Free SEO Add-Ons for Chrome that Marketers Need to Know About

A lot of the SEO work we do involves repetitive work with keywords and search queries, and that can become draining. It's easy to lose focus and energy when this all-important research becomes tiresome, but we still need to do it nonetheless.

Because of this, it's really great to see that innovative developers have come up with a variety of SEO tools for Google's Chrome browser. When used properly, these tools can dramatically lessen the workload on SEO specialists, making it easier to hone their keywords, and create content that connects.

What are the best free SEO add ons for Chrome users?

The only question is, which SEO Chrome tools are worth using? Not all of the apps on the market actually deliver the accuracy and scope marketers need, but these extensions really do make Chrome a lot more functional.

MozBar

Created by SEO mavens Moz, the MozBar is - as the name implies - a tool bar for Chrome. But it's not just any old tool bar. With this extension, you can plug in any website and extract data about its backlinks and website authority, which is really handy when comparing the performance of your assets versus the competition.

You can instantly expose meta data lying behind a page, getting to know the most intimate details of websites. And the data you glean can be exported in .CSV format, making it easy to integrate with other marketing apps. Overall, it's essential.

BuzzSumo

Another legendary name in the marketing world, BuzzSumo has come up with a must-have Chrome extension. In this case, the app doesn't analyse the authority or structure of sites. Instead, BuzzSumo is all about social media performance.

With this app, you can instantly see how pieces of content are spreading across social media channels. With a single click, you can get a handle on how many retweets or Facebook likes a text has attracted, see who is engaging with it, and - at the end of the day - understand what is working, and what isn't.

Keywords Everywhere

If you want to carry out keyword research efficiently and accurately, Keywords Everywhere is a must-have extension. Just type in target keywords and queries, and the app will deliver data on cost-per-click, monthly search volumes, and much more. It's a handy tool for AdWords dependent marketers, providing a hotline to keywords that are both cost effective and get the job done. And it's also a useful tool for creating Amazon SEO-content quickly, with all of the right keywords for each product description.

Redirect Path

All-too-often, website designers and marketers are tripped up by poor site architecture, leading to poor SEO indexing and - when the crawlers report back to Google HQ - disapppointing search rankings.

Redirect Path offers an invaluable insurance policy against SEO mistakes. Working in a similar way to the grammar checker on Word, Redirect Path instantly alerts site designers to common error codes like 302, 404, or 500, catches any Java script redirect problems, and generally smoothes out flawed code to suit SEO crawlers.

Google Trends

Finally, we need to mention Google's own Trends extension. You'll probably be familiar with the general idea behind Google Trends, and there's a fair chance you already use it routinely to stay ahead of the curve and analyze market developments. But fewer people actually install Google's Chrome extension.

it's well worth doing so. The Trends Chrome add-on is one of the slickest SEO extensions around, and helps you quickly analyze which terms to use for different pieces of content, without needing to visit external websites or use standalone apps.

How to get the most from SEO Chrome add-ons

All of these Chrome extensions bring something a little bit different to the table, and it's probably a good idea to install a variety  to ensure that you have the right suite of tools.

With BuzzSumo's extension installed, you can audit social media performance almost in real time. It's quick, easy, and effective - so be sure to build full SEO analysis into your auditing of each piece of content.

With the MozBar, Keywords Everywhere and Trends on your Chrome browser, you'll be in a position to plan out content rapidly, pinpointing keywords that have the most potential. And you'll also have the chance to dig into your active content to understand what's working.

The key is to utilise Chrome add-ons in conjunction to replace external apps with add-ons, saving you time, and enhancing your operations. So experiment, try a few combinations, and you'll soon find a blend that works well.

Mix smart browser tools with high-quality content creation

Whatever your SEO needs, these extensions can help, essentially allowing individuals and small companies to build the capacities enjoyed by marketing giants. That way, you can bust one of the biggest SEO myths: that the game is rigged against the little guy, and that SEO performance is becoming biased towards big corporations.

Even so, you may well need help turning your SEO research into high-quality content. In that case, feel free to get in touch with greatcontent's team. We can help out with your SEO queries and find ways to convert keywords into content that really performs, and we'd love to hear from you.

Text: Sam Urquhart
Image: unsplash.com