With the rise in AI, many people are worrying that perhaps looking for a career in SEO and digital marketing is unwise. That perhaps in a few years their job will be rendered obsolete and so that there is no point in getting started.
This couldn’t be further from the truth.
Yes, AI is certainly changing the landscape, but human creatives and SEO strategists will always be required to drive the industry forward.
After all, AI is only as good as the individual guiding it.
With that in mind, what qualities does one need to become an SEO specialist?
What qualities do you need to be an SEO specialist?
So, what do you need to thrive and survive in the world of SEO and digital marketing? Bear in mind that there are many different roles within the industry – each with their own skill sets and requirements. In any case, here are some generic qualities that can set you in good stead:
- Critical thinking: if you’ve never been one for solving problems and tackling puzzles then a career in SEO might not be for you. It’s a difficult quality to measure, however, if you have an analytical mind and you enjoy identifying what happened, why it happened, and what can be done about it, then you’ll be off to a good start.
- Speaking & writing skills: SEO is a very communicative industry and you need to be able to articulate your strategies to your colleagues and clients. From conducting meetings and writing case studies, being an SEO specialist requires that you be competent at speaking and writing.
- Social skills: particularly if you are client-facing, whether that be in sales or acting as a campaign manager, you need to have excellent social skills to get ahead in SEO. And even if you are in the back-end, working on the more technical / programming / analytical side of things, you will need to be able to work well with others.
- Data and analytical skills: being an SEO specialist means working with big data and being able to analyse numbers and derive actionable solutions from them.
- Adaptability: the goal posts are forever on the move so it certainly helps if you are one to adapt in difficult and ever-changing landscapes. Not only that, but you need to drive. While being an SEO specialist can be incredibly rewarding, it can also be woefully frustrating at times as well – and a drive to succeed is crucial in seeing you through.
Conclusion: Is it worth it?
It is a resounding yes. The fact is, so long as there are businesses who need to sell products and services, there will always be a demand for SEO specialists and marketing experts to accommodate their needs.
Not only that, but a career in marketing can take you anywhere in the world. If you love to travel and would like to live in a different country, there are few jobs quite as flexible as being a digital marketer.
Want to live down under in Australia? You can be an SEO specialist in Brisbane. Fancy settling down in South East Asia? You could work in SEO in Bangkok. The options are endless!
Again, AI is certainly changing the landscape, but as for being made completely redundant? Well, that is a long way off. And in reality, by the time SEO specialists are entirely replaced by computers, most everyone else will be out of a job as well so it’s not worth thinking about…for now.
