How Hard Is SEO?

Written by Lawrence Hitches

3 min read
Posted 16 December 2022

SEO is not hard, it’s easy to learn the fundamental concepts, execution is difficult, over time you’ll become more experienced and it will be easier to get results in search traffic.

SEO may seem daunting, but it’s quite approachable once you grasp the basics. It’s a journey of accumulating digital marketing knowledge, akin to adding new tools to your toolkit. While SEO can be intricate, its challenges mostly stem from the time investment required to devise and execute a strategy. If you’ve ever pondered, “How hard is SEO?” or hesitated to embark on it due to perceived difficulty, here’s some encouraging news: SEO isn’t inherently hard—it’s a long-term commitment.

In This Article

SEO Basics: Laying the Foundation

SEO aims to enhance a website’s visibility and ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs). The objective is to make a site more appealing to search engines, thereby securing a higher SERP position and attracting more traffic. Key SEO steps include:

  • Keyword Research: Identifying relevant search terms for your offerings.
  • On-Page Optimization: Ensuring content and structure are search-engine friendly.
  • Off-Page Optimization: Garnering links from other sites to demonstrate popularity and relevance.
  • Backlinking: Crafting authoritative content that others will want to link to.

Acquiring backlinks can be the most demanding aspect of SEO, as it necessitates both stellar content and proactive outreach. Backlinks are a testament to your content’s quality, signaling trust and credibility to search engines. High-quality backlinks from reputable sources are more valuable than a multitude of low-quality ones. Focus on creating compelling content that naturally attracts backlinks.

While both inbound and outbound links are beneficial, inbound links (others linking to your site) carry more weight for SEO. They’re a robust endorsement of your content’s quality. Outbound links (your site linking to others) enhance user experience by providing additional resources, which search engines also value. However, their SEO impact is comparatively lesser.

SEO as a Long-Term Strategy

SEO isn’t a quick fix; it’s a sustained effort involving content creation, link building, and continuous optimization. The goal is to secure and maintain a top SERP position, achievable only through a persistent, long-term SEO strategy.

SEO Auditing is Challenging

SEO audits can be intricate, involving a deep dive into numerous URLs and avoiding potential pitfalls. Success stories often emerge from the most challenging campaigns, like reversing a Google penalty for a travel blog, which led to a consistent 30% increase in organic traffic:

AI Tools Increasing the Competition in SEO

The advent of AI tools has intensified SEO competition. These tools enable businesses to analyze user behavior, automate content optimization, and streamline keyword research, freeing up time for other strategic endeavors. As a result, content quality will become an even more critical differentiator in the future.

Final Words: SEO is Not Hard

SEO isn’t hard; it’s a strategic, long-term game. As an SEO expert, I can guide you through this journey, helping you build a robust SEO strategy tailored to your goals. Book a Call to discuss how we can elevate your SEO game together.

Written by Lawrence Hitches

Posted 16 December 2022

Lawrence an SEO professional and the General Manager of Australia’s Largest SEO Agency – StudioHawk; he’s been working in search for eight years, having started working with Bing Search to improve their algorithm. Then, jumping over to working on small, medium, and enterprise businesses with SEO tactics to reach more customers on search engines such as Google, he’s won the Young Search Professional of the Year from the Semrush Awards and Best Large SEO Agency at the Global Search Awards.

He’s now focused on educating those who want to learn about SEO with the techniques and tips he’s learned from experience and continuing to learn new tactics as search evolves.