7 must-have tools for SEO success

SEO is one of the most complex and important aspects of online marketing. It can be difficult to do well on your own, which is why using the best tools is essential for success.

In this post, we'll dive into the top tools you need to carry out basic and even advanced SEO.

Here is a combination of free and paid tools (and fremiums) that will help you grow your blog, eCommerce store, or any other type of business - even brick and mortar places with an online presence.

1. Google Search Console

If there's one essential tool you need, it's Google Search Console.

It's a free offering by Google, the largest and most popular search engine there is.

This tool lets you see how your site is performing on Google search results, so you can make changes as needed. You can also use it to submit your sitemap and check for any errors that may be preventing your site from being indexed properly.

It's important to sign in to your Google Search Console and add your website for tracking. Google has the most accurate and relevant information when it comes to understanding traffic and behavior.

You'll also get helpful insights in your inbox such as the number of impressions, visits, and clicks your website is getting.

2. Google Analytics

Google Analytics is a must for anyone with a website. It's again, free, and it provides a ton of valuable data about your website and its visitors.

You can see how people are finding your site, what pages they're looking at, how long they're staying, and what actions they're taking.

This information is critical for understanding what's working well and what needs to be improved.

You can also use Google Analytics to set up goals and track conversions. This is important for understanding whether or not your website is achieving its objectives.

Make sure that you add your website to Google Analytics and also set up the tag manager so that Google can track what's happening on your website. These simple steps should done at the very beginning to make sure you have information from the start to help you grow your business.

3. AIOSEO - WordPress plugin

If you're using WordPress, then AIOSEO is a must-have plugin. It's one of the most popular SEO plugins there is - mainly because it's intuitive to use. You don't have to worry about technical issues if you use a plugin like this one.

AIOSEO lets you control all aspects of your SEO from one central location. You can edit your title and meta tags, optimize your content, and even do keyword research - all without having to leave your WordPress dashboard.

This plugin also has a feature that allows you to connect your Google Search Console and Google Analytics accounts. This is important for getting the most accurate data possible.

You can also optimize your blog posts with schema markup, headline analysis, readability scores, and so much more from your WordPress dashboard itself. It's pretty much 'All-in-one', so you won't have to download multiple plugins to carry out different SEO tasks.

4. Ahrefs - SEO Platform

Ahrefs is one of the best SEO tools there is for keyword research and competitor analysis.

It's a paid tool, but it offers a 7-day trial so you can try it out before committing to anything.

Ahrefs is a great tool because it's accurate and up-to-date. It also has a large database and like Google indexes websites. In fact, they claim to have the world's largest database or index of backlinks.

If you're an SEO nerd or blogger, then you know how important this is. By having access to this data, you can see which backlinks are working well for your competitors and try to get them for your own website.

This will help improve your website's ranking and visibility.

5. RankMath

RankMath is another SEO plugin that is very user-friendly. It's especially useful for beginners and anyone who wants a free WordPress plugin to handle basic SEO tasks.

When you set it up, you'll get prompts to help you optimize your website. It's similar to AIOSEO in that way.

It's useful when you want to optimize individual posts too. You can edit your website snippet, title, and meta tags from within theRankMath plugin.

6. Clearscope

Clearscope is an intelligent AI-based content optimization tool. It helps you discover search intent, find keywords, and draft posts that are more likely to paper as a top web result for specific search queries.

To use it, you create reports that focus on specific keywords. Once you generate a report, you'll get information on the existing blog posts and sites that perform well for this term.

When you start working on a report, you'll also get access to a text editor. Here, you can start creating your content and Clearscope will recommend terms you should include in your copy.

In this way, you'll make it more likely that Google 'reads' your content and understands its relevance for a specific keyword. And you improve the chances of you getting a higher ranking online and more traffic.

7. SurferSEO

While Clearscope is a powerful tool, it's also expensive. A great alternative that does much of the same work is SurferSEO. It's a content optimization tool that analyzes the top-performing content for your target keyword and provides recommendations on how to improve your own post.

SurferSEO also has a 'Content Editor.' This is similar to the one found in Clearscope. It helps you to create content that is optimized for your target keyword.

It also has a new feature called Grow Flow where you can connect your Google Search Console to the platform. SurferSEO will analyze your website and the competition and give you recommendations to optimize your site and posts.

You'll get suggestions for internal linking, keywords to add, your website load time, and more.

Jumpstart your website success with the best tools

There you go, I've laid out some of the top tools you should use for your website. If you have to choose, make sure you use Google Search Console and Analytics. And a WordPress SEO plugin like AIOSEO at the very least.

It's also a good idea to work with a content optimization tool as well. But you can always rely on common sense and a little basic research to help you draft blog posts that help people.

Don't forget to focus on creating quality content that is well-written and helpful. With the right tools, you're on your way to better website visibility and more traffic.