
An SEO beginner in the United Kingdom can count on getting from 25,000 to 35,000 pounds sterling. The salary of a chief SEO marketer starts at 80,000 pounds sterling and more.
According to Hudson, the salary of an SEO marketer in Australia is from $60,000 to $80,000 for beginners, while an expert can easily get from $90,000 to $120,000.
The SEO sphere is in a blossom and requires bright talents every day. Who knows, maybe you can become the next leading expert?
The Most Popular SEO Services
The responsibilities of a marketer in this sphere are diverse. Let’s take a look at the SEO services in demand. Below, you shall find a list of 10 services in the decreasing order:
- Web design
- On-site optimization
- SEO audit and analysis
- PPC advertisements
- Optimization of a page in Google My Business (GMB)
- Social Media
- Reputation management
- Mention management
- Link building and content distribution
- Creation and optimization of content
Top 16 Online Courses to Learn SEO
There is a wide range of both free and paid courses on the Internet for beginners and advanced specialists. Even reading a blog written by SEO experts or listening to podcasts can become your guide for getting expertise. If you are still hesitating whether or not you want to obtain this new profession, try reading the related articles, subscribe to famous gurus, or follow specialists on Instagram to check out their routine.
If you have already decided that being an SEO marketer is your vocation, then sit comfortably and be ready to choose a course that will help you make your dreams come true. Today, we are going to review the most popular and promising courses for learning SEO online. Let’s get closer to business:
- Search Engine Optimization Fundamentals is an online course conducted by Rebekah May from the University of California, Davis. You can either purchase the course and get a certificate or get the information for free;
- SEO Training Course: Building Sustainable Traffic for Business Growth by HubSpot Academy can become an excellent boost for a start. It’s absolutely free and will take less than 3 hours of your time;
- Traffic Think Tank is a bit different from the rest of the sources we are sharing today. This is actually a whole community of professionals where you can access webinars, templates, materials, and even ask for pieces of advice from such experts as Matt Barby, Nick Eubanks, and Ian Howells. There is a monthly subscription worth $119;
- Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Training Course is a pricey course at $699. However, they have a 100% money-back guarantee. You’ll be certified after the completion of the education and get a deep understanding of the sphere;
- SEO Fundamental Course with Greg Gifford consists of only 4 hours of free lessons from the leading expert which will help you to learn the basics of SEO. After finishing it, you can try your hand at getting certified by SEMrush;
- Become an SEO Expert on LinkedIn with 6 experts from the industry and 15 hours of classes. The first month of education is free. There are more options on this platform where you can pick up any material that appeals to you;
- Learn SEO by Mangools is probably the best guide for people who are not even beginners. The course includes 9 chapters each highlighting a new topic. After these classes, you will have to pass a test and get a certificate. Moreover, you will get the PDFs with materials for free;
- SEO For Everyone – Search Engine Optimization Essentials on Udemy is “designed for everyone, not only technical wizards”. Mind, that you need basic knowledge of creating a website for this course. The price is $9.99 with a discount;
- Lynda is an online platform with a wide range of various tutorials and courses. The first month of studying is free. After that, the subscription costs 14.95 euros. There are more than 30 different classes on Lynda to choose from!
- SEO Training by MOZ is another pricey educational course worth investing in. It costs $497. It’s a wonderful choice for people who want to create a team of SEO specialists eventually;
- Introduction to Search Engine Optimization is another excellent course by Rebekah May from the University of California on Coursera;
- Titanic Lies About SEO—for Beginners or a Fresh Perspective on Udemy asks you to forget everything you knew about SEO and start from scratch. This brief course consists of 25 lectures and lasts for only 31 minutes;
- The Complete SEO Course by Ben Hill will quickly dive you into the essential aspects of SEO. The course costs $9.99 with a discount;
- SEO 2019: Complete SEO Training + SEO for WordPress Websites will help you to set up a WordPress website with all the necessary plugins and settings. It does not only cover SEO but also includes other elements imports for a significant interaction;
- Courses at Yoast Academy offer precise and updated information about the search engine optimization. Why wouldn’t they if they are real experts? Yoast Academy has the All-around SEO training at $199;
- The SEO Playbook is considered to be one of the most substantial and significant courses conducted by Robbie Richards.
Tips for SEO Beginners
Perhaps this might sound weird or even funny, but you have to discover how does a search engine work. Believe it or not, but googling “How does Google work?” is not a joke. Read carefully the native guidelines the system offers SEO specialists. How can you learn to optimize websites for people and search algorithms if you have no idea about the principles and concepts of its work?
Here are the four main things that every SEO marketer must know:
- general idea about CSS and HTML
- search engines’ algorithms
- essentials of optimizing and promoting a website
- analytical tools
You should also bear in mind that your task is not to cheat with search engines and their algorithms. You have to learn how to play by their rules. Some people used to practice unfair methods of promoting their websites. There are getting less and less of them and, to tell you the truth, they are pretty useless.
Another important fact is that your task is not to destroy or harm your competitors. Your goal is to make your website better.
Reviewing, analyzing, and using other people’s experiences is an excellent chance to practice. Many companies and SEO bloggers publish showcases that demonstrate their success or failure in achieving the SEO goals.
SEO is constantly developing so if you want to become a first-class expert, monitoring of fresh news and sources of knowledge must become your hobby.
Conclusion
Have you changed your mind yet? We hope that we managed to inspire you and prove that everything is possible in the era of digital innovations.
Don’t forget that the main point in learning SEO is practicing the theoretical material. You can read and watch a whole bunch of articles and videos! However, if you don’t do use this useful knowledge in practice, you will never become an expert in this field.
Practice can be different. Someone heads to special forums and recruitment websites to find a company that accepts interns. Others love taking control over everything and start promoting their services or projects. The third person might try looking for a project on UpWork. All of these variants are perfect for an SEO beginner. Clearly, you shall fall and rise, get disappointed and frustrated. But the results are worth the efforts taken. Wishing you luck in the new field and hope to get a discount if we need search engine optimization services one day!
About the Author
Thornie Longmuir is a young SEO specialist and content creator. Since 2007, he has been working in the field of information technology and internet communications for the website EssayBulls. Now, he practices search engine optimization (SEO) for sites, as well as for leading advertising companies such as Google AdWords and Facebook. He tries to present the articles in a simple and understandable language. He reveals relevant topics and fundamental principles for creating, advertising, and promoting websites on the Internet. The main part of the published material is designed for beginners who want to learn how to develop and promote web projects on their own.
