Is Surfer SEO's Certified SEO Worth the Investment?

Introduction

Surfer SEO recently released their certified SEO tool, which is powered by AI. The tool has generated a lot of buzz and received considerable praise in the industry. Intrigued by its capabilities, I decided to put it to the test myself to determine whether it truly lives up to its hype. In this article, I will share my experience and insights on using Surfer SEO's certified SEO tool, examining its value proposition and effectiveness.

Pricing and Features

To begin, I signed up for the light plan at $29 per month. This plan provides access to the keyword research modules and allows three content audits per month. However, Surfer SEO follows a pay-for-what-you-need model. For additional features such as a site audit, SERP analyzer, and grow flow, users need to subscribe to more expensive plans, with the max plan costing $299 per month.

Testing the AI-Powered Content Generation

I started by using the tool to generate an article on the topic "How to Export from Figma into Webflow." Surfer SEO's AI took around four minutes to analyze the keyword and provide an outline for the article. While the process was slightly slower compared to other AI copywriting tools I have tested, it was still significantly faster than conducting manual research.

Surfer SEO's AI collects data from the top 10 search results on Google and assigns a content score to each website, based on Surfer's NLP parameters. This allows users to select the best websites to compare their content against and be inspired by when creating their own articles. The AI automatically selects the top four or five websites with the highest content score, but users can opt to exclude or add other websites based on their preferences. The outline generated by Surfer SEO's AI was different from my own, focusing more on the manual method for exporting rather than considering both manual and plugin options. While I prefer my original outline for providing comprehensive solutions, Surfer SEO's outline may still be effective for its specific target audience.

Examining the Generated Article

With the outline in hand, I proceeded to generate the article using Surfer SEO's one-click feature. It took approximately 8 minutes to generate a 2000-word article and 12 minutes for a 3000-word article using Surfer SEO's model, which uses GPT-4 (32k tokens). While these generation times might be slower than some other AI copywriting tools, they still offer a significant time-saving advantage over manual writing.

Reviewing the generated article, I found some positives and negatives. Surfer SEO offers a concise summary at the beginning of the article, which allows readers to quickly grasp the main points. The tool also generates an FAQ section by scraping Google for relevant questions related to the search term. However, I noticed some duplication of questions in both the FAQ section and the main body of the article, which could be improved to eliminate redundancy. Surfer SEO optimizes the article for the perfect NLP (natural language processing) score, making adjustments to word count and suggesting image placements after each H2 heading. The inclusion of images enhances the article's overall appeal. However, the tool does not generate outbound or internal links, which could be a valuable addition. Additionally, the generated article lacks personal experience, which is crucial for building trust and authority. AI copywriting tools cannot replicate personal experiences, and it is up to the author to incorporate them naturally into the content.

Comparing Surfer SEO with Competitors

When comparing Surfer SEO's certified SEO with other AI copywriting tools, such as Phrase and Quillbot, there are a few notable differences. Quillbot, for instance, generates content at an impressive speed of less than two minutes for an entire article. However, Surfer SEO provides better quality content and is more expensive due to its use of GPT-4, which is five times costlier than GPT-3.5.

Phrase, on the other hand, offers unlimited AI-generated articles for $35 per month, making it a more cost-effective option for high-volume content generation. While Phrase runs on GPT-3.5 and not GPT-4, it still delivers excellent results. Personally, I have had great experiences with Phrase for both NLP editing and content generation. Furthermore, Phrase also offers an SEO competitor research tool, providing additional value for users looking to enhance their SEO strategies.

Quillbot shines in generating content for informational articles and comparison-based articles (e.g., "Best X for Y"). However, it lacks an NLP editor, which makes tools like Surfer SEO or Phrase necessary for optimizing the content further.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Surfer SEO's certified SEO tool is an excellent choice for companies with larger budgets looking to generate bulk info articles. It provides great quality content and includes an NLP editor for optimization. However, for those solely interested in generating content, I would recommend Creator as a more cost-effective option. Creator excels at generating both informational and best articles and offers a fantastic price point. For users seeking a comprehensive SEO solution, Phrase is the way to go, with its competitive pricing and additional SEO competitor research tool. Remember, while AI copywriting tools offer incredible convenience, incorporating personal experiences and expertise in your content will always elevate its value and longevity.

Stay tuned for my upcoming comparison video, where I will dive deeper into the features and performance of Phrase, Quillbot, and Surfer SEO's certified SEO tool. Make sure to subscribe so you don't miss it!

Thank you for reading, and see you in the next one!