[Build Backlinks Online] SEO from a Newb's Perspective

Build Backlinks Online has posted a new item, 'SEO from a Newb's Perspective'


Posted by HappyBrooke
This post was originally in YouMoz, and was promoted to the main blog because it
provides great value and interest to our community. The author's views are
entirely his or her own and may not reflect the views of SEOmoz, Inc.

Authors note: Im new to the SEOmoz community and super excited to be
contributing but frankly, Im a little intimidated by all the expertise on this
blog. Gulp. Read and critique with love and understanding for my beginner
status, please. Here we go!



For all of you search engine optimization gurus out there, I hope my
perspective is a fresh one for you. Sometimes its fun to temporarily place
yourself back in the mindset of an ignorant beginner. You probably cant remember
the day before you understood SEO backwards and forwards, can you?

Well, Im still there. (Yes, thank you for the supportive smiles and knowing
looks.) I still dont understand it all BUT Im on my way, and Im making
progress.

Stereotypes about SEO

In college, my understanding of search engine optimization was that it was for
techie people, a hybrid hobby of computer science and math. Where I gained this
impression, I dont remember, but I truly thought SEO could only be done by the
guys who knew JavaScript and wrote code. That person wasnt me. As an English
creative writing major, I spent my time writing sonnets, short stories, and
articles for the school newspaper.

I loved the blogosphere, but beyond blogging and typical Internet usage, I
never considered learning more about the inner workings of the web. To me, SEO
seemed like a highly complex field easily comprehended only if youd successfully
hacked into something in your lifetime which, as you can probably guess, I
hadnt.

When I graduated in 2012, I realized:


The journalism market was shutting like a Venus flytrap,

I would suffer daily psychotic breakdowns if I had to teach English to
adolescents, and

I didnt want to dish out money for grad school.


So I started applying for every kind of job that involved words techie or
otherwise.

I still thought careers in SEO were for people who solve Rubiks cubes for fun,
take computers apart and put them back together, and keep their scientific
calculators in their back pockets people who live in a programmed, digital
world of computer gibberish, glowing screens, and Internet forums.



Then, as luck would have it, I got hired to do SEO.

At first, I was bewildered. Why would anybody want me to do SEO?

However, my boss told me that my present skill set as a writer would actually
be a good fit for the role. Besides, he made SEO sound really exciting. As I
started to research and gain a more accurate impression of SEO, I was pleasantly
surprised to learn I could actually like this.

Yes, I was unaware of how fascinating the field of SEO is today. This new era
of content creation and ethical linking has my head spinning. Now that Im doing
SEO, Im so excited about all the possibilities SEO has to offer anyone who goes
about it!

Conversion from skeptic to supporter

The first thing I did after I interviewed for my online marketing job at Happy
Dog Web Productions was to download the SEOMoz Pros Free Beginners Guide to SEO
(THANK YOU, GUYS). I took copious notes. I looked things up. I read it slow.
Then I went hunting around the Internet for more information about this strange
new acronym.

As a frequent Googler myself, it was not news to me that people flock to the
Internet like children to the candy aisle. The idea that Google is a diamond
mine for marketing departments is completely logical. I already understood that
traditional advertising and marketing efforts are no longer how we do things
after reading books like Paul Ardens Its Not How Good You Are, Its How Good You
Want To Be, and Seth Godins Purple Cow, among others. The way we reach audiences
has changed. Everybody is on the Internet, looking for answers, information,
reviews, e-commerce, you name it. With the short patience of the average search
engine user, companies have to be easy to find and rank for the right search
queries otherwise, well, tough luck!

I began to understand the necessity of SEO in giving companies online
credibility. Visibility and respect is a hard thing to achieve when the Internet
is overstuffed with information, and even if you have an amazing, relevant
website, Google or Bing or Yahoo! may not see it that way, making it impossible
for people to find you. But optimizing your online presence for the search
engines and the user alike, both off-site and on-site, will eventually, over
time, convince the search engines to reward your quality website with a higher
ranking.

(Whew! See how much Ive learned?!)

The part of SEO Im still coming to terms with is how Google figures out
rankings with its rules and algorithms and valuing certain practices over
others. Thankfully, Im not the only one trying to understand even the most
seasoned professionals are constantly hopping trying to keep up with rapid-fire
change in the way search engines compile rankings.

News alert: You, too, can join the fun

Overall, I understand now that good, ethical SEO concepts are not too
complicated to grasp - and good, ethical SEO concepts are vital in helping
companies get noticed, marketing their brand, and encouraging conversions. If
your website content is online but nobody can find it, why even have it?

You dont have to be a brilliant computer hacker to grasp SEO and how to go
about it one of my most valuable takeaways to date. Yes, you have to be able to
follow Googles algorithmic updates and understand statistics, and having a solid
research and analysis process is crucial, but there's more to SEO than the
numbers.



SEO professionals should be fairly


Techie,


Internet savvy, and

Marketing-minded.



But the surprising job qualifications for the SEO person?


Have outstanding social skills. All this guest blogging and link earning
requires respect, a polite demeanor, and the ability to connect with people.

Be strategic. Strategy goes a long way with SEO like setting attainable goals
for keyword optimization, creating pages for SEO purposes, and brainstorming
what users will want to read and find.

Think creatively. SEO is about attracting people with great content. I never
realized before how user-geared current SEO practices are, which means the SEO
expert juggles marketing, public relations, and advertising hats, too!

Write well. You dont have to be at a Pulitzer level, but you do have to
express ideas logically and write effectively for your intended audience.


When I learned that todays great SEO has a lot to do with creating awesome
content for the user, I immediately realized that this field was a good fit for
me because I like words, and Im a writer. Yay! I know I have a ways to go with
the analytics and research, but I really enjoy my current role on the SEO team.

Itll be a slow trek to reach the level of some of you Mozzers! But Im excited
about SEO and hope you enjoyed hearing from my perspective as a newb.
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