Tired of the same old online marketing tactics? Then it’s time to think big and narrow in on your niche!
If you’re looking for real data-driven insights, this episode is your go-to source. Gert Mellak and Stephan Spencer from Marketing Speak unwrap the secrets of SEO. Plus, demonstrate how top tools like Surfer SEO and Jasper can elevate businesses to digital success.
How to Use SEO Tools and Leverage AI for Maximum Results
Table of Contents
Is Stripping Down Services a Great Idea?
For Gert, it’s not enough to have a website. What you need is for your business to be visible and ranked well.
Before, they used a grab-bag approach with SEO, lead generation, social ads, Google Ads and video marketing to meet the needs of local businesses. However, it was only when he heard on another podcast talk about getting specialized in fewer services.
After years of providing an abundance of services to their customers, they decided to shift focus and strip down offerings. They as well zeroed in on SEO as the area where they could provide the greatest value for clients. To maximize that potential even more, they began tiering services with software development added into the mix.
How Gert Finds the Right Support in Providing SEO Services
In addition to his coaching with James, he’s also part of other masterminds for software development. Gert and his team’s goal is to create a platform along with the associated service layer that goes hand in hand.
Personally, Gert finds it incredibly helpful when someone is keeping him accountable and helping guide him through any new projects. Taking advantage of the knowledge and experience of those who have achieved success can be hugely advantageous, too.
Masterminds are an effective way for people to gain insight into new concepts quickly. Additionally, make quick speed execution and build networks with successful individuals in various fields.
Two Types of Tests Conducted When Testing SEO
Here are two types of tests conducted in Gert’s strategy:
- Single variable tests in their own site; and
- A/B tests done with client sites.
The goal is to see if something still works, if Google says it’s been tested, or to confirm with data. Clients come to SEO when they have had success in the past but have lost traction over time.
Showing clients data that proves there could be a 30-50% increase in their content presentation can convince them to change gears. Besides, be more open-minded about SEO methods from the last 10 years.
Does Gert Use Off-the-shelf SEO or Develop an SEO Platform?
When it comes to SEO, they don’t rely on just one approach and tool. Gert’s team leverages off-the-shelf tools when necessary. But precisely, they extend and customize them to better meet their clients’ needs.
For example, Google Analytics is a great platform for gathering data. However, it’s really not good enough at presenting content in an actionable way.
That’s why SEOLeverage™️ created an app with a little dashboard that allows users to show KPIs and interpret them in a user-friendly way. This is to determine the best course of action moving forward.
Tools to Use in SEO Strategy
Most clients often come with questions about traffic, wanting a deeper understanding of what’s driving it and where it’s coming from. Here are some tools to use for both tracking results and backlink audits.
Tracking Software and Services
When it comes to tracking software and services, SEOLeverage™️ agency prefers the combination of Semrush and Ahrefs. It’s like Nikon vs Canon - a battle between two great brands. They’re about giving their clients what they need.
Ahrefs
This tool offers a variety of tools that make SEO optimization so much easier. Some of the two most important tools include:
- Top pages. Having a reliable data set is essential for measuring website performance. The top pages tool is invaluable for understanding where web traffic comes from to a particular website.
- Best buy links. It’s an essential tool to see if there is potential for internal linking. You can leverage their potential by taking links that have received a lot of traction and using them for internal linkages.
Figuring out what resonates with your audience and drives conversions is key to success. SEOLeverage™️ platform is created specifically for this purpose. This is to identify topics that are generating the most links and focus on relevant content based on those topics.
Backlink Analysis
For backlink analysis, few can compete with Link Research Tools. But if you’re looking to do a comprehensive audit of your site’s link profile, you can use Majestic.
Majestic
Clients often come to SEOLeverage™️ with a long-term reliance on one particular kind of link-building. And it’s usually not the most effective for SEO.
With Majestic, analyzing a link profile based on topics can help understand the type of sites linking to yours. It may be trust flow, citation flow or other trust metrics which aren’t so easily spotted by different tools. Links are an essential part of any project but once you have your content base set up correctly, then start looking at those additional resources.
Link Research Tools
Content alone often isn’t enough for higher search volumes and more competitive searches. That’s where links come into play! Link Research Tool, according to Gert, is only for a handful of people rather than for the end-user.
There are two metrics to use in Link Research Tools:
- Link velocity. It’s one of the most vital metrics for SEOs to track, but it can be time-consuming. That’s why LRT created its LVT (Link Velocity Trends) - so that you don’t have to waste your valuable energy deciphering link trends over months or years. With this tool at hand, you’ll know if your links are decreasing in number and making you seem out-of-touch with what’s currently on the web.
- Link Toxicity. No other platform rivals LRT when assessing for toxic links. Plus, it has comprehensive scoring methods and collection processes that truly stand apart from competitors!
Google emphasizes the importance of link placement. If they’re at the end of a blog post or buried on another page, it’s unlikely that much value will be gained. It also pays off to check out what high-authority competitors have.
Additionally, to maximize the potential of your website, you should ensure that its link profile is on par with what Google expects for a specific query or industry. It’s not uncommon for some industries and queries to require footer links.
Content Creation
Taking advantage of multiple traffic channels is a great way to reach the right people at just the right moments. For example, picking up intel that resonates with organic search users and spreading it through social media can help you tap into powerful potential customer action points.
Using various tools, such as Inlinks and Surfer, you can determine the common elements that Google is looking for when ranking sites.
Here are the two most common tools to use in content creation.
InLinks
InLinks provides a comprehensive approach to increasing SEO. It expertly breaks down any page into individual entities and concepts that Google can easily understand, so you ensure all dots are connected correctly when it comes time for validation from the search engine giant!
Plus, InLinks also lets you know where else on your page additional connections might be needed. This includes email marketing subject lines, which many users overlook but can greatly improve online visibility.
Surfer SEO
SEOLeverage™️ also focuses heavily on content creation and uses Surfer SEO tools regularly. For the more granular details, they have plenty of smaller options in reserve that come into play whenever needed.
Gert recommends using Surfer for customers as its user-friendly interface allows them to input their content and get immediate feedback about topics that may be missing from the page - making it a breeze! Remember, talking about what interests you isn’t always enough. Getting creative in your messages helps capture attention when customers are ready for transformation!
Jasper
AI is here to stay, and it’s changing the way people interact with content. In SEO trends, specific content matters. In other words, you want your content to be as specific as possible compared to others to rank higher.
A few years ago, things were different: if someone else had 3000 words on their page, then having 5000 could give yours an edge. But you need to grab and implement target keywords to your content.
Content creation involves more than just speed; quality and relevance also factor in. While Jasper may be grammatically correct, fact-checking is always important to prevent wrong information from getting out there.
How SEOLeverage™️ Started
Gert’s client came to them in despair after his website lost 70% of its traffic due to a Google core update. Implementing SEO is one of the reasons to move forward and get back lost traffic.
SEO needs ongoing attention with expert support if you don’t want your site’s rankings to take an unexpected dive once more. Staying ahead of changes made by search engines like Google requires constant care and keeping up with best practices. That’s why they created the ERICA Framework to help make the process more effective.
Erica Framework is a methodical approach that looks at everything from competition analysis to content creation every two weeks for maximum success. After seeing great results with this system, their team published a book about The ERICA Framework to benefit everyone from its innovative strategies!
Gert’s original goal was to offer a concise and easy-to-use dashboard, as well as an optimizable task list. They wanted their users to benefit from their knowledge without wasting time learning all the nuances of SEO tools. As it turns out, they’ve been able to exceed these objectives by adding a way to track performances across different areas – ensuring they get maximum value at minimal cost!
Get Help From SEO Experts
In order to stay on top of SEO and optimize the user experience, SEOLeverage™️ takes a data-driven approach by translating analyzed results into actions. Typically this can be quite challenging; with 8000 blog posts across bigger sites, it isn’t always easy to identify which 100 are most important.
Fortunately, we now have powerful tools at our disposal to better understand how certain content engages customers. Additionally, we offer our clients an innovative consultancy program designed to help them get the most out of their strategies.
Lastly, our platform combines personalized guidance with simple application processes. This allows anyone access to success in SEO leveraging. Understand if conversions will stay current with Google or grow beyond where they already are!
