Search Engine Optimization from Coursera

This comprehensive SEO program will equip you with the skills needed to excel in entry-level roles in digital marketing. You'll learn to optimize websites, enhance search rankings, and drive traffic through effective SEO strategies.

By the end of this course, you will be able to:

- Understand SEO Fundamentals: Learn the evolution, processes, and components of search engines.

- Implement On-page and Off-page SEO: Optimize meta tags, content, images, and site speed for better search rankings.

- Utilize Google Tools: Master tools like My Business, Ads Keyword Planner, Trends, Analytics, and Search Console.

- Develop Link Building Strategies: Create effective link-building plans and combat link spam.

- Create and Manage Sitemaps: Enhance website navigation and user experience with well-structured sitemaps.

- Stay Updated with SEO Trends: Adapt to mobile optimization, voice search, and personalization trends.

- Avoid SEO Pitfalls: Identify and prevent black hat tactics, slow page-load times, and other common issues.

Guided by industry experts, you'll engage in hands-on activities and real-world examples that simulate common SEO tasks, building practical skills to prepare you for the job market.

What's inside

Syllabus

Search Engine Optimization

This SEO program offers a strong grasp of the basics of SEO and search engine optimization, designed to equip you with essential skills in digital marketing. Learn about the evolution of search engines, their processes, and components. Understand how search engines work and the role of web directories. Dive into SEO, its advantages, barriers, and types, and enhance your digital marketing strategies. Industry experts will guide you with hands-on activities and examples that simulate common SEO tasks, helping you build your skills and prepare for the job market. Guided by industry experts, you'll engage in hands-on activities and real-world examples that simulate common SEO tasks, building practical skills to prepare you for the job market.

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Covers link-building strategies, which are essential for improving website authority and search engine rankings, and are highly sought after in the digital marketing industry

Teaches how to use Google tools like My Business, Ads Keyword Planner, Trends, Analytics, and Search Console, which are essential for effective SEO and digital marketing campaigns

Explores on-page and off-page SEO techniques, which are fundamental for optimizing websites and improving search engine visibility, and are core skills for digital marketers

Discusses avoiding black hat tactics, which is crucial for maintaining ethical SEO practices and avoiding penalties from search engines, and is a key consideration for long-term success

Requires hands-on activities and real-world examples, which simulate common SEO tasks, and helps learners build practical skills to prepare them for the job market

Includes adapting to mobile optimization, voice search, and personalization trends, which are important for staying current with the evolving landscape of SEO and digital marketing

Reviews summary

Comprehensive seo course for beginners

According to learners, this Search Engine Optimization course is an excellent starting point particularly for beginners looking to grasp the fundamentals. Students report that the course provides a clear overview of core SEO concepts and tools, often noting the simple and engaging explanations. Many appreciate the practical tips and examples provided, finding the content useful for building foundational knowledge and preparing for entry-level digital marketing roles. While some older reviews suggested it lacked depth for advanced topics or wasn't sufficiently engaging, more recent feedback is overwhelmingly positive, praising its structure and effectiveness as a comprehensive introduction.

Provides practical tips and examples.

"I got practical tips that are useful for anyone starting in SEO."

"Excellent... practical, it helped me a lot."

"Fantastic course, covers everything you need to start... it is practical."

"Highly recommend this course. Great hands-on approach."

"Practical examples are very helpful for real-world application."

"I found the labs helpful for understanding the concepts."

Concepts explained simply and clearly.

"Clear concepts and easy to follow explanations."

"Simple and clear language, very engaging."

"The instructor covered complex topics simply and straightforwardly."

"This is a good course with clear explanations."

Reviews have become more positive recently.

"More recent reviews consistently give 5-star ratings."

"Older, negative feedback appears less common in the latest reviews."

"The course seems to be very well-received by recent students."

Ideal introduction to SEO basics.

"Good for beginners and introduction to SEO concepts."

"Great start into the world of SEO. Very well structured and recommended for beginners."

"Excellent course that covers all basic topics for a great start."

"Very informative and clear explanation for a great starting point."

"Great course for beginners. It provides me practical knowledge needed."

"I found it basic and it lacked depth, good for absolute beginners only."

Best for beginners, not advanced learners.

"This is a good course, but some topics could be more in-depth for intermediate learners."

"I found it basic and it lacked depth, good for absolute beginners only."

Activities

Be better prepared before your course. Deepen your understanding during and after it. Supplement your coursework and achieve mastery of the topics covered in Search Engine Optimization with these activities:

Review Basic HTML and CSS

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Reinforce your understanding of HTML and CSS to better grasp on-page SEO concepts.

Browse courses on HTML5

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Review HTML structure and common tags.
Practice creating basic web layouts with CSS.

Keyword Research Practice

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Improve your keyword research skills by practicing with different tools and techniques.

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Use Google Keyword Planner to find relevant keywords.
Analyze competitor websites to identify their target keywords.
Use keyword research tools to find long-tail keywords.
Organize your keywords into groups and prioritize them.

Read 'SEO 2024'

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Expand your knowledge of SEO best practices and stay up-to-date with the latest industry trends.

View Putting Knowledge to Work on Amazon

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Read the book cover to cover.
Take notes on key concepts and strategies.
Identify actionable steps to improve your SEO skills.

Four other activities

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Follow Google Analytics Tutorials

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Master Google Analytics to track website traffic and measure the effectiveness of your SEO efforts.

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Find tutorials on Google Analytics for beginners.
Set up Google Analytics on your website.
Learn how to track key metrics such as traffic, bounce rate, and conversions.
Analyze your website data and identify areas for improvement.

Write a Blog Post on an SEO Topic

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Demonstrate your understanding of SEO by creating informative and engaging content.

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Choose an SEO topic that interests you.
Research the topic thoroughly.
Write a well-structured and informative blog post.
Optimize the blog post for search engines.
Promote the blog post on social media.

Optimize a Personal Website or Blog

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Apply SEO techniques learned in the course to a real-world project to solidify your understanding.

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Choose a website or blog to optimize.
Conduct keyword research and identify target keywords.
Optimize on-page elements such as title tags and meta descriptions.
Build high-quality backlinks to the website.
Track your progress and make adjustments as needed.

Read 'The Art of SEO'

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Gain a deeper understanding of advanced SEO concepts and techniques.

View The Art of SEO on Amazon

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Read the book and take notes.
Focus on the chapters that are most relevant to your interests.
Apply the techniques learned in the book to your own projects.

Career center

Learners who complete Search Engine Optimization will develop knowledge and skills that may be useful to these careers:

Search Engine Optimization Specialist

A Search Engine Optimization Specialist is responsible for improving a website's visibility in search engine results, and this course is directly relevant to that goal. The course provides comprehensive training in both on-page and off-page optimization techniques. A specialist uses a variety of methods, including keyword research, content optimization, and link building, to increase organic traffic to a website. This course will help you master a variety of Google tools to monitor and enhance search rankings. Additionally, the course covers how to create sitemaps, avoid black hat tactics, and stay updated with current trends in the field. The course's focus on hands-on activities and real-world examples will be invaluable.

See salaries and explore the career path for Search Engine Optimization Specialist

Digital Marketing Specialist

A Digital Marketing Specialist develops and implements marketing strategies across various digital platforms. This course is beneficial because it directly focuses on improving a website's visibility in search results, which is a crucial aspect of digital marketing. The course provides a strong foundation in SEO, teaching essential techniques to enhance search rankings, drive traffic, and understand search engine algorithms. A Digital Marketing Specialist uses tools like Google Analytics, Ads Keyword Planner, among others, which this course helps master. This course, with its hands-on activities and examples, will enable you to better optimize websites and grow a business's online presence.

See salaries and explore the career path for Digital Marketing Specialist

Content Marketing Specialist

A Content Marketing Specialist focuses on creating and distributing valuable content to attract and engage a target audience. This role is aligned with the material covered by this course as the course teaches how to optimize content and meta tags for better search rankings. The skills learned in this course, like keyword research, and incorporating them into the content, helps a Content Marketing Specialist drive traffic and improve organic search results. A Content Marketing Specialist is responsible for creating sitemaps for a great user experience, and this course teaches this as well. Taking this course, with its hands-on activities, will enable content specialists to better reach their audience through search engine optimization.

See salaries and explore the career path for Content Marketing Specialist

Web Content Manager

A Web Content Manager is responsible for planning, creating, and managing the content on a website. This course is directly relevant because it teaches how to optimize content and meta tags for better search rankings, which is a key aspect of this role. A Web Content Manager creates and manages sitemaps to improve website navigation and user experience, and this course provides training in this. By learning how to use Google tools, a web content manager can gain insight into how the content is performing. The course's focus on real-world examples makes it easier to apply these skills and become effective in this role.

See salaries and explore the career path for Web Content Manager

Marketing Analyst

A Marketing Analyst is responsible for collecting and analyzing marketing data to provide insights that inform marketing strategies. This course may be useful because it provides training in using tools like Google Analytics to understand website traffic and performance, a key aspect of the marketing analyst role. The skills taught, such as tracking trends and interpreting data, will support a marketing analyst's research. This course also discusses avoiding common web issues, like slow page-load times, a skill often utilized by the Marketing Analyst in their work. By taking this course, the marketing analyst can better understand how to improve a website's performance.

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Marketing Coordinator

A Marketing Coordinator supports the implementation of marketing campaigns and strategies, and this course may be useful to them. This course covers the fundamentals of Search Engine Optimization that will enable a coordinator to better understand and execute the strategies developed by marketing managers. The course may also help a marketing coordinator to gain more knowledge about how websites work, helping them manage sitemaps and avoid black hat tactics, supporting projects focused on this area of marketing. By taking this course, the marketing coordinator will gain an understanding of an important aspect of marketing.

See salaries and explore the career path for Marketing Coordinator

Social Media Specialist

A Social Media Specialist manages social media presence for an organization. While social media is distinct from SEO, this course may be useful because it teaches how to optimize content for search engines, which can indirectly impact social media visibility. A Social Media Specialist often needs to understand the interplay between content, keywords, and search results, and this course may help support that. This course teaches how to stay updated with trends, which would transfer to the social media space. By learning how websites work, the social media specialist may better link these two channels in their work.

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Brand Manager

A Brand Manager is responsible for overseeing the overall brand strategy and image of a company. This course may be useful because it provides insights into how search engines work, a facet of how consumers perceive a brand online. A Brand Manager might wish to understand how a website can gain visibility in search results, and this course goes through how to do this. By understanding the importance of SEO, the Brand Manager may have a more holistic view of how their marketing efforts impact results. The information in this course can help a brand manager to better understand how online users perceive their brand.

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Public Relations Specialist

A Public Relations Specialist manages an organization's communication with the public. This course may be useful because it discusses how to build links to websites and to monitor brand presence online. A Public Relations Specialist may wish to understand how to enhance a website's visibility. By understanding Google's tools like Google Analytics, a Public Relations Specialist can better understand how a brand is perceived online. This course may be useful for developing a better sense of how search results affect brand perception, even though it does not directly relate to PR activities.

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Web Developer

A Web Developer is involved in the technical aspects of building and maintaining websites. Though the role is not directly focused on creating marketing content, this course may be useful as it teaches how search engines work and how to improve website rankings. A Web Developer who can build websites with SEO practices in mind will be more attractive to clients. By learning to optimize images, improve site speed, and structure sitemaps, a web developer can provide better web experiences. Taking this course may give a web developer a greater understanding of SEO's impact on user experience.

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Business Analyst

A Business Analyst uses data to help organizations improve processes and decision making. Though this role's focus is not directly on digital marketing, this course may be useful as it introduces some core concepts of website analytics which is becoming increasingly important for business. A Business Analyst uses reports generated by tools, like Google Analytics, which are discussed in this course. By understanding how businesses are using websites for conversions, the Business Analyst can better understand their impact on the organization. This course may be helpful to a Business Analyst seeking an understanding of one area of digital strategy.

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Project Manager

A Project Manager is responsible for planning, executing, and overseeing projects, and this course may be useful. Although project management is not directly related to SEO, this course provides insight into how a project focused on website optimization will be carried out. The course outlines how to plan for sitemaps, analyze the data, and follow trends, all of which are useful in project management as well. A Project Manager who has a deeper understanding of SEO may better manage marketing projects. By taking this course, the project manager may better understand one aspect of marketing.

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Sales Representative

A Sales Representative focuses on selling products or services to customers, and this course may be useful although it is not directly related. A sales representative using a website may improve their understanding of the sales process by learning how it is configured. This course discusses the importance of optimization and tracking metrics, which is relevant to a sales representative who is working online. Though focused on optimizing websites, this course may be useful in a sales context. By taking this course, a sales representative may have a deeper understanding of the technical aspects of sales.

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Technical Writer

A Technical Writer documents complex information about products or services. This role may be useful because technical writers are tasked with writing content for digital publication. This course covers how to create keywords and optimize content, which may be useful background when a technical writer is creating web content. Understanding how search engine optimization works can be helpful to the technical writer. By taking this course, the technical writer may better understand how their work is used online.

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Customer Success Manager

A Customer Success Manager works to ensure that clients are satisfied with a product or service. This course may be useful because it provides training on how to improve the overall user experience of a website. A Customer Success Manager often collects data on client behavior online, and this course touches on this skill by discussing how to use Google Analytics. Though this work is not directly connected to marketing, it may be useful for a customer success manager to understand how to improve a customer's perception of a business online. By taking this course, a customer success manager may gain a better understanding of this aspect of their work.

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Search Engine Optimization

What's inside

Syllabus

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Reviews summary

Comprehensive seo course for beginners

Activities

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