I have plenty of people contacting me to ask to refer to some SEO basics tutorials and guides. So I decided to start a post inviting everyone to share their favorite resources to start learning SEO.
Quick note for the beginners: when starting to learn SEO, please keep in mind that there are many questionable issues. So after going through the basics and starting to go further into detail, don’t forget to take any SEO advice with a grain of salt.
I’ll start the list with the following high-quality resources:
1. Beginner’s Guide:
The old version is a good thing to have when you are only starting but if you are serious about learning SEO, you’d better search for Rand’s updates he’s been posting for a year now (not sure if he has compiled them in one guide yet).
Anyway, Google will help collect the pieces: [site:seomoz.org "Rewriting the Beginner's Guide"]
2. SEObook Glossary
Of all SEO glossaries out there, this one is the most complete. Besides, it contains really clear definitions and good selection of terms.
3. Google for Beginners:
Hobo Google for beginners is the newly published free eBook by our good UK SEO buddy Shaun Anderson. It is definitely not for beginners only, so I recommend everyone checking it out.
4. Simplifying SEO
Simplify, Simplify, Simplify: this short article by Eric Enge will tune you to the right attitude which is really essential when starting: the simpler, the better:
5. SEO Cheat Sheet
That’s the only purely SEO cheat sheet comprising all SEO essentials:
- Important SEO HTML tags;
- Search engine indexing limits (common indexing limits imposed by search engines on sites that don’t hold a lot of authority);
- Recommended title tag syntax, etc.
6. SEO Tools
The best way to learn something is to start acting: use the seo tools for additional research and insight.
7. SEO FAQ
Jill is great at answering basic SEO questions combining straightforward attitude with humor.
8. SEO Checklist
This article by Matt McGee lists all fundamental SEO steps followed by a short concise explanations – a good list to have by hand.
9. The SEO Pyramid
That’s a video guide helping you to get the whole picture: what, how, when…
10. SEO in Action
An award-winning actionable guide by Gyutae Park details the whole SEO process: from choosing a niche to promoting the site.
11. Other SEO Learning Resources
[Updating from Tweets and email messages]
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Thanks Ann for all the info and for sharing all the links of initial SEO start.
Resource suggestion:
Link Building Best Practices with Eric Ward
http://www.ericward.com/bestpractices/
Hey Ann thanks for the links – it’s in great company, I’ve learned something from every other resource listed! Frankly it’s an honour to see it listed with these other great sites / writers.
Shaun
PS – We have a starter course online (instead of the PDF) which might be easier to digest for complete newbies :)
It can be found here http://www.hobo-web.co.uk/seo/
great list Ann, much appreciated, keep up the great work
.-= marty´s last blog ..Virgin slashes 50Mb cost Trials 10Mb upstream =-.
I always share the 7-minute SEO Guide. Easy to read and lots of good info that’s easily digestible.
http://www.marketingpilgrim.com/7-minute-seo-guide
.-= Dan Perry´s last blog ..Twitter Tip – Saving Links for Later =-.
Great list! Glad to see so many resources out there for beginning webmasters.
Hereby I would like to add one more resource: the official Google SEO Starters Guide (available in 40 languages): http://googlewebmastercentral.blogspot.com/2009/06/seo-starter-guide-now-available-in-40.html ;)
Ann, You are to be commended for adding the ‘grain of salt’. For all of us who dive beyond the basics – one quickly enters the world of SEO/SEM postulation, pontification, theorum — to outright EXISTENTIALISM in the pursuit of Search Engine Love. Your tempered view always helps keep me in check.
Very nice list; the SEO Book training program is an amazing way to learn about SEO, IMHO.
The Moz beginners guide is also a really thorough, easy to understand resource for beginners.
I also really like David Harry’s stuff, and he has an SEO Handbook available: http://www.the-seo-handbook.com/index.php
Anyway nice list!
Tom
.-= Tom Demers´s last blog ..Google PageRank Update: July, 29, 2009 =-.
Excellent list, and have used most of them to great benefit. Have to add one book, “Search Engine Optimization: Your Visual Blueprint for Effective Internet Marketing”. Best I’ve read so far for clarity, approachability, and breadth.
fyi your site looks like sh!t on chrome
For your consideration: ;-)
We’ve recently launched a new SEO visibility monitoring service at http://joblr.net; it tracks and reports your (and your competitors) keywords, backlinks, PageRank, and other data to calculate a standardized visibility score. It provides a peak into how (and why) your site stacks up to your competitors in each of the major search engines.
This is a great list but seems to omit a “In the Trenches” resource and that is StomperNet.
I am not a reseller of StomperNet but I have been through the comprahensive course. Check it out.
.-= Andrew Koblick´s last blog ..Picking a Product to Sell =-.
No such list is complete without Brett’s epic post on WMW from 2002 (!) Succesfull Site in 12 months with Google alone
http://www.webmasterworld.com/forum3/2010.htm
.-= Neyne´s last blog ..Google Ranking and CTR – how clicks distribute over different rankings on Google =-.
Great list, Ann. These are very good places to start with SEO. Thanks for pulling them together and posting — you’ve made it nice and easy to retweet, and add to our weekly blog post roundup. Cheers.
@MktgExperiments
.-= Hunter Boyle´s last blog ..Marketing tips and tricks: 5 posts packed with ideas =-.
Great list, here are 2 more resources that I provide:
Search Engine Optimization Journal:
http://www.searchengineoptimizationjournal.com
Brick Marketing SEO Newsletter:
http://archive.constantcontact.com/fs044/1101650496996/archive/1102429142755.html
Hope this helps! Thanks!
I think all people new to SEO should check out the SEO Bible by Jerri Ledford. It’s a great book with a lot of basic information and helps people new to the field learn about basic terminology and practices.
http://www.amazon.com/SEO-Search-Engine-Optimization-Bible/dp/0470175001
Excellent post. I was familiar with most of these, but had either forgotten them or failed to bookmark the sites. Thanks for putting them all together on one page I can bookmark and refer back to.
Ann,
Your posts is such a kick ass smart start, not even for SEO begginers but also for Pro’s.
Thanks for sharing all of these guidelines with us.
Keep them coming.
Newbies to SEO should maybe Google for SEO Tutorial as anything there or thereabouts could have some merit.
BB
Referencedesigner blogs have a number of good SEO articles – all for free
Search for referencedesigner blogs
It is hard to point them a single source when friends ask about SEO. This article will make it easy for me now.
Keyword research and targetting should be below the content on that pyramid. How else are you gonna know what to create content about???
Other than that, though, very nice list of resources. :)
Nice collation of useful information there, these are the kind of posts that can be referred back to and even handed to friends who wish to start off in SEO, it would give them a great grounding!
This article comes at just the right time. I am launching an initiative in my real estate company around community blog sites. Getting great content is the first challenge, strong SEO is the second.
I am thinking the two go hand-in- hand.
I recommend Justin Brooke’s little SEO book called “SEO LIES” very thorough and simple to follow.
Great List!
Many of these I have never heard of before.
#5 Cheat sheet & #8 check list are really useful.