I’m an SEO expert with 20+ years of experience, helping household name brands, small businesses and startups achieve online success. I’ve mastered the essential skills and tasks required for successful search engine optimization, including keyword research, content optimization, data analysis, and technical SEO.
Key Skills and Know-How Propelling My SEO Success
I’m passionate about creating exceptional content, optimizing user experience, and conducting data-driven analysis. But that’s just the tip of the iceberg. As a lifelong learner, I’ve taught myself HTML and web development, and am currently taking a Data Science Diploma program at the university level.
Whether it’s mastering keyword research, perfecting on-page optimization, or crafting winning link building strategies, I have the breadth and depth of skills necessary to take tricky key phrases and earn top ranking. Here are just a few examples of my areas of expertise:
- Keyword research and analysis;
- On-page and off-page optimization;
- Technical SEO, such as site speed, duplicate content, XML maps, schema markup, URL structure, broken links, CDNs and redirects.
- Content creation, including articles, blog posts, case studies, social media, copywriting and courses;
- Analytics and data analysis;
- Conversion rate optimization;
- A/B testing and experimentation;
- Understanding search engine algorithms and ranking factors;
- Competitor and marketing analysis;
- User experience and usability;
- HTML, CSS, R programming language, SQL;
- Branding and messaging;
- Internal, external and inbound link building, specializing in hard-to-get links from .gov and .edu websites;
- Communication and collaboration with stakeholders, developers, the general public and the C-suite.
Program, App, and Plugin Proficiency
I can’t list every SEO tool I’ve used over the years, as it numbers in the hundreds. As well, some tools aren’t specific to SEO; in that case, if I use them often, I’ve listed them, but this isn’t a comprehensive list.
If you have a specific tech stack in mind that isn’t included here, I’m a quick learner and happy to pick up new proficiencies to add to my arsenal.
| Semrush | Moz | Ahrefs | BuzzSumo |
| SERPstat | SERPstash | Yoast | Screaming Frog |
| Google Analytics | Search Console | Keyword Planner | AdWords |
| Hootsuite | Buffer | Monday | Asana |
| Bing | AMS | Etsy | |
| Tableau | BigQuery | Mode | HTML & CSS |
| Spreadsheets | Pivot Tables | VLOOKUP | Conditional formatting |
| ProWritingAid | Grammarly | Antidote | LanguageTool |
| ChatGPT 3.5 & 4 | Rytr | Copy.ai | Hubspot |
| WordPress | Wix | Squarespace | Blogger |
The Special Sauce of SEO
A new SEO will do their best to answer any question a stakeholder might have about why a specific site isn’t ranking in search.
An experienced SEO will almost always tell you, “It depends”.
It might feel infuriating to get this answer, but it’s the most accurate answer, most of the time.
Similar to questions about, say, who you should trade in your favourite hockey pool, there are many factors that influence search engine rankings. It’s my job to tell you, “It depends,” and then figure out the most clear, simple and easy way to get from where you are, to where you want to be.
I aim to do so jargon-free, using visuals, data and storytelling to convey oftentimes complex factors into actionable tasks that get results.
This is why I compare working with me to buying a used car: you want to walk in the door informed, so you don’t feel overwhelmed, taken advantage of, or in the dark.
That’s why I share my beginner-level SEO courses with my clients before we sign a contract, so we can all come to the table with a basic understanding of each other’s needs.
Here are some of my SEO offerings that you can download right now, if you’re interested:
- SEO Checklist for WordPress Sites [Free]
- The SEO Project: How To Get Substantial, Targeted Traffic To Your Blog Or Website in 30 Days Or Less [$47]*
Past Work Examples
Almost all of my previous SEO work has strict NDAs attached to them, where I cannot share specifics or analytics of the projects I worked on.
Therefore, what follows are examples of the work I conducted, where (as required) I’ve omitted any details about the company, income and data, but still share the general processes I followed to achieve the results I did.
Dating at About.com
When I started contracting for About.com (later a New York Times Company), my income was tied directly to page views; if I didn’t get eyeballs on my work, I didn’t make money.
My first day, the site was wiped clean of all previous content. Page views were zero, and the site had been dormant for months. I had to start from scratch.
I used a combination of unique SEO techniques to grow the site from nothing to the #1 ranking site on the internet for the search term “dating”, such as:
- Getting backlinks from multiple .edu websites through creative PR;
- Using spreadsheets to parse data from multiple sources, effectively creating my own keyword research tool;
- Attracting so many media appearances, I wouldn’t sleep for the 48 hours surrounding Valentine’s Day for seven years;
- Turned user-generated content into a multitude of million page view wins, and where my process served as a marketing textbook case study;
- Finding niche subsets that weren’t being served, and delivering content not found elsewhere on the internet (at the time);
- Creating partnerships with household name companies for access to their data, then analyzing that data and sharing it with my readers.
SaaS Blog
Bought in as a contractor to oversee all aspects of the blog, which had content dating back a decade, but little organic traffic. Managed a staff of four, plus mentored technical writers within the organization.
Within three months of my start date, page views increased 2733% and bounce rate dropped significantly.
What I did:
- Created and implemented a process to redirect outdated or obsolete content;
- Systemized content production to reduce multiple bottlenecks and missed opportunities;
- Established an in-house style guide and content guidelines, including internal and external links, and URL conventions;
- Crunched data from multiple sources to understand why bounce rate was astronomically high, worked with the team to test theories, then instituted additional content guidelines to fix the problem;
- Designed a feature release template, transforming how the company communicated this information from instantly obsolete to evergreen;
- Studied direct and indirect competitors, using the information gleaned to inform every piece of content moving forward;
- Constructed spreadsheets from multiple data points to determine quick wins, ‘loss-leaders’ and must-edits;
- Worked closely with Developers, Project Managers, the CEO and Support to ensure content was factual yet jargon-free and comprehensive.