SEO specialist is a term we can use for both, a person or a company. Their expertise mainly focuses on Search Engine Optimization and areas related to it.

Initially, the term Search Engine Optimization (SEO) almost exclusively referred to strategies used to influence the visibility of content (websites, profiles, videos, etc.) on the results pages from sites like Google, Bing, and Yahoo. However, it has slowly become more of a blanket term. It now describes not only Search Engine Optimization proper but many other tangential online marketing approaches that can be implemented toward the same goal.

An SEO specialist is someone who has acquired – through study and experience – a number of skills that allows them to effectively devise, implement, and supervise digital marketing solutions. Ensuring their client’s online content is displayed more prominently on search engines result pages.

Technical aspects of being an SEO specialist

From a technical standpoint, there are a few things considered vital for an SEO specialist to do their job right.

First, a close understanding of the inner workings of search engines and search algorithms is essential for any SEO specialist. Beyond that, at least some knowledge of programming and content creation is a huge plus that increases their effectiveness.

Even if they aren’t programmers or designers per se, they must understand how to effectively put a website together. Knowing how their different components directly affect the overall site’s visibility gives SEO specialists a unique advantage.

SEO specialists as organizers

Now, there are also a number of additional and vital skills and insights beyond technical knowledge. Mastering them can elevate someone who merely knows about SEO, to the ranks of an SEO specialist. These fall mostly on the human side of things.

Foer example, having good problem-solving and organization skills provide huge advantages. Other abilities include being adept at analysis, decision-making abilities, and even copywriting.

Search Engine Optimization is very much a technical art. It combines the precise know-how of computer technology, with an intimate understanding of how people interact with it. For those reasons, most SEO specialists are engineers and humanists in their way of thinking.

The importance of marketing skills

Search Engine Optimization is all about effectively connecting content with people. Be it creators and viewers, nonprofits with backers, or companies with potential customers. This means that a solid grasp of marketing techniques (and keeping up with the latest social trends) also falls under the purview of a competent SEO specialist.

Being a knowledgeable nexus of these different disciplines is necessary to be able to implement the technical strategies SEO specialists develop on paper, in a way that is both efficient and effective in the real world.

The end goal of any SEO company is to get results for their clients. This goal wildly varies on a case-by-case basis. But finding out exactly what a company needs and how to get it is where a truly skilled SEO specialist can make a real difference.