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The Beginner’s Toolkit for SEO Success

Ready to grow your online presence? This guide breaks down essential resources and tools every search engine optimization beginner needs for success.

You’re a small to midsize business owner or marketer ready to get your brand discovered online. One of the best ways to accomplish that? Through search engine optimization (SEO). 

SEO involves optimizing a website and its content to improve visibility and rankings on search engine results pages (SERPs) for relevant keywords. It involves techniques like keyword research, on-page optimization, and building high-quality backlinks to attract organic traffic. If you’re new to SEO, all that can sound overwhelming, and you might not know where to start on your SEO journey. 

In this guide, we break down some of our favorite resources for learning and practicing SEO. With these sources and tools in your pocket, you’ll be ready to tackle your first SEO project. 

4 Best SEO Learning Resources

Before fully getting your hands dirty, you need to know the basics of SEO, such as what to look for in a technical crawl, how to write SEO content, and tips for performing keyword research. Luckily, the internet is practically bursting at the seams with resources (many free!) for learning SEO. Here are some great starting points: 

1. Semrush Academy

Semrush is a tried-and-true source for SEO. Not only do they have invaluable SEO tools (we’ll get to that later), but they also offer an extensive library of expert-led learning resources. You can learn the basics of SEO, paid advertising, content marketing, and more. Depending on the course, you may even receive a certification for passing.

2. Hubspot Academy

Hubspot offers tons of free courses and certifications for all things digital marketing, including SEO. You can find videos on keyword research, reporting, improving technical SEO, and even SEO for YouTube. They also offer an SEO certification course so you can get a certificate to boast about on your LinkedIn profile. 

3. Moz Academy

While not free, Moz Academy offers a full slate of comprehensive, detailed SEO courses. They cover foundational and advanced topics, so you can easily grow your skills. Most resources require a subscription or one-time payment, but the investment could be well worth it for the knowledge you gain. 

If you’re looking for a free but less guided resource, you can also check out the Moz Beginner’s Guide to SEO.

4. Ahrefs SEO Course for Beginners

Ahrefs has its own Beginner’s Guide to SEO. It covers topics like how SEO works, keyword research, link building, technical SEO, and more. Throughout, Ahrefs provides relevant links to its blog and YouTube channel so you can continue learning on your terms.

4 Sources for Staying Updated on Current SEO Trends and News

If you want to succeed in your SEO endeavors, it takes more than knowing and understanding the practice. The search landscape changes fast, and you never know when an algorithm update will throw a wrench in your traffic. Staying on top of the latest news can help you feel prepared for whatever the SEO world throws at you. Below are four resources our team frequently checks.

1. Search Engine Land

Search Engine Land is a leading publication covering all aspects of search engine marketing (SEO and PPC). Their articles include breaking news on algorithm updates, industry changes, and major search engine developments. They also post how-to guides, expert opinions, and actionable insights to help marketers and SEO professionals stay ahead of the curve.

2. Search Engine Journal

Like Search Engine Land, Search Engine Journal offers news, educational articles, and actionable tips on SEO, content marketing, social media, and more. Their site features contributions from industry experts, case studies, guides, and news. It’s an excellent source for helping both beginners and advanced SEO practitioners stay informed.

3. SEO Roundtable

While Search Engine Land and Search Engine Journal are more news-focused, SEO Roundtable is forum-focused. This blog tracks discussions from SEO forums and communities, highlighting industry news, algorithm updates, and insider tips. With topics and conversations from Reddit and Twitter/X, SEO Roundtable offers quick access to trending news and updates, sometimes before they’re widely reported.

4. Google Search Central

On the more technical side, Google Search Central can be a fantastic resource. It’s Google’s official hub for SEO resources, documentation, and announcements. Search Central provides first-hand information but is geared more toward developers and technical SEO professionals.

6 Tools for Practicing SEO

Armed with your newfound SEO knowledge and your favorite news source to stay updated, it’s time to equip yourself with the right tools to put your learning into practice. Consider these six SEO tools as you begin your journey. 

1. Semrush

Semrush is our team’s favorite tool. It helps us with every step of the SEO content process, from performing keyword research to optimizing content to reporting. We also leverage it for tasks like competitive research. 

2. Screaming Frog SEO Spider

Screaming Frog is our technical SEO team’s go-to for website crawls. It’s crucial for identifying technical SEO problems like broken links, orphaned pages, redirect loops, metadata issues, duplicate content, and schema markup errors. Identifying these issues allows our content and SEO teams to quickly fix them. 

3. MozPro

Similar to Semrush, MozPro can help with keyword research, site audits, and content optimization. Where it really shines, though, is its keyword tracking tool. It can monitor the positions of your target keywords on SERPs over time and help you analyze how well your keywords are performing, what changes are happening, and where to focus your efforts.

4. Ahrefs

Our team doesn’t personally use Ahrefs, but we know it’s another great tool for backlink analysis, competitor insights, and keyword exploration. Their blog is also a good source of information. 

5. Google Analytics and Search Console

Data and analytics should always inform your SEO and content strategy. While tools like Semrush can provide some information, nothing beats the insights you can gain from Google Analytics and Google Search Console. If you’re unfamiliar with these platforms, Google offers courses to help you learn how to use them. 

6. Answer the Public

If you’re on a tight budget, Answer the Public can help with the ideation and keyword research stage—and you get three free searches each day. This site displays questions and topics people search for online, helping generate content ideas.

GPO Has Your SEO Needs Covered

Starting your SEO journey can be overwhelming, but not with GPO by your side. We offer expert SEO services, from actionable technical SEO recommendations to high-quality content. Get in touch today to learn more about how we can help elevate your online presence.

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