Advice from 30 of the Industry's Most Respected SEO Professionals
The community of SEO professionals is one that is extraordinarily generous. The SEO industry is full of experts who can help any SEO — whether a beginner or an expert — gain valuable insights that will propel them forward. This assistance can range from knowledge sharing to newly discovered information and recommended strategies.
The social media networks that people use are the engine that drives this process. Simply put, this is an excellent location to learn anything and everything there is to know about search marketing, keyword research, search engine optimisation (SEO), link building, and new approaches to SEO strategy.
In order to assist you on your search engine optimisation journey, we have compiled this list of SEOs who have extensive experience in the technical side of SEO, practical experience optimising websites, and general knowledge of digital marketing. In order to keep up with the rapidly shifting landscape of search engine optimisation, advanced SEOs will find that their content and frequent shares are useful resources. Those who are just starting out will quickly find that they have a profound understanding of SEO and content marketing if they follow these steps.
How We Chose the SEO Professionals to Include on the List
There are a great number of people who assert that they are "search engine optimisation experts." In an effort to reduce the amount of background noise, we have compiled a list of the most qualified technical SEO experts. Everyone on this list needed to satisfy one of these three primary requirements to be included:
Every single person in this room has an impressive history of accomplishments and contributions in the field of technical SEO.
They are aware of the critical role that SEO plays in providing customers with a satisfying experience overall.
Every SEO professional on this list is an active participant in the SEO community, where they regularly share and contribute content of a high quality.
There are now a large number of excellent SEOs available on the market who have a wealth of experience and remarkable acumen. However, the fact that they were rock stars was not the most important thing here. This list is all about the breadth, quality, and frequency of the content that is shared with the community for the purposes that we have in mind.
We would also like to point out that this list is organised alphabetically; therefore, position on the list does not indicate whether or not an SEO is more effective; in our opinion, all of these SEOs are fantastic.
The top 30 SEO professionals that you should follow on social media.
1. AJ Kohn
What makes AJ such a valuable asset to our team is the fact that he combines an in-depth technical understanding of SEO with more than 20 years of experience in both online and offline marketing to strategically drive user experience with sound data-driven analysis. In numerous posts, such as "My Perfectly Healthy Obsession with Query Syntax," he gives readers insightful information about the ways in which technology can be utilised to construct bridges between user experience and data.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
"Optimise the intent while focusing on the target keyword."
2. Alexis Sanders
Alexis immerses herself in technical SEO at Merkle on a daily basis, sharing ideas, insights, and knowledge of what works, what doesn't, and where the industry is headed. This is one of the things that we love most about Alexis. She makes contributions to a number of blogs, including the Moz blog, Search Engine Land, and others, where she relates the complexities of bots, code, and machine learning to the experience of humans.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
A new mantra for the optimisation of web pages: will the resource, when requested, cause users to feel joy?
In that case, you should thank it for serving its purpose and then remove it from the page.
3. Aleyda Solis
What we admire most about Aleyda is, quite frankly, the fact that she has such a successful track record. Aleyda is a search engine optimisation (SEO) consultant, blogger, and speaker who is recognised internationally and has won multiple awards. In 2018, she was given the title of European Search Personality of the Year. She helps international brands overcome the toughest SEO challenges and create highly personalised search experiences by applying her knowledge of systems engineering and ecommerce digital marketing strategy. Her clients include Google, Yahoo, and Bing.
A piece of advice that you should keep in mind is that you can't go wrong with any of the content on her "Crawling Mondays" blog. She also disclosed this information in an interview with the Huffington Post in the year 2017.
"If you want to be a good SEO, you need to be willing to test certain things before anyone else does; otherwise, you'll never actually be a leader."
Andrew Shotland, number four
What We Love About Andrew Andrew's direct take on SEO is like a shot of espresso followed by another where you get incredible knowledge and insight that comes from running his SEO company, LocalSEOGuide.com, from the birth of SEO to where we are today. This gives you incredible knowledge and insight that comes from running his SEO company from the birth of SEO to where we are today. In addition to that, he is always happy to assist other SEOs and marketers and regularly shares his expertise with them.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
From his post titled "10 Local SEO Predictions for 2019: Job Security for Local SEOs," one of his predictions states that "Some Of Your Clients May Actually Ask For Bing SEO Help."
5. Aysun Akarsu
What we like best about Aysun is that, in our opinion, it comprehends the intricacies of SEO more completely than the bots themselves do. Reading her shares, posts, and articles can provide you with an excellent education in technical SEO. She is a data scientist who specialises in machine learning; she is also an author; she is a speaker; she is an SEO consultant; and she is all of these things and more.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
The fact that we don't use standard metrics is a major issue in modern-day SEO because everyone uses their own measurements.
— Taken from Aysun's appearance as a special guest on the podcast Experts on the Wire in the month of December 2018.
the sixth, Barry Adams
Barry specialises in technical SEO for internet marketing companies that require success in order to survive, such as ecommerce brands and news publishers. This is one of the things that makes us really like Barry. He is a sought-after speaker on search engine optimisation (SEO) at conferences all over the world. His social shares provide the SEO community with insightful and helpful information that cuts through the fluff.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
When it comes to website migrations, the most important piece of advice I can give is to NEVER, EVER change a URL unless you ABSOLUTELY have to.
7. Barry Schwartz
What we appreciate most about Barry is that he is very generous in sharing with the SEO community news, updates, and the wisdom he has gained from working and writing about search for the past 15 years. You might be familiar with him from his position as the news editor of Search Engine Land or the Search Engine Roundtable.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
8. Catfish Comstock, Comstock
What We Love Most About Catfish Catfish always has a new and insightful way to understand data, search results, and the user experience, and this is one of the many reasons why we love Catfish. His contributions to search engine optimisation (SEO) and the search community have continued to improve SEO practices.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
Ignore all of that chatter the next time someone tries to convince you that search engine optimisation (SEO) is obsolete or that SEO has undergone a complete transformation.
9: Christi Olson (Olson)
What we appreciate most about Christi is that she is always willing to share insightful observations gleaned from her more than a decade of SEM and SEO practice and experience, as well as recent developments in search. Because of her position as Head of Evangelism, she is completely immersed in the search industry.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
Experiments and examinations are not failures; rather, they are failures only if one does not choose to gain knowledge from them.
10. Clark Boyd
Because of his over a decade of experience working in agencies and as a Digital Strategy Consultant and featured technology expert with organisations such as Google and Forbes, Clark shares prolifically his profound understanding of the nuances that unite SEO, content, SEM, and data together. This is one of the things that we love most about Clark. His work has been published in a wide variety of publications, including Search Engine Journal, BrightEdge, and Towards Data Science, amongst many others; in addition, he frequently gives talks, instructs, and produces podcasts.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
"The SEO industry is in danger of falling behind in the content space as voice and visual search become more popular,"
11: Cyrus Shepard (Shepard)
Cyrus began his career in online marketing ten years ago, helmed Moz's SEO and content team for several years, and has just recently launched his own digital media company. This is just one of the many reasons why we admire Cyrus so much. He is able to generate traffic for both small businesses and Fortune 500 companies. SEOs will find that his Twitter feed is a rich source of information and shares, both from his own knowledge and that of other leading SEOs. SEOs can benefit from his Twitter feed.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
Does increasing my CTR result in an increase in the amount of organic traffic I receive (regardless of my ranking)?
A. Each. And. Every. Single. Damned. Time.
If increasing the click-through rate (CTR) is one of the quickest, easiest, and most direct ways to increase organic traffic, then my question is: is this statement accurate?
A. I can't help but wonder if you're not the smartest person in the room.
Twelve, Dan Shure
The search success that Dan has brought to his clients and the manner in which they rave about his work are two of the reasons why we adore Dan. Dan's passion and knowledge of all things SEO and how to drive traffic comes through in the way that they rave about his work. He produces regular podcasts on digital marketing and SEO featuring interviews with industry leaders constantly sharing incredibly useful information on Twitter and possesses a wonderful sense of humour, all of which contribute to the fact that it is a lot of fun.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
"When it comes to search engine optimisation (SEO), I take a holistic approach that never loses sight of the fact that it's about more than just links and rankings; it's about your marketing goals and bottom line!"
13. Dan Taylor
What makes Dan so great is that he has quickly become an international SEO superstar, winning multiple awards along the way, and has been named by OnCrawl as one of the top 20 technical SEOs to follow in 2017. He effortlessly transforms data and analysis into strategy and is able to present both in a manner that is understandable to his audience.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
The search engine Google is not yet complete. It is never static and is always growing and developing from day to day..."
14. Dr. Pete Myers
What we like best about Dr. Pete is that he takes digital marketing data and converts it into numbers that explain audience behaviour and interests. These numbers are then immediately useful to marketers and SEOs. Dr. Pete has degrees in computer science and psychology, and he was exiled from Mount Olympus to teach him humility. He makes frequent contributions on the Moz blog, as well as at a number of other industry sites, and he generously shares information on Twitter.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
"On some days, you should concentrate more on the scientific aspect and a little less on the data-related aspect."
15. Eric Enge
What we appreciate most about Eric is that he started the digital marketing firm Stone Temple Consulting more than 20 years ago (before there was even a Google), and he has been an active SEO thought leader as search has evolved over the years. Stone Temple Consulting is now a part of Perficient Digital. His contributions have been instrumental in moulding the industry, and he continues to be a sought-after speaker, author, and columnist despite having won multiple awards for his work in search marketing.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
16. Frédéric Dubut
What we admire most about Frederic is that he was the leader of the team that was responsible for developing the Bing crawler. It would be a gross understatement to say that he is familiar with and has an in-depth comprehension of the search. The information that Frederic shares on social media is a treasure trove of useful information on big data, artificial intelligence, machine learning, and everything else that an SEO needs to know.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
Even for "milder" applications, I believe it's healthy to question whether or not having a machine generate a long-form article from a sentence that's the length of a tweet contributes anything positive to the human race. There are already an excessive number of locations around the world in which appearance triumphs over substance.
Geoff Kenyon is the 17th.
What we like best about Geoff is that he has been immersed in the world of online marketing for over ten years and has experience in a variety of related fields, including search engine optimisation (SEO), content marketing, e-commerce, and analytics. His personal website, in particular, the learn section, is a treasure trove of useful information, and the content of his social streams is a source of up-to-date and knowledgeable search results.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
It is not always a good sign when there is a reduction in "bad" directives; if you notice a decrease in the number of pages blocked by robots.txt or noindex tags, you need to conduct further research. Crawling and indexation are two aspects of search engine optimisation that must be controlled. There is a purpose behind the noindex command being available. It's possible that a negative result would occur if the noindex attribute were removed from pages.
18. Greg Gifford
Greg Gifford is the Vice President of Search at DealerOn, Inc. You can follow him on LinkedIn or on Twitter at @GregGifford.
What we love most about Greg is that he makes SEO enjoyable. When it comes to his work as an SEO, specifically the local SEO that he specialises in, he brings a very unique background in marketing and web design. By utilising his various social media platforms on a consistent basis, he keeps his audience up to date on the latest SEO news and best practices while also providing them with a source of entertainment.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
"Don't put your faith in anything on faith alone.... Test things for yourself; it will make you a better SEO, and your clients will get much better results."
19. Hamlet Batista
Because he is the creator of the RankSense platform, Hamlet has an in-depth understanding of the challenges that are faced by search engine optimisation specialists (SEOs). He lives by his statement that "we believe amazing SEO results should take 6 weeks, not 6 months!" and contributes to the SEO community on a continuous basis through social media, through article contributions, at conferences, and in other ways. Simply observing him and learning from him is a worthwhile endeavour.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
Being considered an "expert" in a field is a tremendous asset when it comes to launching and expanding a business. Maintaining one's status as an expert is an entirely different challenge.
20. Jamie Alberico
Jamie's social feeds are a treasure trove of helpful marketing and SEO insights that come from the advanced technical knowledge that she has gained through more than ten years of practice (and success!). This is one of the things that we love most about Jamie. She is constantly sharing expert opinions and content based on both her own experience and the experiences of others in her network, which assists the SEO community in adapting to the ever-changing world of search and maintaining a focus on what is most important: the user.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
Organic traffic is superior to paid traffic in many ways. It is a reflection of the health of the site as a whole.
21. Kevin Indig
What makes Kevin such a special person is that he began his professional life working in technical SEO and, in his own words, "then ventured into Growth." Kevin's analytical approach provides a significant amount of value to both his clients and the SEO community. This is evidenced by the fact that he has earned a reputation on a global scale and continues to give presentations at conferences, participate in podcasts, and write articles when he is not sharing information through his social presence.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
The best practices for internal linking are not always applicable in every situation. Instead, they are dependent on the type of site, which is an outcome of the business model that the company utilises.
22. Lukasz Zelzny
The fact that Lukasz is an internationally renowned SEO consultant who is based in the UK and has more than 15 years of experience is one of our favourite things about him. His clients and the wider SEO community are equipped with the ability to provide the best user experience possible thanks to his prolific sharing, writing, and public speaking on all aspects of technical SEO as well as how to create content that is centred on the audience.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
"It doesn't matter what sector of the economy you work in; a thorough analysis and ongoing optimisation ought to be one of the fundamental and most importantly obligatory components of the overall strategy."
Martin McDonald, numbered 23
What we admire most about Martin is that he has worked in search engine optimisation (SEO) for nearly two decades and understands enterprise technical SEO. This is likely why so many Fortune 500 companies have sought his advice in the past. He posts hilarious and helpful SEO content every day, which makes going to work a lot more enjoyable.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
Common SEO issue:
The word "data" is NOT a plural form of the word "anecdote."
24. Michael King
What we admire most about Michael is that he calls himself a "Marketing Technologist," which means that he is a professional who combines "equal parts marketing and technology." Michael is the founder of iPullRank, and together with his team, they utilise data to drive creative successes while connecting brands with their audiences. Through the iPullRank blog, he makes consistent contributions to the SEO community, and the social shares he makes are always well-considered, forthright, and educational.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
My genuine question is this:
If machine learning is being used by Search at this point, and clicks/CTR are not being used as the response variable, then what is being used? Abandonment rate and dwell time are both options, but they all depend on whether or not the user clicks on something on the page.
I am genuinely interested in learning what it will be.
Patrick Stox, number 25
What it is about Patrick that we adore: Patrick encapsulates the reasons why SEOs like us adore him by saying, "I eat, sleep, and breathe SEO." Not only does he have a profound knowledge of all aspects of technical SEO as a result of spending a significant amount of his time "understanding the weird and interesting issues," but he also makes consistent contributions to the community in the form of social shares, and he was the one who initiated the Beer & SEO meetup!
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
This article from @contentking addresses some of the issues surrounding risk and access/permissions that will need to be had before this sees more mainstream adoption. Edge SEO is probably going to be the next big thing in SEO, and this article addresses some of those issues.
26. Paul Shapiro
What we like best about Paul is that, if you look at his Twitter feed, you can see that he is connected to some of the most influential people in SEO today. His website, searchwilderness.com, features the work of many contributors. And we haven't even begun to touch on his incredible insights and contributions as a "technical marketer" to the SEO community, to say nothing of his customers and patrons at this point.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
I really appreciate all of these that @hamletbatista has written. It's high time that the SEO community started using Python; it's been far too long.
27. Rhea Drysdale
What we admire most about Rhea is that despite the fact that she has been the CEO of her own agency for more than ten years, during which time she has focused on providing digital marketing, content, and SEO solutions to her clients, she has always found the time to share helpful information and knowledge gleaned either from her own experiences or from her incredible and well-connected network.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
What exactly is SEO? It's a simple question. The question then is, why are there forty answers? Because an astute SEO at @ahrefs most likely made the decision to rank for "what is SEO" by using long-form informational content and ego bait to accomplish this goal. That, right there, is SEO.
28. Ryan Jones
What makes Ryan so great is that he is so well-versed in all things related to search engine optimisation (SEO), given that he is the SEO Director at one of the most successful digital agencies in the world. The way he does things and the insights he shares really help to simplify SEO, and we could see a lot of new and advanced SEO experts benefiting a great deal from following him. Regularly, he keeps his community informed not only of his own singular observations but also of recent developments in the thinking of others. In addition to that, he has been a speaker at a variety of events and conferences pertaining to SEO and Analytics.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
Construct your own website. Learn how to resolve even the most fundamental SEO technical issues through hands-on experience.
Ruth Burr Reedy was ranked 29th.
What we admire most about Ruth is that she has been working in search engine optimisation (SEO) for almost 15 years and is aware of how data-driven content not only leads to significant outcomes but also enables brands to connect and build communities with their target audiences. Her social feeds consistently provide her with a wealth of valuable and insightful SEO information.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
In my opinion, none of your GA Views should still be labelled as "All Web Site Data." I hope you don't mind me saying this.
30. Tim Kadlec
Tim's primary focus is on website performance, which allows him to ensure that the site functions properly regardless of the device or network being used. His point of view brings together SEO with web design and web components, going beyond merely technical SEO factors to assist brands in providing the best user experience possible to all of their potential audiences.
Take this nugget of wisdom with you:
"I put a significant amount of effort into WebPageTest. A considerable amount of time."
The best SEO experts can only come from Position1SEO. That's because our company is dedicated to constantly improving our techniques and strategies so that we can always be at the forefront of search engine optimisation (SEO). We believe that sharing is caring, which is why we've written this blog post for you. We hope you find it helpful! If you want to learn more about Position1SEO, get in touch with us today.
