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As long as there is search, there will be SEO.
Ye Olde Blog of SEO
Aug 06

The more I learn about SEO the less “SEO tools” I use

I will always be a student of SEO. The day I start calling myself an expert is the day I stop getting good at SEO. I have so much to learn from so many different people. The great thing about SEO is that it encompasses so many different disciplines, I could literally spend my entire life learning about SEO and still not even scratch the surface.

I ditched several SEO tools recently, because I hardly ever use them. Sure I might pop a few of them open from time to time, but rarely do they truly help me do my job better.

I am not here to bash any SEO tool in particular, or even SEO tools in general.

SEO tools are great, and I still rely on several of them to do my job on a regular basis. Xenu, Ahrefs, Scrapebox, and Screaming Frog to name a few. But a lot of these tools get in the way of good old fashioned hard work.

Think about these common SEO tasks that could easily take up days, weeks or months of work:

  • optimizing a site for speed
  • reaching out / interacting with bloggers & influencers
  • blogging
  • on-page optimization

Sure, there are a number of tools that can aid and assist in these tasks, but all of these tasks can be completed with:

  • http client
  • ftp client
  • ssh client
  • email client

When I am teaching someone SEO rarely do I ever introduce a tool to someone until they have a comprehensive understanding of the subject matter.

I learned how to do SEO through raw curiosity. I truly wanted to learn what made Google tick. I started off by looking at what websites had in common with each other. I looked at what websites that weren’t ranking had in common with each other.

My recent SEO tool cleanse has left me feeling very focused and organized. I feel confident being able to help a client using raw abilities and not relying on 3rd party tools to help me guess my way through something.

About The Author

Patrick is an SEO blogger and the founder of Elite Strategies, an SEO and internet marketing agency located in Delray Beach, FL.