Maximize the Output of Free SEO Tools

MAXIMIZING THE OUTPUT OF FREE SEO TOOLS Presented by Rebecca Gill and Liquid Web

SEO TOOLS ARE EVERYWHERE But I like to use tools I’ve

tested and trust.

The best tools are ones that require a little work and investigation by you. You don’t have to be rich to have great SEO data. You just need to do a little research and investigation on your own.

DON’T BE AFRAID TO DIG IN!

Free Tools There are a variety of free SEO tools available that will allow you to deep dive into mounds of data.

Paid Tools Some paid tools are worth the money spent – even if only for a short-term basis while doing research.

Do It Yourself Tools You can do a lot of research on your own. This will take time but each hour spent delivers knowledge.

Copyright © 2016 RebeccaGill.com, All Rights Reserved

This reporting tool is 100% free. It shows you what happens on your website, how people arrive, what pages they visit, and where they exit.

GOOGLE ANALYTICS

Maximizing your usage:

§  Connect with Google Search Console

§  Set up goals for conversion tracking

§  Use annotations to track major events

§  Set up custom reporting dashboards

§  Automate and schedule reports


This reporting tool is 100% free. It shows you what happens with your website in Google’s search index and SERP (search engine results page).

GOOGLE SEARCH CONSOLE


§  Connect with Google Analytics

§  Upload an XML sitemap

§  Review top keywords and pages

§  Utilize compare feature to track changes

§  Review secondary data for issues and notifications


GOOGLE SEARCH SUGGESTIONS


§  Input your keywords to see what alternates Google suggests

§  Type slowly and document any related options that relevant

§  Duplicate the same process with Bing to catch any additional keyword ideas


This tool is part of the Google search process, but many times ignored. It shows suggestions on associated keyword phrases and how these lead a user in search.

GOOGLE RELATED SEARCHES


§  Start with phrases you know and review Google’s suggestions

§  Click on the suggestions to view more related phrases

§  Watch the time spent, because you can easily lose an hour clicking through these links and documenting keywords for your seed list


This tool is part of the Google search process, but it is also many times ignored. It shows suggestions on associated keyword phrases and how these lead a user in search.

This tool shows Google search activity over a number of years so you can see data shifts. It’s a great tool for validating thoughts on traffic shifts, as well as discovering new keyword opportunities.

GOOGLE TRENDS


§  Search activity overtime

§  Compare phrases

§  Related queries

§  Interest by region

§  View data by search, shopping, YouTube, etc.


The Google Adwords Keyword Planner is great for reviewing keyword options and search volumes. While this tool has reduced options for non-advertisers, it will still provide value.

GOOGLE ADWORDS

Key features:

§  Geographic search data

§  Words to include

§  Negative keywords

§  Keyword suggested based on URL

§  Organic rank tied to keyword

§  Import and export options


This tool will provide information on the health of your website and XML sitemap. It works similar to Google Search Console, but it is specific to activity within Bing.

BING WEBMASTER TOOLS

Key features:

§  Search appearance and click through rates

§  Pages indexed

§  XML sitemap submission

§  Crawl errors

§  Top keywords

§  Inbound links

§  Markup validation

§  SEO Analyzer (in beta)


DYNO Mapper allows you to create, edit, customize, and share interactive visual sitemaps from scratch, URL, XML, or existing sitemaps. You can choose from three different sitemap styles and you can display data such hierarchy, inventory, analytics, and comments.

This tool is great for keyword mapping, content audits, website redesigns, 301 redirect creation, and content management. The tool also integrates with Google Analytics to allow the association of analytics within sitemap data.

DYNO MAPPER

Use Dyno Mapper for:

§  Competitive research

§  Content audits

§  Website redesigns

§  301 redirects

§  Keyword ranking analysis


SpyFu is a must use tool for me and I use it daily to review data on my websites, competitors, and clients. The free tool offer a slew of great data and the paid version offers even more goodness.

SPYFU

Key features:

§  Organic vs. paid search

§  Traffic trends with Google changes

§  Top keywords and pages

§  Inbound link distribution

§  Keyword distribution in search

§  Ranking changes


SEMrush shows a plentiful amount information in the form of graphs, tables, and reports. It works great for reviewing your own website as digging into your competitors’ websites.

SEMRUSH

Key features:

§  Organic vs. Paid

§  Traffic history

§  Traffic sources

§  Backlink volumes

§  Top keywords

§  Top pages

§  Organic positions

§  Top competitors


SimilarWeb pulls data from a wide variety of sources to create the a very reliable picture of a website or blog.

SIMILARWEB

Feature highlights:

§  Total visits

§  Average visit duration

§  Bounce rate

§  Geographical overview of visitors

§  Traffic source breakout

§  Top referrals

§  Top destination sites

§  Top keywords

§  Top social media traffic sources


Great tool for finding alternative keywords based on a specific starting phrase. The paid version allows for the import and export of large lists of data. This allows you to utilize the tool for large scale SEO projects, site mapping, and long-term strategy.

KW FINDER

Key features:

§  Keyword suggestions

§  Search volumes

§  Geography options

§  SERP listing

§  Difficulty factor

§  Import option

§  Export option


There are number of tools here, but I believe the back link history and summary tab are both great. Majestic surveys and maps the Internet and has created the largest commercial link database in the world. This Internet map is used monitor link building efforts, reputation management, website traffic, and competitors.

MAJESTIC


§  Check number of backlinks

§  Review types of sources of backlinks

§  Check link anchor text

§  See top linked pages

§  Review trust and citation flow

§  See historical data an trends


Alexa offers a free tool to grab quick data on any website. The Alexa ranking algorithm is calculated based on the amount of traffic recorded from users that have the Alexa toolbar installed over a period of three months. This traffic is based on such parameters as reach and page views.

Basic free data includes website rank locally and globally, estimated traffic, bounce rates, top keywords, referral websites, and audience demographics.

ALEXA


This tools gives some great technical data on your website or your competitors. This service works great for digging into technical SEO items for you or your competitors.

WOORANK


§  Review headings

§  Review meta usage

§  Check alt attributes

§  Validate canonical links

§  Review mobile display

§  See related websites


Screaming Frog’s SEO Spider Tool is a desktop program you can install locally on your PC or Mac. Once installed is crawls your websites’ links, images, CSS, script and apps to evaluate onsite SEO.

SCREAMING FROG SEO

Feature highlights:

§  Audits redirects

§  Analyzes page titles, meta titles, and meta descriptions

§  Broken link finder

§  Helps discover duplicate content

§  Reviews robots and tag directives

§  Generates XML sitemaps


The Moz Open Site Explorer provides some great information on links and link opportunities as well as the authority of a given website. The Keyword Explorer provides insight into important keyword data for optimization and ranking.

MOZ OPEN SITE EXPLORER

Feature list:

§  Domain authority

§  Link analysis

§  Inbound links

§  Top pages

§  Anchor text

§  Spam score

§  Keyword search volume

§  Keyword difficulty

§  Keyword alternatives


The MozBar is a Chrome add on that allows you to quickly review key data on your website or that of your competition. It comes in very handy when performing competitive research.

MOZBAR

Feature list:

§  Meta title and description

§  Met keywords

§  H1 and H2 usage

§  Bold usage

§  Alt text usage

§  Canonical links

§  Page load times

§  Link metrics

§  Schema and markup


Also from MOZ, this tool will provide information on local listings and directories.

MY BUSINESS LISTING


§  Check incomplete listings

§  Check inconsistent listings

§  Check duplicate listings

§  Review reviews

§  Review linked photos


If you are using WordPress, the Yoast SEO plugin is a great tool for keeping your on-page optimization on track. The free version is generally sufficient for most users.

YOAST SEO PLUGIN


§  Utilize the focused keyword where applicable

§  Integrate social media accounts

§  Validate your on-page optimization

§  Connect to Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools

§  Customize XML sitemaps


Great tool for finding alternative keywords based on a specific starting phrase.

While the free version of Keyword Tool provides keyword options, but no actual search volumes. The premium version provides suggestions and volumes for Google, YouTube, Bing, Amazon, the App Store.

KEYWORDTOOL.IO

Key features:

§  Keyword suggestions

§  Search volumes

§  Negative terms

§  Geography options

§  Search source options

§  Question suggestions


Use These Tools in the Entire Optimization Process

WHEN TO USE THESE TOOLS

Existing Website Audit Review your existing website with Analytics, Search Console, and other tools to see what is wrong and what can be improved upon.

Competitive Analysis Use these tools to review a competitor’s keyword usage, onsite meta, link profile, PPC usage, and content within the Google index.

Keyword Research Validate keyword options and look for more opportunities with Google Adwords, KW Finder, and keywordtool.io. Use volumes to find your sweet spot.

Validation and Continued Optimization Use Search Console to see what pages are ranking well and learn from them. The more you reverse engineer, the smarter you’ll become.


TIME FOR YOUR QUESTIONS ?

Rebecca Gill WordPress Agency Owner & SEO Instructor

@rebeccagill RebeccaGill.com


Digital agency serving small business through enterprise level clients. Services and products include custom website design and development, SEO consulting, and stock WordPress themes. www.web-savvy-marketing.com

Eight hour online course for DIY SEO education. Course includes videos, how-to tutorials, template downloads, and quizzes. www.diySEOcourses.com

Three day intensive SEO training workshop taking place in January of 2017. Learn my SEO process from start to finish in an interactive and activity driven classroom setting. Tickets are limited. www.SEObootcamp.com

Marketing

Maximize the Output of Free SEO Tools