What's Better Use of my Money? Subscription to SEMRUSH/HREFS or Hire an SEO Guy

[Sparetoolparts]

Hi Guys

Like my title says, what would your thoughts? I know a bit about SEO, but have no Tools to help with it other than using Serpbot.com and Adwords Keyword planner. Is paying over £114 p/m for subscriptions that I may or may not use, be better than paying an SEO guy similar to look at specific issues you set

 

[martin_shl]

I guess it depends on the value to your business of getting every last bit of search performance and how much time you have. One of my clients subscribes to Semrush and every now and again they have some actions I can take to improve matters but you have to take the time to look at the action. However, it may be a better investment to get an SEO expert (not the ones that send emails to you from a gmail/hotmail address!) take a proper look and give you clear actions weighted by what will have the biggest impact for the effort. They may also have arrangements that you can get regular reviews for a reasonable fee.

 

[Sparetoolparts]

Yea, I have a few burning questions/issues in regards to some Landing pages I have. I could go on and subscribe and find some useful information about the issues, but a better solution may well be telling someone the issue and pay them £114 for the answer

 

[Nudge]

It really depends on your goals and how hands-on you want to be with SEO. If you’re only looking for occasional insights or fixing specific issues, hiring an SEO expert on a project basis might be more cost-effective than committing to a £114/month subscription for tools you may not fully utilise. That said, if you plan to actively manage and grow your SEO strategy, investing in a good tool could be worthwhile. Platforms like Ahrefs, SEMrush, or Moz offer in-depth insights that go beyond what free tools provide, especially when it comes to competitor analysis, backlink tracking, and advanced keyword research. Maybe a good middle ground is trying a one-month subscription or using free trials before committing.

 

[Paul Carmen]

Tools are only as good as the people using them. SEMrush has lots of functionality, albeit some locked away for higher tier subscriptions. It's what you do with them and how you use them to make improvements; e.g. content, changes etc to beat direct competitors in your market that make the difference.

Any good SEO company or freelancer will have these and other tools (we do) to audit your site and research the market. They also should be able to demonstrate ranking other clients and a good understanding of what Google considers best practice.

Keep in mind that although there will often be low hanging fruit to improve technical SEO and onsite content, if your industry is very competitive, then there may be a lot more research and work involved to get ahead organically.

The services/keywords you're targeting in your business and marketing plan, plus a plan of action that covers what you're trying to achieve is vitally important, as that sets the basis for any SEO work and analysis that needs undertaking.

 

[Sparetoolparts]

so I'm looking to improve my SEO on my manufacturers lawn and garden categories, My biggest brands would be Ryobi and Milwaukee but equally I sold alot of Bosch lawn and garden products too last year.

If I farmed out the research part of this work to start with, what would I be asking people to price for?

Search Volumes for a specific list of categories?
Recommendations of which categories I can rank for?

I'm guessing these tools can provide this data but to get context and recommendations and insights would be very useful too.

 

[fisicx]

If you want to improve your ranking for those products start creating category content and get links to the categories on the homepage.

Then start taking pictures of the products and writing descriptions.

 

[SEO Lady]

If you want to improve your ranking for those products start creating category content and get links to the categories on the homepage.

Then start taking pictures of the products and writing descriptions.

Hi @Sparetoolparts avoid AI images, as @fisicx said, take your own photos. Google has a myriad of algorithm ranking factors and the algorithm changes constantly, daily.

In 2024, Google broadcast the importance of distinguishing original photography from AI-generated images by enhancing metadata transparency. Starting in October 2024, Google Photos began indicating when images have been edited using AI tools like Magic Editor, Magic Eraser, and Zoom Enhance. This information is displayed alongside other image details within the app, aiming to increase transparency about AI usage in photo editing.

Additionally, Google has been collaborating with the Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity (C2PA) to implement standards that help users identify the origins of images. This includes metadata that indicates whether a photo was taken with a camera, edited with software like Photoshop, or produced by generative AI models. Google's integration of these standards into its search results and ad systems aims to provide users with more context about the images they encounter online.

Manual and thoughtful ALT tags which are essential for accessibility, also have an SEO bonus too.
By adding the Alternative Tag when uploaded to your domain, you can appear in Google Images.

Search in Google for "SEO Freelancer UK", select "Images" and you might see a familiar face in the top line of the image results

If you're using AI-generated images in Merchant Center, Google requires that you preserve any metadata tags which indicate that the image was created using generative AI in the original image file.

Don't remove embedded metadata tags such as trainedAlgorithmicMedia from such images. All AI-generated images must contain the IPTC Digital Source Type trainedAlgorithmicMedia tag.

SEO on my manufacturers lawn and garden categories, My biggest brands would be Ryobi and Milwaukee but equally I sold alot of Bosch lawn and garden products too last year.

Research Entity SEO for your product hierarchy, as a rough guide to expand on what @fisicx said, start at the top and trickle down, something like this GPT sketch:

SEO Benefits of This Structure:​

Clear hierarchy for navigation & user experience
Internal linking between brands, categories, and articles
Strategic placement of pillar content (Buyer Guides, Comparisons, Maintenance Tips)

Main Menu:
Home || About || Garden Home || Contact || Articles

Lawn & Garden (SEO Category)
||
|--- Ryobi (Brand) ← Internal link: /brands/ryobi
| |--- Lawnmowers ← Internal link: /brands/ryobi/lawnmowers
| |--- Hedge Trimmers ← Internal link: /brands/ryobi/hedge-trimmers
| |--- Leaf Blowers ← Internal link: /brands/ryobi/leaf-blowers
| |--- Buying Guide: Best Ryobi Lawnmowers for Small Gardens ← Internal link: /articles/best-ryobi-lawnmowers

|--- Milwaukee (Brand) ← Internal link: /brands/milwaukee
| |--- Lawnmowers ← Internal link: /brands/milwaukee/lawnmowers
| |--- Pressure Washers ← Internal link: /brands/milwaukee/pressure-washers
| |--- Chainsaws ← Internal link: /brands/milwaukee/chainsaws
| |--- Comparison: Ryobi vs. Milwaukee Hedge Trimmers ← Internal link: /articles/ryobi-vs-milwaukee-hedge-trimmers

|--- Bosch (Brand) ← Internal link: /brands/bosch
| |--- Lawnmowers ← Internal link: /brands/bosch/lawnmowers
| |--- Trimmers ← Internal link: /brands/bosch/trimmers
| |--- Leaf Blowers ← Internal link: /brands/bosch/leaf-blowers
| |--- Best Bosch Lawn & Garden Tools for 2025 ← Internal link: /articles/best-bosch-garden-tools-2025

Articles Section (Blog) ← Internal link: /articles
||
|--- Comparison Guides:
| |--- Ryobi vs. Milwaukee: Which Brand is Better? ← Internal link: /articles/ryobi-vs-milwaukee
| |--- Bosch vs. Ryobi: Which Lawnmower Lasts Longer? ← Internal link: /articles/bosch-vs-ryobi-lawnmowers
|
|--- Buyer Guides:
| |--- Best Lawnmowers for Small Gardens in 2025 ← Internal link: /articles/best-lawnmowers-2025
| |--- How to Choose the Best Leaf Blower for Your Garden ← Internal link: /articles/best-leaf-blower-guide
|
|--- Maintenance & Tips:
| |--- How to Sharpen a Lawnmower Blade ← Internal link: /articles/how-to-sharpen-lawnmower-blades
| |--- When to Replace Your Hedge Trimmer Blades ← Internal link: /articles/hedge-trimmer-blade-replacement

Happy to have a no obligation video call if you want to share a coffee chat on Friday?