I'm pretty sure you'll agree with me that there's A LOT of SEO information already out there.
But the question is:
How do you know which information you can trust...and which may penalize your site down the road? Well the first place to look is the source of the information.
Thats why Kevin Raposo and I have curated this list of the most trustworthy, creative, experienced and straight up awesome SEOs in the business.
Kevin Raposo @Kevin_Raposo Website: SimpliSafe.com & KnowTechie.com
When he's not favoriting tweets, he's an inhouse guy who handles PR and Outreach efforts for SimpliSafe. Kevin started out as a link builder a couple years ago, and molded himself into a pitching and outreach machine. Kevin is a great relationship builder, which helps him get those high valued links and mentions. His favorite tool: coffee.
Brian Dean @Backlinko Website: Backlinko.com
Brian is tearing it up in the SEO world with his eye opening strategies, methods, techniques, and resourceful guides. Anyone starting in the SEO industry should definitely have Backlinko as their homepage. Brian's resources are valuable, painless, and priceless when it comes to execution. Brian is carving his place in the digital marketing world. His favorite tool: email.
Danny Sullivan @dannysullivan Website: searchengineland.com/
Danny Sullivan is the Godfather of SEO. In fact, he just celebrated his 18th anniversary in the SEO industry. You'd be hard pressed to find anyone thats contributed more to the SEO industry than he has. Here's to 18 more Danny!
Dan Shure @dan_shure Website: https://www.evolvingseo.com
Dan is the self-proclaimed obsessed with SEO owner of Evolving SEO. His YouMoz posts are not to be missed.
John Doherty @dohertyjf Website: JohnDoherty.com
John cut his teeth at one of the most respected SEO agencies on the planet: Distilled. He now heads up marketing at HotPads. Let's just say I feel bad for their competition.
Chris Dyson @ChrisLDyson Website: TripleSEO.com
When it comes to Google penalties, he's the guy to go to. Chris and Hitreach.co.uk have a really successful score card. Chris takes clients with manual penalties and gets them lifted in a speedy timeframe. Penalties isn't his only specialty, he's a great content marketer as well. Give him a topic and he'll push out 10 juicy headlines.
Matt Cutts @mattcutts Website: MattCutts.com
The man. The myth. The legend.
Danny Groner @DannyGroner Website: ShutterStock.com
One of the most important tactics in SEO is email, and when it comes to outreach, Danny knows his stuff! Contributing to sites such as Huffington Post, The Week, Mental Floss, The Next Web, and countless others. He's obviously doing something right in his outreach.
Daniel Butler @dbseo
Danny is an all around SEO guy. When it comes to content generation, deep crawls, and countless other aspects of SEO, Danny knows his stuff, and SEO Gadget is privileged to have him on their team.
Samuel Scott @samueljscott
Here's a Boston guy who was once a journalist. Now he's the Senior Director of Digital Marketing & SEO at The Cline Group. Sam is a firm believer of how PR and SEO are essential the same thing. When he's not tweeting, he's usually discussing the greatness of the movie The Pianist with @Kevin_Raposo.
Ross Hudgens @RossHudgens Website: siegemedia.com
If there's an SEO conference going on, Ross is probably speaking at it...and for good reason. Ross is one of the few well-rounded SEOs that can teach you the in's and out's of outreach email subject lines and the best approach for developing a holistic content strategy for a brand.
Richard Baxter @richardbaxter Website: BuiltVisible.com
As European SEO manager, Richard dramatically increased CheapFlights.co.uks organic visibility. Then he decided to start one of the most highly-respected SEO firms out there: SEO Gadget (now BuiltVisible). He's also a hell of a speaker.
Stacey Cavanagh @staceycav Website: Blog Session
Here's a rising star to lookout for. Stacey is head of search of Techmark. When it comes to SEO, she's seasoned in all areas. You name it: Content, link analysis, digital marketing campaigns, and outreach. Stacey is the sweetheart of SEO, but don't get it twisted, she's also a vicious cougar when it comes to ranking.
Anthony Fulginiti @anthonycl Website: ClikLabs
Here's another Twitter power user. Anthony manages content and advertising over at PopWrapped. He's also the co-founder of ClikLabs. When he's not tweeting his antics, he's usually chatting it up with Niki Minaj.
Geoff Kenyon @geoffkenyon Website: Distilled
As a senior online marketing consultant at Distilled, Geoff is knee deep in in the trenches SEO everyday. That's given him tremendous insights into what works...and what doesn't. His Moz contributions are definitely must-reads.
Phil Nottingham @philnottingham Website: Distilled
If I have a video SEO question, I Google "keyword + Phil Nottingham". There's literally no one else online who understands video SEO as well as Phil.
Eric Enge @stonetemple Website: StoneTemple.com
Stone Temples rock solid reputation starts at the top. Stone Temple Consultings founder Eric Enge is an OG in the SEO game (he's been in the industry since the fetal days of the web). But don't let that fool you: Eric can talk about Google Authorship with the same level of expertise as getting a link from DMOZ. Hands down one of the most knowledgeable SEO's in the industry.
Annie Cushing @AnnieCushing Website: Annielytics
It takes a great mind to turn something like Concatenating Marketing Data in Excel into something you actually want to read. But that's another day in the office for Annie. Her excellent blog, Annielytics, is a goldmine of accesible analytics and data analysis information.
Tad Chef @onreact_com Website: OnReact.com
Tad Chef is one of the most prolific writers in the SEO industry, with over 500 articles under his belt. Make no mistake: these aren't your typical 5 tips for keyword research style posts. Everything Tad publishes hits hard and is worth a read.
Danny Ashton @dannyashton Website: Neomam
Danny is the king of infographics. His patented infographic development and promotion system has created fistfuls of popular pieces and has propelled his agency, Neomam, into one of the most in-demand visual asset agencies online.
Eppie Vojt @eppievojt Website: Eppie.net
When he's not rapping about SEO, Eppie is dropping practical knowledge bombs at SEO events. One of the sharpest dudes in SEO.
Wil Reynolds @wilreynolds Website: SEER
When Wil speaks, the SEO industry listens. What more can we say? (mic drop)
Kate Morris @katemorris Website: KateMorris.com
Kate is up there when it comes to legend status. She's earned the old school SEO status. Probably one of the nicest people in SEO. She's another all seasoned SEO who can get your local rankings up, all the way to building a kickass content strategy.
Sean McGinnis @seanmcginnis Website: 312 Digital
Sean brings 14 years of digital marketing experience to the table. He speaks, he teaches, and takes on the occasional consulting gig. Sean who previously launched 312 Digital is now running the digital marketing efforts for a major brand: Sears. Wow!
Hannah Smith @hannah_bo_banna Website: Distilled
Content is king, and Hanna is the Queen. When she's not speaking and dropping knowledge, she's strategizing content over at Distilled. Ask her how to build 23,787 links in 30 minutes, she has the answer.
Rand Fishkin @randfish Website: Moz
What more can be said about Rand that hasn't already been said? The Wizard of Moz continues to set the tone of the SEO industry as a whole.
Claire Stokoe @killer_bunnie
When it comes to infographics, Claire really knows her stuff. She can tell if an infographic is poorly designed within the first 2 seconds of viewing it. Claire doesnt tweet the traditional SEO jargon, her feed is filled with pictures of bunnies, articles regarding animal welfare, and anything from Reddit.
Rae Hoffman @sugarrae Website: SugarRae.com
Rae is as real as it gets, and her tweets will tell you why. If you want unfiltered advice on SEO, Rae is a huge influencer in our network. You'll get advice, rants, and a personal look into her life, sprinkled with profanity. Rae keeps it real!
Ian Lurie @portentint Website: Portent
Probably the funniest person in our SEO world. Ian runs Portent. Ian really loves to crunch numbers, and dig into data analysis. I'm surprised he's not a programmer (maybe he is).
Lyndon Antcliff @lyndoman Website: Cornwall SEO
Introducing the master of content creation. Lyndon has a keen eye on emerging trends, and ties them into his content marketing strategy. He's the undisputed king of creating headlines. I swear, headlines come out of this guy like its nothing. Lyndon studies the psychology of content, and studies what makes people read or click on a link. News Jacking? He's one of the best. When he's not thinking up killer headlines, you can usually find him rooting for the Boston Red Sox. (Lyndon lives in the UK)
Will Critchlow @willcritchlow Website: Distilled.net
What can we really say about Will that hasn't already been said? Prolific speaker, entrepreneur and unabashed thought leader (just to name a few). Will is one of the few SEOs that are pushing all of us to become real marketers.
Oh yeah, he also co-founded a digital marketing agency called Distilled. Maybe you've heard of them 😉
Barry Schwartz @rustybrick Website: Search Engine Roundtable
Barry always has his finger on the pulse of the SEO industry. Many consider Barry the people's SEO, because he always seems to have the eveyrday marketing pro and small business owner in mind. When there's buzz around a possible Google update, Barry is the one that picks up and reports on the chatter on SERoundtable.com and on YouTube.
AJ Ghergich @SEO Website: Ghegrich.com
AJ is one of a handful of people deserving the highly-coveted @SEO twitter handle. He knows how to get the most juice out of a title tag AND piece together a content marketing strategy campaign from the ground up. His post, Confessions of an SEO Crack Dealer is one of the very few State of the SEO industry pieces worth reading.
Andy Crestodina @crestodin Website: Orbit Media
If you want to hear from someone that has consulted for over 1000 businesses, Andy is your man. His real world experience comes out in his practical posts, like his recent article about how to beat big brands in Google with Content Hubs.
Larry Kim @larrykim Website: WordStream
Larry isn't one of those PPC guys who doesn't know his way around a title tag. In fact, when it comes to SEO, Larry walks the walk and talks the talk. Wordstreams SEMRush organic report speaks volumes about his SEO talents.
Mark Traphagen @marktraphagen Website: Mark's Google+ Profile
Mark is old school and new school SEO rolled into one. As the face of digital marketing agency Stone Temple Consulting, he traveled the globe to teach people how to get more search engine traffic from content, links and outreach. Today he's the industrys #1, #2 and #3 expert when it comes to Google+ and Authorship.
Eric Siu @ericosiu Website: Single Grain
When brands like HostGator, Mint and Turbo Tax are looking for more search engine traffic, they turn to Erics elite digital marketing agency, Single Grain. He shares what he learns in super-practical columns in online magazines like Inc.com and Entrepreneur.
Kane Jamison @KaneJamison Website: Content Harmony
Kane's stuff is some of my favorite in the SEO space. He understands the importance of content in SEO, but he's not the "write great content and the rest will take care of itself" type of guy. The dudes been in the industry too long for that kind of thing. Bottom line? Read more of his stuff if you want to get better at SEO.
Matthew Barby @matthewbarby Website: Find My Blog Way
Most SEO advice for blogger out there is cookie-cutter stuff like make sure your blogs posts load quickly. That's why most people that come across Matthews stellar blog, Find My Blog Way, find his content refreshingly unique (and most importantly) useful.
James Agate @jamesagate Website: Skyrocket SEO
Creativity is one of the most important qualities an SEO can have. Thats why I love James' approach to SEO and link building, like in his recent post about website acquisitions.
Steve Webb @SteveWebb Website: WebGnomes
Steve has a PhD. But that's not why he's smart. His amazing content (like this in-depth audit of Grantlands SEO) shows why he's a razor sharp SEO.
Ken Mcgaffin @mcgaffin Website: Linking Matters
Nowadays it's common to hear someone say: You want to get better results from SEO. Try investing in PR. Ken has been saying that (and a lot more) on his blog, Linking Matters for years.
Roger Montti @martinibuster Website: martinibuster
If you're sick of fluff SEO content that doesn't actually teach you anything new, then you NEED to start following Roger. The man has been doing SEO for over a decade. His link building newsletter is an absolute steal.
Eric Ward @eric ward Website: EricWard.com
Eric's been building links since...1994. There's literally no one in SEO that can claim that much experience. Speaking of newsletters, Eric's newsletter, Link Moses Private, is the best $8 that I spend every month.
Jason Acidre @jasonacidre Website: Kaiser The Sage
There's no other way to put it: Jason is a beast. When I first delved into white hat SEO, Kaiser The Sage was my bible. He was the first link builder that I heard talking about building an online brand. Today he continues to push SEOs to a higher level with his actionable, experienced-backed posts.
Julie Joyce @juliejoyce Website: Link Fish Media
Just when everyone in SEO is running as fast as they can away from the words link building, Julie continues to embrace it (even the paid stuff). And why not? Her ahead of the curve insights (she was the first SEO I know of that talked about monitoring link profiles) and candid approach are why she's one of the most respected people in the industry. You can find her at Link Fish Media.
Russ Jones @rjonesx Website: The Google Cache
Besides boasting an impressive SEO resume, his other claim to fame is that he wrote one of the all-time best SEO posts. Ever. The Broken Link Building Bible.
A must-read for anyone thats serious about link building.
Paul Shapiro @fighto Website: PaulShapiro.com
Paul is light years ahead of most SEOs. When most SEOs are still debating dofollow vs. nofollow, Paul is doing #RCS like building active communities on sites like Reddit (Big SEO).
Benjamin Beck @ben_beck Website: benjaminbeck.com
Benjamin prides himself on theory-free actionable techniques and strategies. And he delivers on that promise on his blog, benjaminbeck.com.
James Norquay @connections8 Website: Backlinks.com.au
James Norquay is a no-BS SEO that has his pulse on what really works today. His outstanding blog, Backlinks.com.au, is a treasure trove of link building experiments and case studies.
Aleyda Solis @Aleyda Website: AleydaSolis.com
In any language Aleyda Solis translates to: one hell of a smart and experienced digital marketer. Oh, and did we mention she's one of the most in-demand speakers in the game?
Adam Connell @adamjayc Website: Blogging Wizard
Adam is a Swiss Army Knife of internet marketing knowledge. Like the other people on this list, Adam can hold his own in terms of SEO prowess. But he's also a well respected on blogging, conversions and email marketing.
Bill Sebald @billsebald Website: Green Lane SEO
Bill is a guitar-playing industry veteran who shares lessons on SEO, marketing and entrepreneurship at his excellent Green Lane SEO blog. He's also put together an incredibly useful tool called Outdated Content Finder.
Nick Eubanks @nick_eubanks Website: SEO Nick
Nick is an successful entrepreneur, ecommerce SEO expert and is even listed as one of the hottest guys in SEO. What else is there to know?
John-Henry Scherck @JHTScherck Website: TLCSEo.com
Link builder. Business developer. Blogger. My only beef with this man is that doesnt update his awesome SEO blog, TLC SEO, often enough. Get on it!
Matthew Capala @searchdecoder Website: Search Decoder
Matthew prides himself on taking the information in the complex/conflicting/confusing world of SEO and distilling it into information everyone can understand. And he's very, very good at it. His new book "SEO Like I'm 5" is an awesome fluff-free overview of SEO.
Jon Cooper @pointblankseo Website: Point Blank SEO
You can count the number of people that know more about link building than Jon on one hand. He's an absolute master of his craft.
Melissa Fach @seoaware Website: SEO Aware
Last but certainly not least. Melissas profile pretty much says it all: Moz Associate, Community Team; work w/Authority Labs. Wife to @Paulfach, Writer, Editor, Geek, Big Cat Volunteer, Non-Cook, Star Wars Fan, & Cat Slave. One thing her Twitter profile doesn't mention is the fact that she's one of the most knowledgeable SEOs online. One of the few people I LITERALLY follow on Twitter (in the sense that I make a conscious effort to see what she shares). She's that good.
Anyone We Missed?
Let Kevin and I know in the comments 🙂
SEP Twitter Lists
SEP Twitter Lists consist of recognized experts and authorities whom Search Engine People recommends to follow.
The lists are curated independently from Search Engine People by experts in the same professional field and are kept up to date,
To prevent bias, employees of Search Engine People Inc. are automatically excluded from these lists. Appearance on these lists does not constitute endorsement by Search Engine People Inc.
Where’s the OPML file for those of us still using RSS readers!? 🙂
Thanks for pulling this great list together.
I think I’m old-school too, since I also use an RSS reader. Here’s my OPML file. I think this has you covered 😉
https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B1aSTilKEYd4bHhlcXg1RlA4RlU/edit?usp=sharing
Awesome list. Thank you for including me. I’d add:
Rhea Drysdale – The woman who saved SEO from a trademark troll. @Rhea
Ruud Hein of SEP itself, he’s the editor in chief. @RuudHein
Ralf Tegtmeier – The only real SEO guru – because he looks like Bhagwan! @fantomaster
Yeah, you missed Alan Bleiweiss!
Having performed forensic SEO audits for some of the largest sites including Mashable, NBC Universal, Manta and others.
Epic SEO rants.
http://www.twitter.com/AlanBleiweiss
http://www.AlanBleiweiss.com
Thanks for checking it out, Marios.
Great list… Would love to see more women in SEO added! 🙂
Wow, What a great list!
Now I just got to put all of these into a Twitter List!
Thanks for the mention.
Hey Brian,
Luv the list. I think missed one is Neil Patel..
Thanks..
Excellent list Brian. Looks like i have to pump out more quality content to make it to the list 😀
I can’t beleve you missed me!