Over the last couple of weeks I have been approached by friends about web sites they are starting with questions about SEO. Its hard for me to help people that don’t fall into the “client” category, for lots of reasons. But I try to take a little time with each and provide some tips and then give them some resources where they can learn more. After the second time of doing this in two weeks, I realized that I really should put together an organized list of high quality resources on the web that teach the basics of online marketing.

So with out further ado, below is my list of links to beginners guides to online marketing. I pick each based on either using it myself in the past, or the level of trust I have with the author.

General SEO

• SEO: The Free Beginner?s Guide From Moz
• Search Engine Land’s Guide To SEO
• Google’s Guide To SEO [PDF]
• 7 Minute SEO Guide
• Google SEO Guide: The Ultimate Google SEO Resource

Link Building

• What is Link Building? Strategies & Examples – The Beginners Guide to SEO from Moz
• Link Building Tactics – The Complete List
• The Advanced Guide to Link Building
• Link Building from Ontolo
• SEO Link Building Strategy: Link Building Guides and Tips

Content Development

• The Newbie Guide to Blogging
• Penelope’s Guide to Blogging by Penelope Trunk
• The Ultimate Blogger Writing Guide from Copyblogger
• How to Find More Content Ideas than You’ll Ever be Able to Create from Copyblogger
• The ultimate guide to create your own infographic
• SEO Guide to Creating Viral Linkbait and Infographics
  

SEO Audits

• How to Perform the World’s Greatest SEO Audit – Moz
• Anatomy of a Hands-on SEO Site Audit
• Annie Cushing’s Audit Checklist [Google Docs spreadsheet]
• SEO Audit Checklist

Social Media Guide

• Social Media: The Free Beginner’s Guide from Moz
• Getting Started With Social Media: A Resource Guide Social Media Examiner
• The Beginner’s Guide to Social Media

Online Reputation Management

• The Online Reputation Management Guide
• The Definitive Guide to Online Reputation Management
• Online Reputation Management (ORM): A Quick Guide by Search Engine Watch (#SEW)
• Advanced Reputation Management by Andy Beal [slide deck]

Using Google+

• The Beginner’s Guide to Google+
• Google+: The Complete Guide
• Google+ beginner’s guide: nine ways to get started on the social network