When I’m asked what I do for a living, I debate in my head how to answer the question. Should I say: “I’m an SEO” and wait for the inevitably confused look?
Perhaps I should go with my wife’s answer, instead: “He organizes the internet to get high rankings on Google.” You have to admit, anyone who can organize the internet is probably pretty cool.
Should I keep my answers brief, or should I take a little time and educate them about the awesomeness of SEO?
Many professionals in this industry still find it challenging to explain to someone in a different field exactly what they do. Then again, when my wife, a nurse, comes home and tries to share stories and challenges from her day, I feel like she’s speaking a foreign language. So maybe it’s the same for any profession.
In the SEO industry, however, communication and clarity are important. Hopefully, I can clearly answer the question: “What is an SEO Specialist?”
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) helps people find products and information on search engines like Google and Bing. An SEO specialist, then, researches and analyzes the trends and best practices online to develop and implement strategies that improve search results.
The overall goal is to increase the level of traffic to a website by using keywords and keyword topics to improve the user experience and meet search engine guidelines.
Search engines, however, are always changing. And SEO specialists have to keep up. Let’s think about what exactly we mean by this.
Consider, for example, a search for the keyword: “SEO.”
Back in the day, the search results looked something like this:
At the time (2011ish) SEO.com ranked third in the search results. You’ll also notice that aside from Google’s own entry and Wikipedia’s definition, the other results are all SEO companies.
These days, the results are a bit different for the same search. Now, this is what it looks like above the fold:
And this is what you get below the fold:
Do you see a theme with these results? Some kind of trend that suggests the type of results Google wants to deliver for that keyword?
That’s right. Currently, there is only one agency showing up in the top ten organic results. (For what it’s worth, we currently rank #11.) Instead, you get a lot of beginners’ guides to SEO, how-tos, and definitions.
Google learned that when people search for the term “SEO,” they were more likely to click on information over a list of services. So, eventually, the algorithm changed to incorporate this behavior, and now it delivers the types of results it believes the keyword is really asking for.
An SEO specialist needs to be able to spot these trends, understand what they mean, and develop strategies that work within them. (In our case, we’re working on a massive guide to SEO that will be published soon. Stay tuned for that.)
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Doing the Job
There are literally hundreds of factors that contribute to your final rankings. On top of that, it can be hard to determine what kinds of trends Google may associate with your chosen keywords.
The job of an SEO specialist doesn’t stop with a couple of website tweaks and a few links scattered around the internet. Instead, the specialist has to be on the ball, constantly looking for trends like those noted above and finding new ways to maximize website traffic.
(And by “maximize” we don’t just mean increase the numbers. We mean finding people who are ready to convert and do business with you.)
Optimizing your website for search engines involves being aware of these factors and implementing the right strategies. However, as the search engines change, an SEO can’t rely on the same old activities forever. Modern SEO is about so much more than keywords and meta tags.
There are a lot of factors that an SEO specialist must deal with, and that means they need a wide range of skills. If we were to break it down to the basics, though, you could say that a specialist should understand:
- Why links are important
- What can be done on-page to help a webpage rank
- What can be done off-page to make a webpage rank
- Why content marketing is critical to any online marketing push
- How social media provides value
- Whether Pay-Per-Click marketing is worth it
- How to take advantage of emerging trends like video SEO
The daily routine for someone working in SEO could include a combination of any of these activities, which means that a true specialist has to have a broad skillset and be willing to always learn more.
Still want to know more? 
We’ll be happy to provide more details.
(Editor’s note: This post was originally written by Ty Kilgore and published in March of 2011. It has been updated on February 8, 2017 for data accuracy and industry developments.)
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Great post Ty. I tell people we help clients rank higher on Google for certain key words. The only problem is the next question they ask is always, “Well how do you do that?” Maybe I’ll start referring them to you.
I face the same question every day. My answer varies depending on my audience. For instance, if I am speaking to an employee of another technology company I tell them I am an SEO Content Manager for a couple domains. The employee of that tech company probably already knows what SEO, content and domains mean.
On the other hand if I am speaking to a member of the opposite sex,whom I may have interest in, I am an editor at an advertising company. The acronym “SEO” would mean nothing to her. The member of the opposite sex, I assume, associates a person in advertising with popular movie stars like Matthew Mcconaughey in How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days.
So it’s all about your audience. And in SEO you must write to please your audience, not just the SERPS.
It might be easier to say “I makes you good in THE GOOGLES.” Same message…right?
Thanks Matt. Tell them well that’s why we have jobs!
Russell I agree, knowing who your audience is tweaks my answer as well.
I’ve been using the exact same line for years. After I say I’m an SEO and get a blank stare, I just say: “I optimize websites so they rank higher in Google.” Sometimes people ask me intelligent questions about my work, and sometimes they just smile and nod (“SPAMMER!!!!!”) but they always have some basic understanding of what SEO is after that.
I totally agree with this!
My short answer to non-techies: “I get websites to show up on Google.”
nice to be here its very helpful suggestions
got great help for my site optimization
It is hard to explain to people how you try to assign logic to something like search engines that purposely try to hide how they do things. It is sort of like a weatherman:) In all seriousness, it is hard to do SEO and get results. The people that can get results are skilled.
The Term SEO is clearly in need of a face lift.
At one point (pre-2007) people ran to become loan officers & mortgage brokers because of the money that could be made and the ability it gave them to better their families. Years later we know the truth – they worked in field that was mostly liers, cheaters, and full of “the sales person” who never does anything other than sell.
Today everybody is jumping on the SEO bandwagon and the term is on verge of falling down the same drain. The more I look around at SEO companies the more i see “the sales person”, trying to sell me the DIY How-to guide for Thousands of $s or trying to use quotes such as “first page of…” blah blah blah. I have even seen pitchmen at seminars trying to sell mom&pop companies the dream of big dollars and new clients by moving them into the social media universe, and what did these companies do? they started them a Facebook account, a twitter page, or maybe even tinkered with their keywords on their websites..is that worth $5,000 – $10,000+!?!??! of course not, especially when they dont really understand the tools they have, or know how to properly use them.
The other side is, there are real people in the SEO business that know what they are doing, and are worth the big money to turn companies websites and even businesses around to gain new customers and more profits. It used to be when someone told me they were in the SEO business i would think “i want to compare notes and pick this person’s brain”, but now if someone says that to me i think “is this person for real…”
Adrien,
Thanks for your comment. I agree with you about making sure that you hire a SEO business that knows what they’re doing. It’s important to know what to look for and what are warning signs. David Scoville wrote a post about SEO idiots (or experts) to avoid that gives signs to look for.
I too receive this question a lot and find it difficult to answer. I like how you explained an overview of how the internet works. I try to give a very similar overview but find the people I’m speaking too have the “I wish i didn’t ask him what he does for a living” look on his face.
I have been providing advanced SEO consultation to clients for 14 years and I have noticed a big change in the industry over that time. About 10 years ago, my company was one of the only Sacramento SEO companies. Today my clients get several calls each week from SEO wannabes that read an article on SEO and now think they are experts.
So here is my special message for the SEO consultant working out of his garage: Do not use the title “SEO Expert” until you have proven that you are knowledgeable and can be trusted. If you can’t do this, you are just another sales guy with a cheap suit and bad cologne.
Sincerely,
Experienced SEO Consultant
great work
I just keep it simple and say I’m in IT and work with websites. Usually they will just say oh ok cool, if they ask more then i will elaborate lol
Ty, awesome article! I’ve had this same struggle over and over about how to approach explaining what I do. You’re right about the “confused look when you say SEO” . I played around for a few months with saying I help online businesses make more money …which usually led to “how do you do that?” …Then I’d go into explain SEO…Usually about 30-45 seconds longer until the famous glazed eyes
Some of my friends will ask, what’s my work. I couldn’t explain it more because I’m afraid they don’t understand what I’m doing. So I just simply tell them that “under marketing department I am helping my company to at the top page in google search”.
Thank for the information. I never tell clients any nonsense about guaranteed 1 page results because everybody is told that SEO is an on going process and it will take some time for Google to rank their site.
Hi John! Yes, SEO is a continuous process and if you”re lucky, it takes 3-6 months before you rank your keywords on SERP’s; if not, you have to exert a lot of efforts in ranking your keywords. Getting your keywords on top of search engines is not easy task.
I don’t think link building will ever go out of style. I think Google will crack down a bit more heavily on the quality of the link, but I think it will always be a major part of SEO. You just need to focus on quality
versus quantity when it comes to trying to build links. Great post!
What is important:
1. Make on-page SEO: content, title, H1-H6, meta tags, usability, linking, page speed. If on-page is made = you’ll get rankings by informational, maybe some mid- and low competitive keywords.
2. Link building helps to push website in TOP-10 by high frequency commercial queries. But most websites in real doesn’t need to rank by high competitive keywords to get conversions.
SEO is an essential part of any company wanting to have a strong online presence these days but there is certainly a knowledge gap and it can be hard for inexperienced people to fully understand SEO as a result. Nice post Ty!
Well written Ty, just next time include what future SEO specialist will look like and is this profession is stable? Thx
Right on! Staying on top of the constant changes in Google and conversion SEO requires almost an intuitive skill to keep up to date with what safe SEO practices are working in each local. I have found that different locations and keyword targets require individual techniques to rank a client on the top of Google search results for their city.
SEO has grown to become so much more than keywords and meta tags. With so much new channels coming into the mix like social and content, a lot of traditional SEO tasks now have to compliment the overall digital marketing strategy.
One of the biggest challenges we’ve experienced in the past few years is properly aligning SEO link building with the content marketing efforts designed by mostly enterprise level product teams.
Getting this synergy right is what’s going to separate a GREAT SEO specialist from good specialist.
Excellent article! I especially like the wife explanation 😀
SEO is an essential part of any company wanting to have a strong online presence these days but there is certainly a knowledge gap and it can be hard for inexperienced people to fully understand SEO as a result. Nice post Ty!
When I meet someone new, I never start off with SEO. A lot of folks still don’t know what SEO is. I say I do digital marketing. Then when they ask for details I say, “I move websites to the top of Google searches.”
Everyone understands that. Only if they already know what SEO is, will I say I do SEO. It’s just too much effort and not worth it to explain it to everyone. So basically, I go with the author’s wife’s explanation.
Thanks.
I like your wife’s explanation. I may borrow it. Finding that too many small business owners are still confused about SEO. Most of them have been burned by so called SEO “specialists” that claim they can rank my site “fairly quickly” and end up spamming the internet and the client ends up with penalized website.
On the other hand businesses that spend a decent amount of money each month on advertising tend to value more our services. Love talking to those.
Thank you
This is a useful article, thanks! What I did miss was details on the tools themselves. When talking about, say, a painter, you can’t really not mention the technique or his mixture of choice. Same with SEO. Starting with Moz (http://moz.com) and SimilarWeb (https://similarweb.com), all the way to the little guys like GeekReport (http://geekreport.stream).
Other than that, very useful, thank you.
Hi Ty, Great read! One thing I’ve found with being an “SEO Specialist”, is consistant link building and consistent updates.
I research SEO methods all of the time, and I test loads of methods myself. I’ve always know this, but have seen 100% proof over time, that consistent content updates with links no and then going to revelant internal links in that upated content helps with KEEPING the rankings you’ve worked so hard to get.
I can relate lol telling people what you do for a living is a challenge when you are an SEO Specialist, I Cant just say i am an SEO have to explain before i tell them my designation. And yet some people think its an easy job or not a job at all its tough being an Search Engine Optimizer
I always say i help businesses achieve more traffic and basically I am in digital marketing
Thanks Ty for going over this article! SEO can change quite a bit in 5 years so updating this original post was a mark of a true SEO. I would not be surprised to how many companies actually use this post to gauge their internal level of SEO expertise. This is what content is all about so thanks once again TY for taking the time to update this article. Cheers!
It is always important to hire a SEO specialist in order to increase the traffic as well as a business’s brand reputation online. An experienced service provider knows the exact SEO strategies and can implement them accordingly. This article consists of almost every important factor of hiring a dedicated SEO expert for promoting a business online. Thank you for sharing such an informative post.
Great post – very interesting given the update looking at how SEO/SEM has changed over the years.
I like this article, being fairly new to SEO and mentored by some experienced consultants, I am learning not to gauge my success with a client to where they exactly rank in Google but rather by the increase in visitors to there sites.