Modern SEO Foundations
Get Found in Search & AI
Turn “Why can’t anyone find us?” into a repeatable system for showing up — in Google and in AI answers.
About this course
A practical, current SEO course that takes a complete beginner to a confident practitioner. It teaches how search really works today — including AI Overviews — and ends with a 90-day plan the learner can run the moment they finish.
Designed end-to-end in the Design Studio with Craftie as the co-author.
Who it's for
- Founders & marketers who own their own growth
- Content creators who want durable, compounding traffic
- Career-switchers building a marketable SEO skill
What learners can do by the end
Who's teaching this
A great course has a face and a point of view. Here is the instructor behind this one — and the real experience that backs it up.
Dev Okafor
SEO Practitioner & Content Strategist
Organic growth for founder-led sites in the age of AI search
I help small, founder-led sites get found in search without big budgets, agencies, or shortcuts. Most of my work is with teams who wear ten hats and cannot afford to waste a month chasing SEO myths — so everything I teach has to earn its place by actually moving rankings.
I learned this the slow way, testing what works across dozens of real sites as Google — and now AI answers — kept changing the rules. The system in this course is the one I still use with clients today, rewritten every time the landscape shifts so it never goes stale.
You will not find tricks or jargon here. You will get a clear mental model of how modern search decides what to show, and a 90-day plan you can start running the day you finish.
Fictional instructor created for this example. Not a real person; headshot is AI-generated.
Why this course is worth your time
- Grew organic traffic for founder-led sites from zero to compounding
- Ships the same 90-day plan learners build here with real clients
- Rewrites the material every time Google and AI answers shift
A closer look
Rich, on-brand visuals carry the experience across the whole course — here are a few moments from inside this one.
Straight talk: what this covers
Trust comes from being clear about the edges. Here is exactly what this course delivers — and what it intentionally leaves to others.
What you'll get
- How modern search and AI Overviews actually decide what to rank
- Keyword, content, on-page, and technical fundamentals that last
- A measurable 90-day plan you can run the day you finish
What it doesn't
- Black-hat shortcuts or link-buying schemes
- Paid search and PPC — this course is organic only
- Guaranteed rankings, which no honest course can promise
The competency map
Every CraftMyTraining course is built on a competency map — the standards backbone that keeps lessons focused and assessments honest. Here is the one behind this course.
How Search Works Now
Reason clearly about ranking instead of chasing myths.
Keyword & Content Strategy
Choose topics that can actually rank and convert.
On-Page & Technical Essentials
Remove the friction that blocks good content.
Authority & Measurement
Build trust and prove results over time.
The full course outline
Module 1 · How Search Really Works
A clear mental model of crawling, indexing, ranking, and AI answers.
- What search is actually optimizing forVideo 9m
- Crawling, indexing & rankingReading 12m
- Winning in AI OverviewsReading 11m
- Checkpoint: Search fundamentalsCheckpoint 7m
Module 2 · Keyword & Content Strategy
Find the intent behind the search, then plan content that answers it.
- Search intent decodedReading 10m
- Keyword research, step by stepReading 14m
- Activity: Build a topic clusterActivity 16m
- Checkpoint: StrategyCheckpoint 8m
Module 3 · On-Page & Technical Essentials
The unglamorous fixes that unlock every other effort.
- On-page optimization that still worksReading 12m
- Core Web Vitals without the panicReading 11m
- Activity: Audit a pageActivity 15m
Module 4 · Authority, Measurement & Your Plan
Prove it is working, then run a focused 90 days.
- Analytics that actually matterReading 12m
- Capstone: Your 90-day SEO planCheckpoint 20m
Video, right inside the course
Lessons can open with a short, branded video. Here is a sample clip playing exactly where a learner would see it.
How search really works today
A short taste of a video lesson — the mental model behind modern search and AI Overviews. (Illustrative clip; no audio.)
This is how a finished lesson reads
Clean layout, focused writing, and a clear takeaway — the same polish across every lesson in the course.
Search Intent Decoded
Ranking is not about the keyword — it is about the need behind it. Two people can type the same three words and want completely different things. Great SEO starts by reading that need correctly.
Every search falls into one of four intents. Informational searches want to learn (“how does SEO work”). Navigational searches want a specific place (“Google Search Console login”). Commercial searches are comparing before they buy (“best SEO course”). Transactional searches are ready to act (“hire SEO consultant”).
When your page matches the intent, everything downstream gets easier — rankings, click-through, and conversions all improve because you gave the searcher exactly what they came for. When you mismatch it, no amount of technical polish will save the page.
In the activity that follows, you will take ten real queries from your own niche and label each one by intent, then decide what kind of page each deserves. It is the single highest-leverage habit in this entire course.
Key takeaways
- Optimize for the need, not just the phrase
- Four intents: informational, navigational, commercial, transactional
- Intent-match lifts rankings, clicks, and conversions together
Try it now
Pull ten real queries from your own niche and label each one informational, navigational, commercial, or transactional.
Check yourself
For each query, can you name the one page type that best serves it? If two intents fit, you’ve found a page you need to split.
Resources attached to this course
Templates, worksheets, and checklists can ride along with any course, so learners leave with tools they will actually use — not just notes.
90-Day SEO Plan Worksheet
WorksheetThe prioritized, measurable execution plan learners build in the capstone.
Keyword & Intent Tracker
SpreadsheetLabel queries by intent and map each to the page type that serves it.
On-Page Audit Checklist
ChecklistA step-by-step pass for titles, headings, structure, and Core Web Vitals.
Topic-Cluster Brief Template
TemplatePlan a hub-and-spoke content cluster around one core topic.
Sample resources shown for illustration — the download buttons are not active on this example page.
How learning is measured
Assessments are aligned to the competency map, so every check proves a real skill — not just recall.
Search Fundamentals
Concept quizConfirm the core mental model before building on it.
Build a Topic Cluster
DeliverablePlan a hub-and-spoke content cluster around real intent.
Audit a Page
Applied activityRun an on-page and technical audit with a checklist.
Your 90-Day SEO Plan
CapstoneProduce a prioritized, measurable execution plan.
The brand & voice
A consistent look and tone make a course feel trustworthy. Here is the kit behind this one.
Palette
Growth Green
#37C978
Deep Space
#0D1626
Signal Blue
#2596DE
Highlight Gold
#F4B740
Voice
Practical, myth-busting, encouraging — a mentor who has shipped real results.
Typography
Plus Jakarta Sans for headings · DM Sans for body
A fast-changing subject stays evergreen because it is organized around durable competencies. The learner leaves with a plan, not just notes — the hallmark of a course designed for outcomes.
— The CraftMyTraining design approach
Picture your subject in this frame.
You just explored a complete, standards-based course. Yours can look exactly this good — and you can start today, from a blank page, a template, or a few quick answers with Fast Track.
Illustrative example. This is an illustrative example of how a finished course can look — not a real, purchased, or distributed course. The instructor is a fictional character (not a real person), and all photos, video, and media on this page are AI-generated for demonstration only.