Can I Learn SEO On My Own?

You can learn SEO in a variety of ways, and it is certainly possible to teach yourself the basics. Especially in today’s online world, there are endless resources available right at your fingertips. This article will explore how you can self-teach, what the advantages and disadvantages are, and what tools you can use to educate yourself. With the right resources and mindset, you can master the basics of SEO on your own, but it’s important to keep in mind the drawbacks so you can decide if self-taught or enrolling in a course is right for you. 

Advantages to Self-Teaching SEO

The biggest advantage to self-teaching is cost savings. Classes, certificates, and degrees cost varying amounts and that price tag can often be a burden for students. Self teaching allows you to leverage free resources - whether that’s video tutorials, blog posts, discussion forums, or books - for your education, saving you hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars. 

Self-teaching also offers more flexibility. In-person or live online training programs will have set schedules and assignment due dates, requiring you to fit your work and life around your learning. Self-teaching allows for the opposite by letting you fit your learning in around your life and work. You can learn at your own pace and take as much (or as little) time as you need to master certain subjects. 

SEO Self-Teaching Tools

There are a lot of educational resources out there to read and watch that will help you build your understanding of SEO. From free trainings, courses, and webinars to video tutorials and books, knowledge is truly at your fingertips. Some of the most common self-teaching tools are outlined below, including their individual pros and cons, to help you decide which options are best for your particular circumstances.

HubSpot, Udemy, and Coursera

You could take advantage of The HubSpot blog and YouTube channel, making the most of their free insights, tools, and short classes. HubSpot Academy also offers free courses in SEO that are ideal for beginners. Udemy also offers various free courses and tutorials that can be completed in one to three hours, and even has short little instructional videos on specific topics like SEO for commerce, Google Keyword Planner, and the basics of conversion tracking. Coursera is another option, with various training sessions and videos lasting from just a few minutes to a few days. These courses can provide a familiar structure to typical classes but won’t have the accountability of scheduled class times and assigned due dates, so self-motivation will be key. 

Google Analytics Academy

Google Analytics Academy helps you learn about how Google's measurement tools can help grow your business through intelligent data collection and analysis. Completely free, there are paths for both beginners and advanced learners. Google Analytics helps you identify content and pages on your website that are ranking well or getting shared a lot. It can also help you pinpoint which pages keep people on your site longer or achieve more conversions than others. By providing metrics like page views, bounce rate, and conversion rate, Google Analytics can help SEO experts identify areas for improvement. It’s a commonly used tool among SEO professionals, so mastering it will be essential to your success. Remember though, there’s so much more to SEO than just Google Analytics, and GA’s academy won’t be able to provide the robust well-rounded curriculum of a SEO class or bootcamp.

SemRush Academy

SemRush Academy offers courses, lessons, and webinars on all things digital marketing. It is one of the most popular tools used by SEO experts thanks to features like the Keyword Magic Tool that can find and develop a master list of keywords, semantically related long-tail keywords, and the top questions being asked. SemRush Academy can teach you how to best use all of SemRush’s tools, streamlining your strategies, implementation, and results. Much like Google Analytics Academy, SemRush is just one important subject in SEO and you’ll have to explore other free learning resources for anything outside of this tool’s reach.

YouTube 

YouTube is perhaps the most widely accessible and used free resource and is full of informative videos and tutorials that can introduce you to the basic principles, techniques, and tools of SEO. There are seemingly endless content creators focused solely on teaching SEO to beginners (or advanced techniques to those with some experience). These resources can be a great way to ignite your interest or passion with SEO but are generally not advised as your primary source of education when you’re starting out. While you do have the benefit of learning at your own pace, you don’t have the ability to receive feedback or advice when you’re struggling to master a subject.

Books

SEO is now an established field, meaning there are also endless educational text resources at your disposal. Books running in topics from the art of SEO to the foundations of digital marketing are all available for purchase or can be borrowed from your local library. The caveat with printed resources is that you’ll need to be mindful that they are up to date. SEO is a constantly changing field so you’ll want your educational texts and resources to contain fresh techniques and current tools that are a part of the current SEO landscape. 

Drawbacks to Learning SEO on Your Own

It’s important to remember that there are drawbacks to learning SEO on your own. Firstly, with more freedom comes less accountability. Self-teaching can work for independent learners who can keep themselves on task and motivated, but may not be the best fit for those who find motivation through accountability. You won’t have set class times to hold you accountable to consistently setting aside time, and you also won’t have due dates to help keep you on track either. Without the right level of motivation, you can easily fall behind or lose interest in completing the training altogether. 

Self-teaching, while more cost-effective up front, could potentially cost you more money in the long run. Think of it this way: self-learning often takes substantially longer than attending a structured course, meaning it takes longer to start or advance your career. Waiting longer for this professional shift can affect your earnings, as your ability to access those higher salaries remains out of reach until you’ve mastered SEO. 

Finally, self-teaching also drastically limits your chances of networking. Most structured classes are led by an industry expert and offer some combination of mentoring, office hours, and networking events for enrolled students. More than 80% of professionals say networking is essential to their career success, so forming connections within the field of SEO can help you land better, high paying roles in a shorter amount of time. 

Alternatives to Learning SEO on Your Own

If you’re looking for alternatives to self-teaching, there’s good news. There are several other options available, including on-demand, live virtual, and in-person classes. All three have one thing in common: curriculum that’s been assembled by experts in SEO. There’s no need to figure out what you should learn and when; structured courses provide that for you. These three options do have their differences, though, so it’s important that you understand each of them. 

On-Demand Classes

Also known as self-paced, on-demand classes offer the most flexibility of any class option. Not only can you learn from wherever you want, you can also learn whenever you want. There are no due dates or scheduled class times, so you can take your time on challenging topics or skip over ones you’ve already mastered. These classes are ideal for learners with complicated schedules who need to squeeze their studying in around their work and other obligations. You’ll need to be an independent and self-motivated student to succeed in an on-demand class.

Live Online Classes

Live virtual courses are considered the middle ground between on-demand and in-person classes. You’ll attend scheduled class times from the comfort of your own home (or wherever you choose) to learn from an expert instructor. Live online classes offer instant feedback from your teacher and interactions with other students, creating the opportunity for a deeper understanding of the coursework. These classes are ideal for students that thrive in a structured learning environment but perhaps don’t live near any in-person offerings. Or, if you simply prefer online learning, then a live virtual class could be for you. 

In-Person Classes

In-person classes are considered the best way to master SEO as quickly and efficiently as possible. Held on location at scheduled times, these classes offer face-to-face interaction with your fellow students and your expert instructor. If you encounter any challenging material, you can ask questions in real time instead of spending unnecessary time figuring it out on your own. This collaborative environment is available for both full-time and part-time classes and provides structure and accountability, two things that can help you succeed. 

As you can see, there are several options available if you don’t choose the self-taught route. On-demand, live online, and in-person classes are all great ways to study SEO, so the choice will come down to which learning method is best for your schedule and lifestyle.