A Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Specialist analyzes, reviews and implements changes to websites so they are optimized for search engines. This means maximizing the traffic to a site by improving page rank within search engines.
It is the job of the SEO specialist to make your website show up at the top of the search engine results.
Duties
- program in HTML, CSS and JavaScript to ensure the site is accessible and easy to follow and for increased interaction with visitors – this may involve working on video and PDFs;
- run pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns to increase revenue through sponsored online advertising;
- write original content for webpages – tailored for the target audience;
- make technical recommendations to developers;
- constantly check search terms, rankings and analytics to monitor performance of client websites and make recommendations for improvement;
- engage with other businesses (affiliates) over link-building opportunities, to bring in paid commission for driving customers to their websites;
- employ user experience (UX) and conversion rate optimization methods to turn visitors into more active users and to help improve website performance;
- community building – to drive targeted and loyal traffic to a website;
- use social media to distribute content and encourage more external sites to link to your content – giving you more authority;
- develop and integrate content marketing strategies;
- monitor the algorithms set by the search engines to keep up to date with changes.
Qualifications
This area of work is open to all graduates but a degree in a related area such as IT, business and technology or marketing may be particularly useful.
Skills
- a genuine interest in SEO and/or digital marketing;
- evidence of a strong personal online profile, e.g. a blog, website or connections and interactions on various social media platforms;
- a commitment to keeping your technical skills and knowledge up to date;
- an inquisitive mind which drives you to understand Google’s algorithms and predict what changes might be coming;
- a good understanding of search engines;
- an ability to understand social media platforms and how to use them to distribute content, gain more links and build successful campaigns;
- a good understanding of PR and how to get the right messages out there;
- an understanding of how customers search, where they search and why they purchase something online;
- a good understanding of the wider marketing context;
- strong analytical skills for understanding ranking algorithms;
- excellent communication skills to educate, inform, manipulate and mediate across a number of stakeholders in an organization;
- an understanding of, or experience of, HTML coding, and preferably Javascript and PHP (PHP: Hypertext Preprocessor);
- proficiency in Microsoft Office and an excellent knowledge of Excel;
- some experience and knowledge of web-hosting.