Contents

    Learn B2B SaaS Marketing

    Must-Have Skills for a B2B SaaS SEO Consultant

    Last updated: May 28th, 2024

    SEO consultants in a B2B SaaS environment are expected to do more than just research keywords and create ad copy. Knowing what B2B SaaS SEO skills are non-negotiable when selecting candidates will help you find the right person for your business who can tailor strategies to resonate with your specific audience.

    In this article, we’ll outline the top skills every SaaS SEO consultant should have so you can find the best talent and the right fit for your team. Let’s get to it.

    What Are the Fundamentals of SEO?

    An SEO consultant will be your go-to person for increasing website traffic and building authority. They focus on three main areas: on-page, off-page, and technical SEO.

    On-page SEO involves keyword research and optimizing website content for better visibility and readability (structure, headlines, meta tags, etc.). It also involves building a network of internal links to other pages to help search engines find and index the other pages on your website.

    Off-page SEO involves strategies executed outside your website to improve its position in search engine results pages (SERPs). A significant part of off-page SEO is link-building, which aims to increase the number of quality inbound links to your site. This builds your site’s authority and can lead to higher engagement and traffic.

    Technical SEO encompasses the behind-the-scenes optimizations that enhance your website’s overall user experience. This includes making your site mobile-friendly, ensuring fast page loading speeds, and implementing other technical improvements.

    By focusing on these three fundamental areas, an SEO consultant can significantly improve your website’s visibility, user experience, and authority in your industry.

    Essential Skills for a B2B SaaS SEO Consultant

    The SEO consultant you ultimately select for the role will, ideally, possess a combination of both hard and soft skills. In addition, they will have an in-depth knowledge of industry updates and trends to keep their SEO skills and strategy development competitive.

    Hard Skills

    It goes without saying that your SaaS SEO consultant needs to have strong technical SEO skills. They need to know how to identify technical issues and implement a process for improvement and monitoring. They should also specialize in keyword research techniques to select the best target keywords.

    The following hard skills are considered essential for an SEO consultant:

    • Experience with SEO software and tools: Proficiency with SEO tools like Semrush or Ahrefs is crucial, as well as with analytics software like Google Analytics or Kissmetrics for processing business data and gaining insights into the target audience.
    • Knowledge of SEO strategies: Knowledge and experience in implementing quality outreach strategies for acquiring backlinks is highly desirable.
    • Project management and planning: The ability to manage projects efficiently is essential. This includes planning, implementing, and testing various strategies to ensure deadlines are met and objectives are achieved.

    Soft Skills

    Soft skills are often overlooked and can also be difficult to quantify. Anyone can tick off a list of hard skills on their CV, but the real question is whether or not the candidate displays the right disposition for the job.

    The following soft skills are highly desirable in a SaaS SEO consultant:

    • Critical thinking: An SEO consultant with an analytical mindset is a must. The ability to assess all the facts and data at hand will help them choose the best course of action and implement a winning SEO strategy.
    • Problem-solving: Because digital marketing is so competitive today, SaaS SEO experts need to display creative problem-solving skills so they can identify SEO issues and try various solutions.
    • Adaptability: As SEO is constantly evolving, a consultant with a growth mindset, commitment to continuous learning, and an ability to adapt is key to staying ahead of industry changes.
    • Communication: SEO requires the ability to communicate complex technical concepts both internally with the company and, potentially, with outside stakeholders.
    • Interpersonal skills: Interpersonal skills are a must. An SEO consultant needs to communicate empathetically and tactfully with team members and others outside the organization. These interpersonal skills are crucial for building relationships and gaining backlinks.
    • Team collaboration: An SEO consultant will work across multiple business departments, so it’s important that they can collaborate with others.

    At Powered by Search, our company core values align with the soft skills we seek in employees. This alignment contributes significantly to the workplace culture we’ve developed.

    We expect our employees to be passionate and driven about their work, always aiming to deliver the best service. But, above all, we value a growth mindset. Everyone on our team understands the importance of testing, learning, and growing. These qualities are also essential for a high-level SEO consultant.

    Use Our Talent-Trajectory Fit Method for Hiring

    Hiring, whether for an in-house position or an external consultant, can be stressful, especially with budget constraints. We have significant experience in this area and can confirm that our talent-trajectory fit method is the best approach to engaging the best person for the job.

    This method connects your business growth goals with the best candidate. It factors in both an applicant’s hard and soft skills and how they will directly contribute to your business goals.

    To summarize the process, start by clearly defining your strategic objectives and what tactics you need to engage to achieve them. This will help you develop a list of roles and responsibilities for the position and establish clear criteria for the right-fit candidate. Evaluate candidates based on proven results, demonstrable skills, and work ethic. A consultant who displays a high curiosity and drive to find solutions will be able to handle challenging SEO tasks better.

    An additional benefit a consultant can bring to the team is thought leadership and professional connections. Their professional reputation and network can be a huge benefit to business growth.

    Read our post to get the full picture of our talent-trajectory fit method.

    Should You Hire In-House or Externally?

    You have two options: hire an in-house position or an external SEO consultant. Naturally, there are some major pros and cons to both options that are worth considering before making a decision.

    Related:

    When you hire an in-house SaaS SEO expert, you gain a dedicated resource that will grow alongside your company. All the professional networking they do benefits the company directly. However, it takes a significant amount of time and money to find the right person for the job and onboard them in the role.

    In contrast, outsourcing your SEO needs to a SaaS SEO consultant means you’ll have a high level of expertise and specialist knowledge immediately available to benefit your business. A consultant can be more cost-effective since you only pay for services delivered and not all the other overheads associated with in-house staff.

    Of course, there are some downsides to engaging a consultant, like losing all the knowledge they have built with your business at the end of their engagement. There’s also some risk that business growth becomes too reliant on the consultant.

    What About an Agency as Opposed to a SEO Consultant?

    Typically, a marketing agency is engaged when a SaaS business has needs that span multiple marketing areas. Engaging with and maintaining a long-term relationship with a marketing agency has numerous benefits.

    An agency is likely to have multiple consultants within their team who can work with you continually, avoiding issues around unavailability and vacation time. Then, there’s flexibility as you can shift to a different consultant or specialist as your company grows and has different requirements.

    When you engage with a consultant independently, there are many risks around results, value-for-money, and long-term benefits. Therefore, considering a marketing agency might be a better option for getting the SaaS SEO expertise you need.

    Wrapping Up

    Finding the right SEO consultant might take some time, but by prioritizing the skills we’ve outlined, you’ll choose the best fit for your business and achieve your growth goals.

    To get a headstart on assessing the scalability of your SaaS business, consider taking our SaaS scalability score self-assessment. You’ll receive an instant checklist that will help you analyze how well the business currently attracts, engages, and converts leads. It’s the first step to developing a successful growth strategy, so try it out today.

    What you should do now

    Whenever you’re ready…here are 4 ways we can help you grow your B2B software or technology business:

    1. Claim your Free Marketing Plan. If you’d like to work with us to turn your website into your best demo and trial acquisition platform, claim your FREE Marketing Plan. One of our growth experts will understand your current demand generation situation, and then suggest practical digital marketing strategies to hit your pipeline targets with certainty and predictability.
    2. If you’d like to learn the exact demand strategies we use for free, go to our blog or visit our resources section, where you can download guides, calculators, and templates we use for our most successful clients.
    3. If you’d like to work with other experts on our team or learn why we have off the charts team member satisfaction score, then see our Careers page.
    4. If you know another marketer who’d enjoy reading this page, share it with them via email, Linkedin, Twitter, or Facebook.