Senior SEO Strategist

As Senior SEO Strategist, you'll be at the forefront of optimizing exceptional site experiences, driving results, and crafting effective content strategies. Your passion for SEO and data-driven insights will enable you to elevate marketing campaigns and enhance user experiences for the world-class brands we work with.

You understand that today’s user experience starts at the search results, and you have a knack for ensuring that the right content is discoverable to the right people, at the right time. You’ll also identify and spearhead initiatives to drive search performance through content strategy, user experience, and a strong technical foundation. With your analytical skills and attention to detail, you excel at analyzing data and providing actionable recommendations to improve digital visibility. Collaboration is second nature to you, as you work seamlessly across disciplines to implement SEO best practices, drive search initiatives, and meet customers wherever they're searching.

You Will:

• Own the definition, execution, and optimization of holistic search strategies for a global brand
• Deliver actionable insights to clients through insightful, visually compelling reports (including strategic recommendations) 
• Use search data (in conjunction with other research sources) to understand user intent, drive content strategies, and identify business opportunities for clients
• Lead and implement AI Search Optimization/GEO strategies
• Define success metrics and translate SEO results to business objectives
• Collaborate with content, technology, creative and analytics teams to incorporate SEO strategies and best practices
• Deliver actionable insights and strategic recommendations to clients through insightful, visually compelling reports 
• Optimize social search channels (e.g. YouTube, TikTok) to maximize brand and content visibility across the digital landscape
• Align paid and organic search strategies to maximize cost efficiencies and holistic brand visibility
• Conduct regular SEO audits and competitive analyses
• Effectively convey SEO concepts and success stories in a concise and easy-to-understand manner
• Develop frameworks and processes to systematically track and improve search performance
• Advise on technical website development to maximize search indexability and visibility, including JavaScript SEO and accessibility considerations
• Define search-driven guidelines and requirements for page content, copy, page speed, accessibility, indexability, structured markup, site architecture, URL structure, page titles, meta descriptions, headings, anchor text, internal linking, site maps, etc.
• Pitch and implement new search projects and service offerings
• Monitor, analyze, and report on search results and performance to both internal and external stakeholders
• Keep current with the latest digital trends and changes in the search marketing landscape, identifying new opportunities for clients (e.g. AI search, ML-driven automation, visual search, voice search, social search, etc.)

You Have:

• 4+ years of SEO experience
• Excellent written and verbal communication, with strong presentation and data storytelling skills 
• Track record of driving measurable performance improvements 
• Ecomm/retail SEO strategy and experience (e.g. optimizing product/category pages, optimizing shopping feeds, etc.), with a systematic approach that has driven measurable results and incorporates 
• Experience with GEO and AI search optimization for both AI Overviews and LLMs (ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, AI Mode, etc.)
• Experience with global brands and international SEO, including strategies for multiple regional sites, languages, etc.
• Strong project management and organizational skills, with the ability to drive progress and manage multiple projects and deadlines simultaneously
• Experience defining and documenting internal processes and best practices to improve SEO implementation 
• Deep understanding of search engine algorithms, ranking factors, SEO best practices, and technical SEO
• Proficiency in third-party SEO/SEM tools, such as SEMrush, BrightEdge, Ahrefs, ScreamingFrog, etc.
• Proficiency in data analytics and visualization tools, such as Google Analytics, Google Data Studio, Adobe Analytics, Google Search Console, Tableau, etc.
• Experience with GEO/AI search tracking tools, such as Profound, BlueFish, BrightEdge AI Catalyst, etc.
• Strong Excel skills, including pivot tables, vlook-ups, and comfort working with large datasets
• Strong analytical skills, with the ability to interpret data, identify trends, and make data-driven decisions
• Experience developing and executing content strategies that improve brand visibility, traffic and engagement through content creation and optimization
• A proactive, self-starter attitude 
• Experience with testing and leveraging AI tools (ChatGPT, etc.) for SEO tasks and workflows
• Experience with paid search/SEM, or experience driving integrating SEO/SEM strategies and workflows

 What We Offer: 

• Global maternity and parental leave 
• Competitive benefits packages 
• Vacation, compassionate leave, wellness days, and flex days 
• Summer Fridays (off at 3:00 PM local time every Friday)
• Diversity and Inclusion Board with 13 affinity groups
• Enterprise-wide employee discounts  

The Talent Team at Critical Mass is focused on ensuring we provide the best training, onboarding, and employee experience possible!  Our new hires & employees are the future of our organization, and we want to set you up for long-term success. In an effort to do so, we expect our team to work from our Chicago office 3 days a week.