If SEO is part of your growth strategy, how did you learn it in the first place? Did it take you hours to learn it and is it a pain?
Hi everyone! During the COVID19 lockdown recently, it occurred to me that many people are going online to build their digital presence but SEO is neglected as it seems somewhat of a mystery/too much work/impossible/too complicated. Do you share that painpoint?
How did you get through it?
ps not sure if this is the right group to post this on!
SEO is my entire strategy as a website/blog catering to entrepreneurs. I've learned from my previous blogs and projects and from watching videos and reading blogs about it.
I used the AHrefs free tools a lot (https://ahrefs.com/). Scroll down to the footer and they are all there. They allow you to follow along to videos using actual tools so you can get an idea of what data is returned and then figure out how to use it.
Be sure to hook up Google search console, as its also an incredible tool that is free from Google. You will be able to see what keywords make your website appear in search queries, and then by doing keyword research, you can either work on moving yourself up in the results or making your site appear for new keywords.
Thanks! Do you feel that this process of learning SEO can be improved? I am a professional SEO person and I've learnt it via online courses, trial and error and from building my own websites, and I'm wondering if this learning process can be simplified. Do you think there will be value in that?
Yes, yes, yes, definitely! There is so much stuff out there, different kinds of beginner guides, checklists, etc.. But surprisingly most of them recommend different processes. After you get used to it, it might seem like a simple process but for someone who is just starting out, there is a lot to do.
I started taking online courses a few months ago. If you don't practice it concurrently, its super easy to forget. Just a few days ago, I got super confused on what to do next and I had to google 'how to learn SEO' just to remind myself the process again. Ahrefs Blog has a blog post named 'How to Learn SEO and Stay Sane' I think this title summarizes the problem :)
I even looked for internships to learn & experience but haven't found one yet. (understandably, most of them are looking for native English speakers)
I see, SEO is actually a very big subject and quite specialized, Maybe I can make it easier in someway for Indie hackers in general 🤔
Definitely it can be improved. Finding user intent or buying intent and working it into an article is a skill, and you can always improve it. I've gone back to my older articles from when I first started and revamped them and increased their conversions a lot by applying my experience. Its one of those always keep learning things.
It is so interesting to hear this thank you so much for sharing
Seo is important if you plan to get customers on the web. The issue with seo is it is always evolving and changing. So learning never ends.
But learning the basics of seo is fairly easy and everyone should do that. Designing strategies related to seo is complicated and requires experience.
I see, in my day job I design SEO strategies for startups and enterprises, and yes it takes a lot of research and work, not to mention specific experience. I wanted to see if I could create guides or specific steps to help others, but I know its overdone on the web. I'm wondering if there is any value in teaching it to people who want to build a longer lasting online presence.
I think what you provide and how you provide is what matters. Sometimes the same thing taught in a better way works
SEO is not complicated. Most of it is just common sense.
It’s hard though because usually it takes a lot of time and effort to end up ranking well.
Thanks @MichalM do you think its essential for you though?
It depends on the use case. I am building a job board jobsinjs.com and in my case SEO is fairly important.
Indeed, how are you managing it? I know you are right, it is a lot of time and effort to rank well.
I know I learnt SEO the old skool way by online courses, trial and error, building my own sites etc and I later on become an SEO professional, but if you have to maintain your project as well, do you think you might outsource this?
Right now it is too integral to outsource, but maybe later I will.
Good luck with it if you need any help feel free to get in touch I would be happy to provide some direction or advice