The 5 SEO Tools I Actually Use

In the ever-expanding universe of SEO tools, it’s easy to get lost in the endless options promising to revolutionize your workflow and make you all the money with none of the effort 🤦‍♂️. But as agency owners, we all know that what matters isn’t having access to every tool under the sun – it’s having the right set of tools that consistently deliver results for your clients.

This week, I’m pulling back the curtain on my actual SEO toolkit. Not the flashy newcomers I’ve tested once, not the industry darlings everyone name-drops at conferences, but the five battle-tested platforms that power my own client work day in and day out in my agency and at SEOHive.

(And no, I won’t be diving into plugins today – you already know I’m a devoted SEOPress Pro advocate with SlimSEO Pro handling my internal linking. We’ve covered those extensively in previous posts.)

1️⃣ SEMRush: All-in-One Powerhouse

SEMRush has earned its place as the command center of my SEO operations. While many know it for keyword research, its true value lies in the comprehensive ecosystem it provides…

What sets it apart: The competitive intelligence is unmatched. Being able to reverse-engineer competitors’ strategies saves oodles of time when developing client campaigns. The site audit functionality also delivers accurate and actionable insights without overwhelming you with unnecessary data. And then there’s the link targeting functions – there is literally no other service like it online. 

How I use it: Beyond the obvious keyword research, I rely heavily on the position tracking tools to monitor client rankings against competitors. The content gap analysis has become essential for identifying opportunities that clients’ competitors are capitalizing on but they’re missing.

For agencies looking to scale SEO services, SEMRush’s white-label reporting capabilities are a massive time-saver that still deliver client-ready insights. I’ll be honest, it is expensive, but it’s the cornerstone of what I do, so I’m happy to pay for it. 

2️⃣ SEOStack: Search Data Enhancer

A newer addition to my toolkit, SEOStack has quickly become indispensable by transforming Google Search Console data from interesting metrics into actionable strategies.

What sets it apart: The ability to query Search Console data in advanced ways and identify content that’s underperforming or no longer serving a purpose gives me a clear roadmap for content improvement. Their upcoming LLM features also show promise for streamlining optimization workflows even further.

How I use it: I primarily leverage SEOStack to identify “dead weight” content that’s dragging down site performance, along with near-miss opportunities – pages ranking on page two that need just a bit more attention to break through to page one.

For agency owners looking to gain direction and show quick wins to clients, SEOStack’s visualization of improvement opportunities makes it easy to prioritize high-impact tasks – and beyond that it feeds longer term strategies as your content plan takes shape. 

3️⃣ SurferSEO: Content Optimization

While I don’t personally use Surfer day-to-day, it’s become the backbone of my copywriting team’s workflow.

What sets it apart: Surfer takes the guesswork out of content writing and optimization by benchmarking your copy against the current top-ranking pages for a given keyword – and providing clear, actionable guidelines for creating/improving competitive content. 

How I use it: My copywriters rely on Surfer both when creating new content and when auditing existing pieces. It ensures everything we deliver is structured to compete for top positions right out of the gate, significantly reducing the need for post-publication tweaks.

For agencies delivering SEO copy to clients, Surfer provides a systematic approach that can help less experienced writers produce SEO-friendly content consistently.

4️⃣ BrightLocal: Local SEO 

Local SEO requires specialized tools, and BrightLocal delivers everything I need under one roof.

What sets it apart: BrightLocal excels at citation management and local rank tracking, but the real value comes from its reputation management and Google Business Profile monitoring capabilities.

How I use it: For every local client, BrightLocal manages our citation building/cleanup, tracks local pack rankings, and monitors review generation across platforms. The white-label reporting makes it easy to demonstrate progress to clients who often struggle to understand the nuances of local search.

For agencies with multi-location clients, BrightLocal’s scalability makes it possible to manage dozens or even hundreds of locations without drowning in spreadsheets.

5️⃣ GTMetrix: Speed Optimization 

With Core Web Vitals being critical to both rankings and user experience, GTMetrix has become my go-to for performance monitoring.

What sets it apart: GTMetrix provides clear, actionable recommendations without requiring a deep technical background to interpret the results. The historical tracking also makes it easy to demonstrate improvements over time. (This differs from Google’s PageSpeed Insights as that runs over a 28 day average). 

How I use it: Beyond the initial site audits, I schedule regular automated tests to catch performance regressions before they impact rankings. The waterfall analysis helps identify specific resources causing slowdowns, making it easier to prioritize fixes.

For agencies needing to improve or check performance metrics, GTMetrix’s provides you all the information you need to know on a crawl-by-crawl basis so you know you’re fixing the right stuff and that it’s working.

🚀 The Power of Integration

What makes these tools particularly valuable isn’t just their individual capabilities, but how they work together. SEMRush identifies opportunities, SEOStack helps prioritize them, SurferSEO guides content creation, BrightLocal handles local presence, and GTMetrix ensures technical performance isn’t undermining your efforts.

When combined with my on-site plugin stack of SEOPress Pro and SlimSEO Pro, this toolkit covers every aspect of modern SEO without unnecessary overlap or complexity.

The beauty of this setup is scalability – whether you’re managing three clients or thirty, these tools grow with your agency without requiring constant reinvention of your processes.

What tools are you relying on in your SEO workflow? Are there any game-changers you think I should be looking at? Drop a comment and let me know!