SEO Prerequisites

Some personality traits like a tendency to think logically, creativity, and problem-solving can make it easier for you to learn SEO. Becoming familiar with some of the tools that Web Optimization/SEO Specialists use is a big help, too. You might worry that SEO will be too hard to learn. This guide will help you understand the best methods for learning SEO and what you should study first to make the learning process easier. This way, you’ll be successful however you choose to apply your new skills.

What is SEO?

Search Engine Optimization, or SEO, is a way to drive more traffic to your website and gain more customers. It depends upon content, technical website optimization, link building, and keyword research to ensure that your website appears near the top of a Google results page. A BrightEdge survey conducted in 2019 found that SEO is 1000% more effective at driving website traffic than organic methods like social media posts. Professionals who work with SEO are often called Website Optimization Specialists.

The primary goal of SEO is to build trust between your business and your users. You can do this through high-quality content, ensuring your website loads quickly in desktop and mobile versions, and optimizing your site for voice search. Another way to improve your rankings on search engine results pages (SERPs) is to create a “Google My Business” listing.

Read more about what SEO is and why you should learn it.

What Can You Do with SEO?

SEO is used to determine search engine success in three crucial ways: technical SEO, on-page SEO, and off-page SEO.

Technical SEO looks at a website's technical features and how they affect search engine rankings. These include the site structure, schema, and URL. The site needs to be easy to navigate with a clearly understood organization. Other aspects of technical SEO are website loading speed, mobile friendliness, voice optimization, and the XML sitemap.

The primary goal of on-page optimization is meeting the intent of the searcher/user with high-quality content. On-page content is essential and refers to everything that appears on a website, including text, keywords, images, tags, and internal links. Researching and choosing the best SEO keywords shows that the website has authority and is trustworthy.

Off-page SEO involves building links and strengthening social media engagement. Backlinks and social media help build authority and trust with search engines. Link building refers to finding reputable and relevant websites to link to your website or content. The more references to your content on other reliable sites, the better. Additionally, building out social media presence across various channels will further establish your internet presence and boost your SEO. You can use different analytical tools to track SEO and conversion rates.

Is SEO Easy to Learn?

If you are a numbers person and comfortable with navigating the internet, SEO should be relatively easy for you to learn. You can watch some free tutorials, listen to podcasts, or read books, but most people prefer to take a class when they are learning something new.

Noble Desktop offers several courses in SEO training. These classes are available in-person at Noble’s NYC location, or students can attend live online SEO classes from anywhere in the world. Not interested in taking a longer course but still want to learn? Get a general overview of SEO and learn where to focus your SEO efforts with Noble’s free SEO seminar. Another free resource available from Noble Desktop is their SEO blog, which has a wealth of informative articles about search engine optimization, including topics like 8 Ways to Improve Site Speed, SEO for Dummies, Tools of a Search Marketer, and more.

What to Know Before Learning SEO

Some skills pave the way for a successful SEO career. Logical reasoning, curiosity, a love of learning, and perseverance are personality traits that can make learning SEO easier. Some technical skills that will help you get a job in SEO are knowing how to do website audits, keyword research, and data analytics.

Logic, Critical Thinking, and Problem-Solving

Logic, critical thinking, and problem-solving are related skills that underlie a career in SEO. You need to be able to interpret data and decide if a website is performing well and how to improve performance. What keywords will do the best on this website? What content attracts the target audience? SEO means endlessly tweaking different parts of the website to get the best results.

Curiosity, Perseverance, and Life-Long Learning

Curiosity about how search engines work and why is another essential skill that will make you a good SEO Specialist. Digging into the topic and reading everything you can find, listening to podcasts, and attending conferences can help you stay on top of the fast-changing field of SEO.

Sticking with a problem until you solve it is also essential with something like SEO, which changes frequently. This means that SEO Specialists are constantly learning new ways to do things and tools to use.

SEO Tools

Knowing how to use SEO tools for website audits, keyword research, and data analytics are not necessarily prerequisites for learning SEO, but the more you understand about common tools, the further along you will be toward getting a job as a Web Optimization/SEO Specialist. These tools help you to identify your target audience, track what they are doing, keep an eye on the competition, and determine which keywords to use for your content. Analytics tools tell you if you are meeting your campaign goals and help you plan for the future.

Learn SEO with Hands-on Training at Noble Desktop

If you want to change careers and become a Web Optimization/SEO Specialist, you can sign up for Noble Desktop’s SEO Bootcamp. This two-part class will teach you beginning and advanced SEO strategies to get your website to the top of the page. In the first class, SEO Level 1, you’ll learn how search engines work, how to do keyword research and competitor analysis, and how to use SEO-driven content to increase web traffic. SEO Level 2 covers how to do SEO audits and gives you hands-on experience with an expert instructor.

You can also sign up for a Google Analytics Bootcamp to learn how to set up an account, know which metrics to track, and understand the Google Analytics reports. You can also learn about paid advertising with Google Ads Bootcamp.

Another way to prepare for a career as a Web Optimizations/SEO Specialist is a digital marketing certificate course. Noble’s Digital Marketing Certificate includes the digital marketing, SEO, and Google Analytics bootcamps, plus Google Ads and classes on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, TikTok, and Twitter marketing, as well as content marketing with blogs.

Use Noble Desktop’s Classes Near Me to find other courses in digital marketing in your area.

Key Insights

• Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a way to drive traffic to your website, get more customers, and increase sales.
• Some personality traits can make it easier for you to learn SEO, like strong critical thinking and problem-solving skills
• Knowing how to use some tools helps too. Some important skills that may help you learn SEO more efficiently include keyword research, website audits, and data analytics.