Over at SEOmoz there is a private Question and Answer area where you can ask a question and only select people with the SEO /SEM industry can answer.

Thankfully, Jane Copland was nice enough to take her time answer my question on “How do you Break into the SEO Field without Proof of Knowledge?”

This Q&A is reprinted with permission from Jane and Rand Fishkin (Rand) CEO of SEOmoz.

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DeluxeEdition Wrote: (That’s me but from here it will be Dennis Dornon Wrote)

I’ll try to make this question with an explanation as un-convoluted as I can.

I want to be able to take a full time job as an SEO Professional but I don’t really have a way of proving my knowledge or skill level.

I work full time now in car sales which takes up on average 10-12 hours of my day 6 Days a week and doesn’t leave much more than 1 hour a day for any actual SEO work, after family time. But with a salary approaching 80K a year I’ve been reluctant to get out up until now. I realize I will need to take a pay cut to get my foot in the door. However, I believe once I’m in and doing a job I truly enjoy that my skill level will accelerate along with any salary.

In a Nutshell the example work I do have, I’m a little embarrassed to add to my resume.

For example: www.cardealercheck.com - It’s a mess I’ve been in the middle of a redesign for about 4 weeks now. I may have got more involved with this site than I expected. But ranks okay for the little amount of time I do have for it.

as of 6/2/08 #4 for Car Dealer, #2 for Car Dealer Reviews, Car Dealer Review, Car Dealer Ratings, #7 for Chevy Dealers in Google

and www.DennisDornon.com - It’s there as a way to try and snag a couple of easy car sales a month. The fun thing about this site is for a brief time I tried using it as a Job Board for myself and right now ranks #4 for Orlando SEO in Google.

My resume is www.DennisDornon.com/resume.html if it helps you help me.

Any guidance or suggestions are very appreciate!!

Dennis Dornon

P.S. My apologies if I rambled just wanted to be sure all the information was present.

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  Jane Copland Wrote:
I think your achievements are more impressive than you think, especially given the amount of time you have (or don’t have) to dedicate to SEO. That said, you’re probably right that a move into professional SEO would come with a pay cut from your previous employment… however, that might not last too long.

You have a range of online experience: more than I thought you had when I read your question.

Given that SEO is still a very young industry, getting into the field is probably less difficult than you’d imagine. Job-wise, your hunt for a full-time SEO position is as easy or difficult as most industries (although do check our our SEO Marketplace); however, getting involved in the SEO community is often very beneficial and quite easy. Take advantage of forums like our comment system, Sphinn, Webmaster World forums, Cre8pc forums, etc. Not only to does this let the community know who you are, it exposes you to a range of information and improves your knowledge. I’d personally suggest using your real name for the purpose of having people recognise you in the future, whether it be in writing or in person.

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Dennis Dornon Wrote:
Thanks Jane, Would you suggest I actively promote the Car Dealer Check site in any Job interviews or Applications? I’m afraid that with the state the site is in now it would turn alot of employers off and to be honest I’m not sure how quick I could clean the code up?
Also, I appreciate the kind words and for the tip on the name I go by DeluxeEdition on about 4 different forums, some of them for many years (more of a lurker) so that is a great first step.

Dennis Dornon

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  Jane Copland Wrote:

Some of your rankings for www.cardealercheck.com are very good, especially considering the amount of time you’ve been able to devote to it. As someone breaking into the SEO sphere, I would not be ashamed to use it and its rankings as an example!

Before I really dove into the SEO forums and community, I’d consider creating a user name that was more similar to your own - people often go for abbreviations, combinations, etc. It just makes it a lot easier to connect with people when you have to use your real name for conferences, blog posts, etc.

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Dennis Dornon Wrote:

I’m not sure if your suppose to post a Thank You in the Q&A Portion but either way Thank You for your help Jane.