Key SEO Skills to Learn and Unlearn in 2025, According to Experts

Let’s be honest, what needs to be doubled down on SEO in 2025 looks very different to SEO 5- 7years ago. 

We spoke to a range of the best-known SEO specialists in the business in order to ask them two simple questions:

• If you could do the impossible task of picking one SEO skill that needs to be refocused on, taken seriously and re-honed in 2025, what would that be?
• If you could pick a single skill that should be left behind, what would that be?

Here is what top SEO agency founders and senior specialists from across the industry would suggest we hone and drop for 2025.

SEO must be linked to the full marketing funnel 

SEOs often fall into the trap of tunnel vision, particularly in agencies where success is narrowly measured by SEO-focused KPIs. But in 2025, understanding the bigger picture of how SEO integrates into a brand’s digital marketing funnel is critical. 

Anthony Barone, head of Studiohawk London, advises SEOs to grasp how their work fits into a brand’s broader digital marketing funnel.

“SEOs need to better understand where SEO sits in the wider digital funnel and how it can seamlessly complement other channels like paid search, social, and email in order to drive better bottom-of-the-line business outcomes,” he explains.

Supporting this idea, Travis Talent, MD, CRO and SEO of Brainlabs US, highlights the growing importance of collaboration. He believes that SEOs must evolve into educators, helping specialists from other channels understand SEO’s role.

“Take SEO content, for example. It needn’t serve one purpose. What if it were to be used for retargeting by the team? All of a sudden, the dual effort can start to drive better outcomes,” he says. Travis sees this ability to bridge gaps and communicate clearly across a business as a game-changer for 2025.  

Cofounder of specialised consultancy, Didgeheads, Jessica Redman, takes this further by highlighting the need to communicate SEO’s long-term value to stakeholders. She points out that “the biggest threat to SEO right now is not AI—it’s performance marketing.” Performance marketing’s short-term focus, where ROI is measured month-to-month, threatens SEO budgets. 

She goes on to say “SEO is a channel that compounds its growth without the need for an increase in spend. Turn off that money tap in Paid Search and the leads stop.” Convincing shareholders to see this bigger picture could protect SEO’s role in the marketing mix.  

Keep SEO comms clear and simple and adapt them for your audience

Barone stresses the importance of communicating strategies in simple terms: “The ability to translate SEO concepts in order to communicate them to everyone, from C-suite execs to junior staff, and demonstrate how SEO will help achieve their goals, will separate those who understand business from those who just get SEO.”

And this is truer now than ever before! At a time when people have to account for every pound, tying strategies to clear commercial wins is non-negotiable.

Jack Clark, SEO manager over at Australian-based agency Optimising, agrees: “With the search landscape evolving faster than ever, SEOs who can clearly explain these changes and guide stakeholders through uncertainty will be invaluable. Strong communication will set industry leaders apart.”

Allan Li who is the founder of Australian based IT management business Ample Tech,  also highlights the need for better communication in reporting. He’s seen too many agencies deliver lazy reports, like screenshots from Google Analytics or Search Console with no context. Clients need storytelling and reassurance, not jargon or raw data. Poor reporting, he argues, must be left behind.  

Look beyond Google for wins

Phil Dukarsky, head of SEO at Dubai-based SEO Sherpa, highlights that SEOs in 2025 need to conquer the wider ecosystem. 

”Search is no longer just Google, and SEOs need to catch up. Yes, users still get information from Google, but they also get it from TikTok, Reddit, Instagram, ChatGPT, etc.,” he explains and stresses the importance of mastering these spaces to keep clients visible.  

The awesome Shonovee Simpson-Anderson, a Senior SEO strategist at Firewire in Newcastle, Australia, further supports this idea: “SEO is no longer about just search engines. Search integrates all types of websites, and many of these platforms have their own form of search that needs targeting.” She argues SEO is a misnomer because the goal has shifted from “search engine” optimisation to simply building visibility where audiences are active.

Focus on business outcomes, not just keyword rankings

Founder of independent SEO Consultancy, Didgeheads,  Jessica Redman,  shares a bold prediction: “Technical SEO’s role is shifting rapidly. AI tools can already identify issues, write code, and automate fixes. By 2025, this process will be even more streamlined.” She believes SEOs need to move beyond relying on technical audits and keyword rankings alone, focusing instead on broader strategies that drive significant business impact.

When it comes to metrics, Travis Talent questions the obsession with keyword rankings: ”While keyword rankings have long been a core metric, they are increasingly unreliable and less meaningful in today’s fragmented digital landscape.”

He calls for an overdue shift: “With audiences dispersed across multiple platforms, and the customer journey becoming more dynamic and multi-channel, focusing on rankings alone fails to capture the full scope of SEO’s impact. Instead, SEOs should prioritise metrics that reflect true business outcomes, such as conversions, revenue, and overall customer experience across platforms.”

Be a marketer, not just an SEO, and start to think brand

As Carrie Rose rightly points out, SEOs in 2025 need to demonstrate their value outside of traditional rankings and traffic. 

“They need to learn how SEO fits into and compliments the wider marketing effort,” she says and suggests looking into broader data, like how much SERP space media coverage grabs, to tie SEO into the full marketing effort.

Shonovee Simpson-Anderson adds that “Brand SEO” is staging a comeback.

“A decade ago, you heard every other SEO say “Google loves brands” and then somewhere along the way we lost sight of how important a brand actually was. It’s having a bit of a renaissance”. She believes focusing on brand-driven strategies will once again play an essential role in SEO success.

Embrace AI, but use it wisely

It would be an understatement to say that SEOs need to embrace AI and the multitude of resources that are now at our fingertips. Every SEO should invest in AI to automate repetitive tasks today. From research to editing, the opportunities are endless.

But as seasoned Technical SEO Director JP Garbaccio rightly points out, we need to prioritise quality over lazy activity. He tells us that we should “develop original, high-value content rather than relying on generic content clusters or aggregator exports”.

He hits home the real need to embrace innovation and stay current with emerging AI tools and techniques that help to enhance content creation and the ability to edit efficiently.

He warns SEOs against the over-automation of “mediocrity” and urges us to craft original, high-value content instead of leaning on generic AI scripts that churn out low-quality content.

“Automation should complement, not replace, thoughtful content strategy.”, he says. “Be a content editor only and resist the temptation to become just a curator of automated outputs. Instead, leverage your expertise to elevate content strategy and quality.”

Allan Li doubles down on this, pushing SEOs to develop their writing skills. He states: “I’m not talking about AI garbage, but actual insightful information that answers deeper questions. Deeper questions that not only show search engines that you know what you’re talking about but also cite well-known sources to back it up.”

This approach, according to Li, makes content more credible in the eyes of search engines like Google and Bing and increases the chances of being recommended and featured in AI-powered platforms like ChatGPT. 

Push your SEO skills to grow and innovate 

JP Garbaccio explains that SEOs in 2025 should use their tech experience to develop custom software, scripts, and integrations to automate routine tasks, saving time and driving efficiency.

He urges technically focused SEOs to embrace API connections and coding fundamentals to optimise team workflows. He stresses the value of continuous learning in programming and automation technologies, noting that these skills will increasingly differentiate top-tier SEO professionals from the rest of the field.

Be a critical thinker to stay ahead

Bruno Rodriguez Armesto,  Ex Head of Organic Search at Sydney’s Orange Line Digital, explains that the ability to think critically is now vital for SEOs who want to remain competitive.

Armesto points out that “SEO will completely change in the next 3-5 years, and the best people in our industry don’t fully know yet, while a lot of room temperature talent is making wild claims about achieving impossible AI tech feats. Understanding where the tech is going and getting the timing of the hype cycle right can be the difference between setting a trend for the industry or being left behind.”

Now lets look at the things we need to leave behind

Top SEOs have to stop working in silos

The limitations of siloing also extend to the individual facets of SEO. During my time as an SEO from 2009 to 2018, we would often refer to ourselves as technical, content, or off-page specialists. To be honest, the industry was geared toward cultivating this type of isolated career path.

As Rise at Seven CEO Carrie Rose tells us, “There has previously always been a big push for SEOs to be either technical or content, and I believe that this is what holds senior SEOs back today, leaving them short on the versatile skills senior SEO roles demand today.”

She argues that the future belongs to those with well-rounded skills who can develop cohesive strategies encompassing onsite and offsite SEO while staying curious about how other channels tie in.

Jack Clark echoes this sentiment with a concrete example: “Take Google’s “Short Video” SERP feature. Share your expertise with social media teams, feed them search-driven content ideas they can add to their schedule, and you’ll ultimately increase the chances of those videos gaining visibility in Google Search.”

“Opportunities like this are everywhere,” he says, “giving SEOs a chance to demonstrate their expertise and drive success across multiple channels through strategic collaboration. But you have to look outside your SEO silo first to see these opportunities!”

Leave buzzwords out of SEO talk

In my early days as an agency-side SEO, I sat in on client meetings where my Directors used language and acronyms that I am pretty sure they didn’t even understand. It was all the rage for SEOs to use as many buzzwords and channel jargon as they could to avoid any direct commercial conversation. What’s worse is that clients accepted it, but they don’t anymore.

Commenting on this, Barone tells us that “SEO has an issue with bu%%shit, either due to the low barrier to entry or maybe because of the lack of understanding of SEO in a lot of businesses”.

“People are still getting drawn into unnecessarily jargon-fuelled conversations,” he says.

Barone hits home his earlier point that in 2025, we need to start delivering clear and concise revenue-focused reports and updates to stakeholders to retain their trust. 

He also highlights the fact that for too long, SEOs have simply blamed clients for poor implementation of technical suggestions. However, he argues this is actually a failure on the part of SEOs to communicate effectively, both in terms of how to implement, and how pivotal the specific changes are from a commercial perspective. 

This lack of clarity can result in missed opportunities for positive improvements and, more critically, failure to prevent potential negative impacts on the business

Stop buying links  and start building real relationships

I personally feel like this has been said for years, but JP really hits the nail on the head when he says that “relying on purchased links is outdated and ineffective.”

“This tactic won’t build the lasting value or trust needed in today’s SEO landscape,” he explains.

He’s just as firm about keeping outreach human and warns SEOs to “avoid depending entirely on automated link building. The human element—relationship building and personalized outreach—is essential.”

Stop stepping on others to get ahead

While the SEO communities on X and LinkedIn provide valuable motivation and knowledge sharing, they have long been plagued by public criticism and “pile-on” behaviour.

Commenting on this, Bruno Rodriguez tells us:  “Too many professionals looking to establish their own credibility spend excessive energy tearing down others’ work rather than advancing the field”

“The future belongs to those who lift others up, share knowledge, and grow together,” he says. With the rules shifting fast, he believes this kind of unity isn’t just feel-good, but it’s what keeps you ahead of the curve and gets you noticed in a crowded field”  

In summary, SEOs need to be more commercially minded and attuned with the overall business goals of their clients. They need to stop trying to bamboozle and impress with long outdated industry lingo, and as a minimum they need to be able to communicate with clients and stakeholders with varying levels of knowledge.

Silo working needs to be a thing of the past for SEOs and in fact, they need to start looking at how their channel benefits other channels and vice versa if they are to get what they need to do their jobs.