How to Make Money with SEO (2024)

Search engines have become the go-to source for consumers to find products, services, and information. This is where search engine optimization (SEO) comes into play.

SEO is all about optimizing a website to rank higher in search engine results pages (SERPs) for specific keywords. While SEO may seem complex, it can be a lucrative skill to master.

Even if you’re an experienced SEO specialist, it helps to learn all the different ideas on how to make money with SEO. That’s what this article is going to cover.

Is SEO Profitable?

Yes, SEO can be a profitable career for those who are skilled and knowledgeable in the field. SEO services are much-needed by businesses, most of which won’t hesitate to invest in such services significantly.

But why would brands pay for SEO?

One reason is that most business owners don’t have SEO skills. If they do, they lack the time to implement SEO techniques on their own sites because it’s something that can be time-consuming.

How Can You Make Money with SEO?

Below is a list of ways to monetize SEO skills.

1. SEO Content Writing

SEO content writing is indeed one of the primary ways to make money with SEO. You can choose this path if you have some good writing skills.

Content, when optimized for search engines, can increase a website’s organic traffic. As an SEO content writer, your work would involve the following:

Keyword research: SEO content writing begins with identifying relevant keywords and phrases that users search for to create content that aligns with their search intent. Keyword research tools like Google Keyword Planner, Semrush, or Ahrefs can help you find high-volume and low-competition keywords to target.
Writing high-quality and engaging content: SEO content should not only be optimized for search engines but also provide value to the readers. Make sure that your content answers users’ queries or provides valuable discoveries.
On-page optimization: You need to optimize your content for search engines using the keywords you found. This includes incorporating keywords naturally into the title, headings, meta tags, and body of the content.

In SEO content writing, several other factors come into play to ensure that your content satisfies both search engines and readers. Some of these other aspects are content length and formatting.

2. SEO Outreach for Link Building

SEO outreach is another effective way to make money with SEO. It involves reaching out to relevant websites and influencers in a particular niche or industry to build relationships, acquire backlinks for a client, and increase their site’s online visibility.

It’s quite easy to leverage SEO outreach to generate income. You first identify websites and influencers in your niche that have a strong online presence.

These have to be websites that accept guest posts, offer collaboration opportunities, or are open to featuring other people’s content or products. Once, you have a list, you can present it to potential clients, letting them know that you can help them acquire links from the listed sites.

Another approach is to start by finding clients in need of an SEO outreach specialist. For example, if your client is a SaaS product owner, you can reach out to some established blogs or review sites that have written about similar products, asking them to write about (or link to) your client too.

3. Create an SEO-Focused Blog

Starting a blog is a popular and effective way to make money using your SEO skills. What happens is that you create valuable and optimized content, attract organic traffic, and monetize your blog through various strategies.

Below’s how you can use SEO to make money with a blog:

Choose a blog niche: You’ll need a niche that you’re knowledgeable about and that has the potential for profitability. Conduct keyword research to identify topics and keywords that have high search volume and low competition to increase your chances of ranking faster.
Publish quality content: Content is the backbone of a successful blog. You need to focus on providing value to the reader as much as incorporating the right keywords and other on-page optimization tactics.
Boost your blog’s authority: Building links is one of the fastest methods to increase your website’s ranking for various topics and keywords.

Once you acquire enough traffic to the blog, the next thing you’ll do is monetize it.

Read also: Blogging for Free and Making Money

Display Advertising

Display advertising involves showing advertisements on your content pages or site. You’ll have to join ad networks like AdThrive or Mediavine to display ads on your blog.

You earn money when visitors click on or view these ads. The more the traffic, the higher your earnings.

Keep in mind that this isn’t the most recommended blog monetization method for beginners. There are several other ways to make more money from a small blog than you would through ad displays.

Affiliate Marketing

Affiliate marketing is among the best ways to make money from an SEO-focused blog. I say this because even if you’re getting 5,000 visits a month, you could earn more than $500 a month.

What you do is promote products or services related to your blog’s niche and earn a commission for each sale or referral made through your affiliate links. You can join affiliate programs such as Amazon Associates or Impact Radius to find relevant products or services to promote.

Digital Product Selling

You could also create and sell digital products such as e-books, online courses, or templates related to your blog’s niche (read more digital product ideas). This allows you to leverage your expertise and provide additional value to your audience.

Selling Your Blog

Did you know that a well-established blog with SEO-friendly content and good rankings can cost thousands of dollars? Yes, you can sell your blog and make money from it.

You could even create multiple blogs for the purpose of selling them later on. This is what’s known as blog flipping.

4. Start an SEO Agency

Starting an SEO agency can be a lucrative way to make money with SEO. As businesses increasingly recognize the importance of search engine optimization for their online presence, there is a growing demand for SEO services. Here are some steps to consider when starting an SEO agency:

Develop Your SEO Skills: Before starting an SEO agency, it’s essential to have a strong foundation in SEO. Stay updated with the latest industry trends, algorithms, and best practices. Gain practical experience by working on your own websites or offering your services to friends and family. This will help you build a portfolio and demonstrate your expertise to potential clients.

Define your target market: It’s best to determine the types of clients you want to work with. Some factors worth consideration are industry, location, business size, and budget. If you focus on a specific niche or industry, it’s easier to become an expert in that area and attract clients who value your specialized knowledge.
Build a strong online presence: Establish your agency’s online presence by creating a professional website that showcases your services, expertise, and case studies. Use content marketing strategies, such as blogging and guest posting, to demonstrate your knowledge, and optimize your website for search engines to attract potential clients organically.
Offer comprehensive SEO services: It’s wiser to develop a range of SEO services that cater to your clientele rather than offering a single service. These can include keyword research, on-page optimization, technical SEO, link building, content creation, and analytics and reporting.

Now, you have to know that starting an SEO agency requires a combination of technical expertise, business acumen, and effective marketing strategies. You need to be quite experienced in SEO before delving into this venture.

5. Work for an SEO Agency

If you don’t like the idea of starting your own agency or want to gather more experience first, you can work for another agency. Working for an SEO agency allows you to gain practical experience and expand your skill set.

You’ll have the opportunity to work on a variety of client projects, which can help you develop a deep understanding of different industries and SEO strategies. This experience can be valuable if you decide to start your own agency or freelance in the future.

6. Sell SEO Consultation Services

SEO consultation services are a valuable offering for businesses and individuals looking to improve their organic search rankings. If you choose to work as an SEO consultant, you’ll be involved in providing guidance, recommendations, and strategies to help clients optimize their websites and content for better search engine performance.

One of the major aspects of this type of work is SEO audit and analysis. It all begins with you conducting a comprehensive review of the client’s website, content, and current SEO practices.

You’ll identify what strategies they haven’t gotten right and provide them in a report. You then advise them on it or offer your services to help them better their SEO performance.

Remember, you don’t need to do anything manually. There are various automated SEO toolkits that can help identify SEO mistakes and track various metrics, including organic traffic, keyword rankings, conversion rates, and user engagement.

7. Work Full-Time as a Hired SEO Specialist

Another idea is to work as a hired SEO specialist, either in-house or remotely depending on the employer’s preferences. But it shouldn’t be hard to get full-time work as a remote SEO specialist when platforms like LinkedIn exist.

Simply create a profile and optimize it by adding your skills, accomplishments, and any background information that can compel recruiters and employers to hire you. Adding keywords related to your service in various sections of your LinkedIn profile can help with LinkedIn rankings.

And don’t forget to have a professional headshot. Either find time for a studio shoot or try AI headshots at a cheaper price.

8. Resell SEO Services

Reselling services is the equivalent of dropshipping products online. Some people refer to it as drop servicing.

What you do is connect a client with an SEO specialist and earn something while at it. For example, say you find a client willing to pay $1,500 for various SEO services.

You can easily locate a freelance SEO specialist who can take $1,000 to do the job and meet the client’s expectations. You pocket the extra $500!

Now, you can go to freelance platforms like Fiverr to find well-rated SEO specialists. In fact, the harder job is finding clients and not someone who can do the work on your behalf.

You can choose whether to disclose the act of outsourcing to the freelancer. But the client doesn’t have to know as long as you deliver quality service.

9. Make YouTube Videos

It could be that you want to make money with video SEO. In that case, creating videos for your real or faceless YouTube channel is the best option.

YouTube is the second largest search engine in the world and it offers a massive audience and potential for monetization. To make money with YouTube using video SEO techniques, follow these steps:

Keyword research and optimization: Just like with traditional SEO, keyword research and optimization are crucial for YouTube videos. You then use the keywords to optimize your video titles, descriptions, tags, and closed captions with these keywords to improve visibility and ranking in YouTube search results.
Content creation: Focus on providing high-quality and valuable content that solves problems, answers questions, or entertains viewers. Make sure that your videos are well-produced, visually appealing, and have good audio quality (find out how to discover YouTube video ideas).
Video SEO: There are more things, beyond keywords, that you can do to make more people find and view your videos. These include encouraging current viewers to like, comment, subscribe, and share your channel and videos.

Now, you need to get significant subscribers (1,000) and watch time (4,000) to monetize your channel through the YouTube Partner Program. You can increase watch time by creating longer videos or creating playlists that encourage viewers to watch multiple videos.

But there are other ways to make money from YouTubing. Most of the blog monetization methods also apply to YouTube, including sponsored content, affiliate marketing, and selling services or products (merch).

How Much Money Can You Make with SEO?

The amount of money you can make with SEO depends on various factors such as your level of expertise, the size of the client’s business, the scope of the project, and the industry you’re working in.

According to CareerFoundry, an SEO professional can make up to 75k on average in terms of salary. If working as a freelance SEO specialist, you can expect $30 or more per hour.

This isn’t the definitive amount. You can earn more or less depending on the factors that I’ve already mentioned.

Conclusion

As you’ve seen, there are various ways to make money with SEO. You can choose any of the listed ideas and begin your money-making journey.

Don’t be scared to try more than one SEO monetization method. In fact, combining a variety of ideas can increase your income streams and make you more money.

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How to Make Money with SEO (2024)

Is SEO Profitable?