So you hired a designer, launched the site, and waited for a line of customers that never quite formed. Somewhere along the way, you heard there’s a mythical creature called an SEO specialist who can fix that, but you’re not totally sure what they get paid to do between sunrise and knock-off.
Maybe you picture someone sprinkling keywords into text, or some hacker who argues with search engine algorithms behind a dark screen. Fair.
Search engine optimization still feels mysterious to plenty of small business owners, and there are a lot of cowboys in the SEO industry who make it seem like getting to #1 is magic.
Well, it isn’t. It’s structured, measurable, and when executed well, it’s one of the highest-ROI moves in digital marketing. A good SEO pro can get your website more online visibility, and bring all the right people to your corner of the internet.
But how? What does an SEO specialist do during a typical day? It’s all down below for you (plus some tips for hiring a bonafide SEO expert, rather than some scam artist).
The daily to-do list of an SEO specialist
Every tactic below feeds a single goal: more qualified visitors from organic search results who convert into buyers. That means an SEO specialist optimizes pages for humans and major search engines – usually Google, but also Bing, DuckDuckGo, and any newcomer chasing the crown.
Keyword research
First stop: hunting down relevant keywords real customers type before they reach your offer. Tools like Ahrefs and Semrush help you find the right phrases, volumes, and search trends so your content answers actual questions instead of guessing.
By mapping intent (“people ready to buy” versus “people who want to learn”), the pro shapes a roadmap that guides blogs, landing pages, even future products.
Competitor analysis
No business operates in a vacuum. A skilled SEO specialist will use special SEO tools to reverse-engineer rivals already ranking on the search engine results page (SERP). They dissect backlink profiles (how many sites link to another), on-page copy, and site structure to tease out any gaps you can fill faster – or smarter – than the competition.
Technical SEO
SEO requires technical expertise, not just good writing.
If your site is a mess – broken pages, confusing navigation, blocked pages, or technical errors – crawlers (Google’s bots that seek to understand what each page is about) might skip key parts of your site.
That means those pages won’t show up properly (or at all) in search engine results. Not great for your website’s visibility.
That’s where technical SEO comes in. Compressing images, cleaning up broken links, improving Core Web Vitals, and nesting internal links logically ensure more of your site appears in search results.
Content audits
What soared to page one in 2022 can slip to page five today for reasons as mundane as a newer article citing fresher stats.
During an audit, your SEO specialist runs each URL through a spreadsheet to grade five things: traffic, backlinks (sites that vouch for you), conversion rate, freshness, and keyword overlap.
Low scorers get one of three fates:
- Rewrite it: Add new examples, modern screenshots, or firsthand data.
- Consolidate it: Merge two underperformers into one stronger guide.
- Retire it: Redirect the URL to a better home so visitors avoid dead ends.
Why bother? Because search engines crave up-to-date, unique answers. An audit trims fluff, saves crawl budget (Google’s time spent on your site), and bumps “meh” pages back into the money zone.
Meta tag optimization
Title tags, descriptions, and headers – aka meta tags – tell Google why a page matters and tell users why they should click on it in the search results. Your SEO specialist trims them to the right pixel length, sneaks in the chosen keywords, and tests variants to lift click-through rate.
Link strategies
A trustworthy site attracts quality backlinks. Earning those links means outreach, guest posting, and partnerships – never spammy directories. Strong link equity feeds higher search engine rankings, which then attract yet more links. Flywheel engaged.
Google Business Profile optimization
If you serve a local area, this listing is gold. Updating hours, categories, Q&As, and geo-tagged photos helps you show up in the Map Pack. Pair that with clean citations and data from Google Search Console and you’ll pull foot traffic that’s already primed to buy.
Performance tracking
Finally, no day ends without a peek at Google Analytics (GA4 these days). Your specialist watches organic sessions, conversions, and revenue to judge what’s winning. Dashboards flag dips before they hurt sales, and A/B tests prove which tweaks actually made a difference.
For a deeper look at the dollars-and-cents impact, read our post “How Does SEO Make Money – Ever Wondered?” and see how rankings snowball into revenue.
How to Hire an SEO specialist (not just someone who ‘knows SEO’)
Hiring SEO help is forming a partnership. Vet like you would a financial advisor, so you end up working with a true SEO specialist, not someone who did a basic course and claims they’re the expert.
Questions to ask before you hire:
How will you tailor our SEO strategy to my business?
Blanket approaches rarely work. Look for a reply that references your market, seasonality, and overall marketing strategy.
How will you integrate with our wider digital marketing strategy?
Content, email, and social media marketing all feed off the same research. Cohesion is super important here.
What’s your plan for communication and reporting?
Nobody wants to have to chase after their SEO person for updates. Clear timelines, deliverables, and dashboards demonstrate great communication skills.
Do you also manage social media accounts?
Some specialists happily coordinate posts and content marketing; others stick strictly to site-side work. Decide what you need up front.
Red flags to spot an imposter
“Guaranteed #1 in a week!”
Nobody can promise rankings on all search engines – run.
Mystery methods
If they won’t explain tactics because they’re “proprietary,” that usually means black-hat tricks that can tank long-term SEO campaigns.
Cheap link packages
Buying 10,000 backlinks for $99 may seem tempting until Google issues a penalty. Real partner relationships beat spam every time.
No focus on technical SEO
A “content-only” approach skips crucial speed and schema factors. A true SEO specialist balances both.
Reports full of vanity metrics
Traffic is nice, but revenue is nicer. If the SEO professionals you talk to can’t tie actions to dollars, they’re not a successful SEO specialist – yet.
Ready to find an SEO specialist of your own?
An SEO specialist studies search engine marketing trends at breakfast, tweaks sitemaps over lunch, and schedules the next round of experiments before close of play. The role is part detective, part developer, part storyteller, and 100% focused on sustainable growth.
If you’d rather spend evenings doing anything but tweaking meta tags, I’m Cody at Squeak Media – happy to translate data into clear actions that lift traffic and profit. Shoot me a message and let’s map out your next 90‑day climb.
