One of the best things you can do to further your search engine optimization career is to be an active member of online forums dedicated to the discussion of digital marketing. Notice that we mention digital marketing forums versus those that are focused solely on technical SEO and speculation about the latest changes to the Google search engine algorithm.
Seasoned SEO professionals know that a sea change is coming to their industry. We are already seeing more digital marketing agencies that offer SEO in addition to the rest of their services. It could be argued that SEO was always meant to be part of marketing; it just did not start out this way. There are already dozens and perhaps hundreds of online SEO forums that you can join and learn from, but you will also notice a growing trend surrounding marketing topics such as social media advertising, customer engagement, behavioral marketing, and content creation.
On a popular SEO discussion forum, a member recently posted a message of deep gratitude to all members who helped her land a very lucrative contract worth five figures. This member now leads a team that works with digital marketing agencies as well as web developers, but she is thinking about pivoting towards full marketing and advertising. Something interesting about this professional's claim to success is that she was frank about having learned a lot by reading and analyzing forum discussions.
If you are still hanging around black hat SEO forums where members endlessly and fruitlessly try to figure out how to game the Google algorithm, you are not using your reading time productively. The forums you can really learn from are also discussing the Google search engine algorithm, but they do so with an eye towards understanding how it benefits searchers.
Some of the SEO forums that have been around the longest are now advocating marketing strategies such as blending the online and offline worlds. These are forums where members recommend copywriters who seem to have a knack for coming up with great content, and where the merits of online advertising campaigns are routinely dissected. For more information click here https://www.reddit.com/r/SEO/comments/mu1eo0/justdiditgotmyfirstever5figure_client/.