A Step-by-step guide to becoming an SEO expert in Nigeria

Becoming an SEO expert in Nigeria is one of the smartest digital career moves you can make. As more Nigerian businesses move online, the demand for search engine optimization (SEO) professionals continues to grow at an exponential rate. This creates more demands for SEO professionals. 

Becoming an SEO expert is a journey, rather than a destination because SEO evolves constantly, meaning you need to stay up to date for your skills to be relevant in the future.  But if  you want to build a profitable digital skill that takes weeks to acquire, rather than months or years, the practical, step-by-step guide will point you in the right direction.

Step 1: Understand What SEO Really is

SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is the process of improving a website so it ranks higher on Google, Bing  and other search engines. When a site ranks higher in search engines, it means it can generate valuable traffic organically. This reduces or even eliminates the need to  invest in Pay Per Click traffic, which is rather expensive. 

Conducting basic SEO on an “out of the box” website could vastly improve the user experience and ranking of any website. An SEO expert understands the steps that need to be taken or what needs to be done to a new website, for it to rank well in search engines. 

There are three main aspects to a full search engine optimisation competence, they are: 

• On-Page SEO
• Technical SEO
• Off-Page SEO

To confidently call yourself an SEO expert and to be able to achieve impressive results for yourself or your clients, you need to master these three main aspects of search engine optimization.

Step 2: Learn keyword research

Keyword research is the foundation of SEO, why? Because without knowing the keywords or more importantly, the important keywords that can drive traffic to the website you are optimising, you are unlikely to succeed.  Here are the aspects of keyword research you must learn. 

You must learn how to:

• Find profitable keywords
• Analyze competition
• Understand search intent
• Build keyword clusters
  

Without keyword research, ranking a website is next to impossible. It is like trying to shoot at a target, without focusing on any target. 

Step 3: Practice on real websites

You can learn all the theoretical parts of SEO, without getting your hands dirty by actually optimising a website, you cannot become an SEO expert.  The quickest way to learn is by doing. So, practise, practice and then practise again. All the participants of Odurinde eLearning  structured SEO course in Nigeria are given a Nigerian website to practise on. 

Other ways to practise are:

• Start a blog
  
• Optimize a friend’s business site
• Offer free services to gain  experience
• Enter an SEO contest

Step 4: Learn Technical SEO

Technical SEO is probably what separates a beginner from an expert. The technical aspects of SEO needs you to know about basic technical aspects of website development such making basic configuration changes to WordPress or other CMS. Here are some of the components of technical SEO. 

• Website speed optimization
• Mobile responsiveness
• Indexing
• Schema markup
• Fixing crawl errors
  

Step 5: Build a Portfolio

After your SEO training you need a portfolio to show prospective employers and client evidence that you are indeed an SEO expert. If you are an alumni of Odurind eLearning SEO training  or an active member of our SEO training community we will help you build a portfolio.  You can also create a portfolio by yourself. Here are some of the ways to show that you have required skill to call yourself and SEO expert:

Create:

• Case studies
• Ranking screenshots
• Before & after results
  

While a certificate shows that you have completed the steps you need to become an SEO, a portfolio shows that you can actually apply the stuff you learn in the real world. Most employers rate portfolios much higher than certificates. 

Step 6: Take Structured SEO Training

Nothing stops you learning SEO by yourself, there are hundreds of thousands of articles and videos that teach you SEO. A structured learning, with certification on completion such as the one offered on this page, can help you to become a certified SEO specialist and help you build your SEO portfolio as well. You can also enroll in other  professional SEO training in Nigeria or online that teaches practical implementation from beginner to advanced.

How much do SEO experts earn in Nigeria?

Now for the reason you want to become an SEO expert;, remuneration.  What exactly is the going rate for an SEO expert? Entry level SEO specialists can expect between ₦100,000 to  ₦250,000 monthly.  A more experienced SEO specialist, an intermediate if you like, commands over 1 million naira per month. 

In summary

Becoming an SEO expert in Nigeria requires skills, tenacity, Continuous learning and practical experience. A certification like the one offered by Odurinde e-learning and other providers can help to establish your credential and credibility, however at the end of the day, your portfolio may be the best way to prove to prospective clients and employers that you are an SEO expert.