What Skills Do You Need To Become An SEO Professional

SEO or search engine optimization has always played a significant role in digital marketing. This is mainly due to the power that search engines wield over organic search. If you want to drive traffic to your website and earn a good SERP ranking, you need to have the skills and knowledge to implement effective SEO strategies.

A lot of organizations turn to professionals to help them with SEO, but with the right training, you can become an SEO specialist in your own right.

What Does An SEO Professional Do?

Search engine optimization (SEO) specialists have extensive knowledge of how search engines work. Their primary responsibility is to improve website rankings organically (or via PPC campaigns) through the use of targeted keywords and general website optimization techniques. They are focused on increasing website traffic to generate leads that turn into new customers.

All You Need To Know About Becoming An SEO Pro

Many factors determine the success of an SEO strategy. But at the heart of every strategy is someone making the final decisions. This person is tasked with leading a team, setting goals, doing research, and other various jobs.

Without the right skills to handle these responsibilities, your entire SEO strategy could easily fall apart. As such, the first step to becoming an SEO professional is to develop your skills and expand your knowledge.

So let’s examine the most critical skills you need to become a successful SEO specialist.

• Data Analysis

Although content is at the heart of digital marketing, data is a close second. Effective SEO requires specialists to have a working knowledge of metrics and data analysis so they can measure the results of their efforts.

In SEO data analysis includes interpreting reports on organic traffic increases to determine which tactics were responsible for that increase, and examining data on thousands of keywords to determine the best direction for your strategy and content.

• Research

You can’t analyze data if you don’t have any information to compare it to. This is where research skills come into play. SEO research begins with keyword and competitor analysis, which gives you the necessary insights to create the foundation for your SEO strategy.

But SEO requires more research than that. You’ll need to do a lot of research to keep up with the latest news about search engine technology. You’ll also need to find answers to problems when faced with challenges. So the more efficient and skilled you are at doing research, the better.

• Versatility

There’s always something to learn in the field of SEO. It might be a new programming language or understanding machine learning – there’s always new information to consider. SEO professionals also need to be versatile to adapt to changes in search engine algorithms. This is because the algorithm search engines use to rank search results are always changing.

• Communication

Although communication is more of an interpersonal skill than an SEO skill, it’s still an essential part of SEO. SEO professionals need to communicate proactively with their team to ensure that directives are carried out. Excellent communication skills are also required when explaining complex concepts to clients, who may not be technically proficiency in SEO.

• Writing and Editing

Content is a crucial element in also aspects of the digital realm – including SEO. Advertising and marketing campaigns are built around content. Even though SEO is primarily focused on keywords and phrases, you’ll still need to create content your readers can relate to. Therefore being able to write and edit the content so that it’s relevant, engaging, and informational is essential.

• Creative Thinking

Creative thinking is arguably the most valuable non-digital skill required in SEO. Due to the ever-changing nature of SEO ability to think out of the box and not be afraid to push the boundaries on creativity is a valuable skill that will never go out of style.

Get in touch with the Digital School of Marketing

If you would like to take your Digital Marketing skills to the next level contact the Digital School of Marketing for all your course requirements.