Learn SEO

Finding information on SEO is easy. A quick search on Google, Youtube, LinkedIn, Reddit, etc. will surface a metric ton of information. The problem isn’t the amount of information available – it’s knowing where to start and who to listen to.

SEO Fight Club

The SEO Fight Club YouTube channel provides a great starting point for learning search engine optimization (SEO). The hosts investigate SEO topics by combining real-world experiences with extensive testing data.

One of the hosts, Ted Kubaitis, created Cora – robust SEO testing software. As Cora users run tests, the anonymized data is collected and analyzed to identify top ranking factors. Ted generously shares these key factors for free on his website: https://topseofactors.com/.

The goal of the SEO Fight Club channel is to take an evidence-based approach to finding SEO truths. Hard facts are scarce in this industry, while rumors abound. Across over 100 episodes spanning 5+ years, they cover diverse topics – from backlinks for small businesses to site structure for large e-commerce sites. Some older videos are slightly outdated but most remain practical.

By watching the full playlist, you will gain immense practical knowledge and context about SEO. I’ve watched every video and always learn new actionable tips for my daily work. Even as a beginner, you’ll get a clear path to learning by combining data-driven advice with engaging stories. You can also show up for a live show and ask your own questions. SEO Fight Club Playlist

Marie Haynes

With context about SEO from Fight Club, especially around how Google often releases information that either does not align with its actions, or is flat-out provably false, you should have developed a healthy distrust of the things Google says. As a result I don’t hang a lot of value on messaging directly from Google, and I use an SEO agency owner, Marie Haynes, as my source of Google news and updates.

Marie Haynes excels at decoding Google’s announcements and updates into practical information – including Google’s desired intents and goals. You can find her podcasts on Spotify – I recommend listening to the past 1-2 years of her content, as her insights into Google’s underlying motivations hold true long after specific algorithm updates fade away. It’s also a great idea to sign up for her newsletter to stay in the know.

She also wrote the book on Google’s Quality Rater Guidelines – required reading for SEOs. She is writing a new book using more current information, and dropped the price in the meantime.

Building a Solid SEO Foundation

These two sources of information provide a balance of evidence-based SEO facts and insightful Google update analysis along with longer term insights on Google’s strategic direction, which will provide you a solid understanding of the basics of SEO and enough context to help you decide on the next steps in your SEO career.