Hiring the right SEO expert is more than just checking if someone knows what “backlinks” and “keywords” are. In today’s digital landscape, SEO is a blend of technical knowledge, strategic thinking, content expertise, and adaptability. Whether you’re building a brand from scratch or scaling an established business, the right SEO specialist having essential SEO skills can significantly impact your growth.
Here are 20 essential SEO skills to look for when hiring an expert.
1. Search Intent Mastery
Great SEO isn’t just about ranking for keywords. It’s about understanding why someone is searching. Can the expert differentiate between informational, navigational, and transactional intent? This is key to targeting content correctly.
2. In-Depth Keyword Research
SEO starts with knowing what your audience is searching for. A strong SEO expert uses tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, or Google Keyword Planner to uncover low-competition, high-intent phrases — not just chase volume and focus on essential SEO skills.
3. Competitor Gap Analysis
Can your SEO hire identify why your competitors rank higher and what your site is missing? This includes uncovering keyword gaps, backlink opportunities, and missed content themes.
4. On-Page Optimization
From meta titles and descriptions to schema markup and image alt tags, on-page SEO is foundational. A great SEO understands how to optimize each page without stuffing keywords.
5. Content Strategy Development
SEO is not just writing; it’s planning. Look for someone who can audit your content, find opportunities, and map out a content calendar that aligns with both search demand and business goals.
6. Technical SEO Knowledge
Crawlability, indexing, mobile-friendliness, page speed, and Core Web Vitals — an SEO expert must speak Googlebot’s language. Bonus if they can read a sitemap or robots.txt file without blinking.
7. Proficiency in SEO Tools
Whether it’s Google Search Console, Screaming Frog, or Surfer SEO — your expert should be fluent in at least 5 key tools and know how to extract actionable insights from each.
8. Backlink Strategy and Outreach
Building quality backlinks remains one of Google’s top ranking factors. A skilled SEO knows the difference between high-authority dofollow links and spammy, no-value links.
9. Local SEO Optimization
If you’re targeting local traffic, ensure the SEO expert understands SEO localization, GMB optimization, local citations, NAP consistency, and geo-targeted content.
10. Content Writing and Editing
Even if you have writers, your SEO lead should know what makes content readable, engaging, and optimized. Grammar, formatting, and value come before keywords.
11. Structured Data & Schema Markup
Want rich results like star ratings or FAQs? An advanced SEO knows how to implement structured data using schema.org to boost your visibility in SERPs.
12. Analytics & Reporting
SEO isn’t set-it-and-forget-it. A great expert tracks KPIs, sets up goals in GA4, and reports what’s working — and what’s not — in a clear, non-jargon-heavy way.
13. Adaptability to Algorithm Updates
Google’s rules change constantly. Does your candidate stay updated with trends, changes, and official updates? Or are they still optimizing like it’s 2013?
14. Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) Awareness
Good traffic means nothing without conversions. An expert who can analyze bounce rate, optimize CTAs, and test landing pages is worth gold.
15. UX & SEO Alignment
Search engines and users want the same thing: fast, easy-to-navigate websites. A skilled SEO understands how design and user experience impact rankings.
16. Internal Linking Strategy
An often overlooked skill, internal linking helps spread authority across your site. Your expert should know how to do this strategically, not randomly.
17. International & Multilingual SEO
Targeting multiple countries or languages? You’ll need someone who understands hreflang tags, ccTLDs, and regional keyword nuances.
18. AI & SEO Integration
Modern SEO professionals are starting to harness AI tools for content planning, clustering, and even semantic optimization. It’s not required — but a nice edge.
19. Project Management Skills
Especially if your SEO hire will manage writers, devs, or link builders. Can they keep projects moving, manage deadlines, and align with broader marketing goals?
20. Ethical, White-Hat Practices
Avoid SEO professionals who promise “overnight rankings.” Your expert should follow ethical SEO practices, staying clear of shady link farms, PBNs, and keyword stuffing.
Final Thoughts
Hiring the right SEO expert can unlock incredible growth for your brand — but it’s not just about flashy metrics or fancy dashboards. The ideal candidate balances creativity with analytics, strategy with execution, and long-term thinking with quick wins.
Whether you’re hiring in-house, freelance, or via a platform like Marktal, this skillset can help you separate the pros from the pretenders.
