SEO TOOLS
There is no shortage of SEO tools in the world and it can be overwhelming to decide what to use. This list is not exhaustive of every tool by any means but is a list of tools that I have tried and like or want to encourage others to use. This is a list of both SEO tools I use when I do freelance work and other helpful tools to me as a freelancer as well.
*I am an affiliate for some of these tools and may receive compensation if you sign up using my link.
Frase
Frase is the all-in-one AI Content tool that helps SEO and Content Teams research, write, and optimize better SEO content, faster.
Reasons I love Frase:
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Ease of use - super easy to figure out how use and start generating content briefs
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Data in the content brief - I love the questions and SERP data that I'm able to pull into the content briefs
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Cost - I create content briefs for my monthly SEO retainer clients and the cost of the tool makes this super affordable to do
SE Ranking
There isn't a shortage of rank tracking or SEO keyword research tools out there. I use SE Ranking because as a freelancer the cost is perfect for me and the tool does exactly what I need it to do.
Reasons I love SE Ranking:
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Easy to setup. Multiple options for adding keywords to track
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Keyword research and competitive research seems spot on when compared with data from other more expensive tools
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Customer service is top notch the few times I've had to use them
FreshBooks
I've tried a few different tools for invoicing and landed on FreshBooks. It has been the easiest for me to use and manage as a contractor.
Reasons I love FreshBooks:
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Very easy to add new clients
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Ability to create recurring invoices which is really helpful for monthly retainer clients
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Multiple payment options include Stripe, Credit Card and ACH payments
Whitespark
Whitespark is my go-to choice for citation cleanups and building for Local SEO projects.
Reasons I love FreshBooks:
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Affordability - typically Local SEO projects are smaller budget and Whitespark's pricing makes it an option
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Customer service - the team at Whitespark is super responsive whenever I reach out
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Quality results - Local citations aren't a glamorous SEO box to check but the results the Whitespark team delivers makes a difference
BrightLocal
BrightLocal is the primary tool I use for Local SEO projects. It's a full service option for managing Local SEO work from rank tracking and competitor insights to citation monitoring and reporting.
Reasons I love FreshBooks:
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Everything is there. Rank tracking, GBP, Citation tracking and more all in one place
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Scalable - BrightLocal is perfect for managing one client with a single location, multi-location clients or even for agencies
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Resources - BrightLocal has the academy which is a robust library of all things Local SEO
Traffic Think Tank
Traffic Think Tank is one of the best investments I've made professionally. There is a Slack community full of the brightest minds in digital marketing. An online academy FULL of valuable templates and resources. The biggest value for me is the connections and community.
Reasons I love FreshBooks:
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The community - having access to some of the brightest minds in the industry is invaluable
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Unexpected lead source. I've closed multiple deals from connections made in TTT
Kinsta
Kinsta is one of the premier platforms for managed WordPress hosting. It's my top choice whenever I need to host a WordPress site.
Reasons I love FreshBooks:
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Site speed - I rarely have site speed issues with the sites that I host on Kinsta
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Staging sites - All Kinsta plans include a staging site which is an amazing value add
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Migrations - Kinsta makes it super painless to migrate a website over to Kinsta
Namecheap
There is no shortage of domain providers out there. Namecheap has been my go to for the last few years due to cost, ease of purchase and the deals they often run.
Reasons I love FreshBooks:
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Namecheap makes it super easy to find the domain name I want and get it added to my library of domains
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The dashboard is very easy to use and navigate for making DNS and other changes