SEO guides: keywords, on-page SEO, competitors and links

SEO isn’t magic, and it isn’t a plugin. Find what people search for, build pages that answer it better than anyone, link them well, then study competitors and earn links. These guides follow that order.

12 guides · Verified by Hassan Rawther · October 2026

Your learning path

Do them in this order. Each one builds on the last.

  1. 145–60 minutesDo Keyword Research for FreeThe best keyword list comes from your customers, and Google shows you what they type, for free.
  2. 230–45 minutes per pageWrite an SEO Content BriefA brief turns “write a blog on SEO” into a page that can actually rank. It’s also how agencies brief writers and AI tools without getting generic content.
  3. 310 minutes per pageWrite SEO Titles and Meta Descriptions (Yoast, Rank Math, AIOSEO, SEOPress)The title and description are your ad on Google. Same ranking, better snippet, more clicks.
  4. 420–30 minutes per pageStructure Headings and Body Content for SEOMost visitors skim. Clear headings let them, and Google, see in seconds that your page answers the question.
  5. 530–45 minutesFind and Add Useful Internal LinksInternal links tell Google which pages matter most. Most sites accidentally give that vote to their privacy policy.
  6. 610–20 minutes per pageOptimise Images for SEO and SpeedImages are often the heaviest part of a page and the most ignored part of SEO. Ten minutes per page fixes both.
  7. 720–30 minutes per pageAudit the On-Page SEO of a PageOne page, nine checks, a clear list of fixes. Use it on client pages before proposing any SEO work.
  8. 810–15 minutesSee a Competitor’s Website Traffic and Where It Comes FromTen minutes tells you where a competitor’s customers actually come from, so you know which channel to study next.
  9. 9About 1 hourFind a Competitor’s SEO Keywords and Top PagesStop guessing what to write. A competitor’s top pages show you which topics already bring customers from Google.
  10. 101–4 hours, depending on how many competitorsAnalyse a Competitor’s BacklinksSee how much link work stands between you and the top 3, and which of their links you can earn too.
  11. 118–10 hours per campaignGet Quality Backlinks with Guest PostingWrite for other people’s audiences, earn links and reputation together. Done right, it’s one of the safest ways to build links.
  12. 121–2 hoursSpeed Up a WordPress WebsiteSlow pages lose visitors and leads before they even see your offer. Most WordPress sites get much faster in an afternoon.

Common questions

Where should a beginner start with SEO?

Study what already ranks. Check a competitor’s traffic, then their keywords and top pages. That shows you which topics are worth targeting before you write anything.

Do I need paid tools for SEO?

Not to start. Google Search Console, PageSpeed Insights and free tools from Ahrefs and Similarweb go a long way. Paid tools speed up competitor research.

Is buying backlinks a good idea?

No. Paid links that pass ranking credit break Google’s spam policies. Earn links with useful content, guest posts written for readers, and local partnerships.

Guides teach the steps. Real clients teach the job.

At Unlearn Level 2 you run these on real client budgets, with a mentor checking your work.

See the Digital Marketing track