The role of SEO specialists

Search engine optimisation (SEO), a pivotal component to digital marketing tactics today, is a process to support a website’s visibility to search engines. Improving SEO is important for SEO specialists to generate traffic to a particular website and therefore aim to increase company profitability.

As many factors contribute to SEO, specialists undertake various roles and responsibilities to improve performance over time. SEO specialists often have a good understanding of web design, social media, and other marketing strategies. SEO specialists, typically alongside a digital marketing team, work together to explore various strategies to increase traffic. SEO can be an inviting remote technology career, as these individuals learn and apply knowledge from various domains to achieve their goals.

The demand for SEO specialists

As the world continues to apply technology to support everyday tasks, the demand for SEO specialists is increasing. Namely, these tend to be individuals who can apply diverse skills to meet company goals and profits. As organisations will continue to need technical personnel to support their objectives, SEO specialists combine technical with managerial qualities that can help teams.

Moreover, there are numerous ways SEO specialists can work with IT jobs in Malta or elsewhere to improve a website’s ranking in search engines. Nowadays, SEO specialists must consider the following factors to achieve this:

• Technical support: the website of a company must be thoughtfully designed and developed to assist users interacting with the website positively.
• Inclusive language: the language presented on a website must be simple and clear, without complex jargon.
• Thoughtful user experience (UX) design: UX design ensures that websites are built with users in mind, addressing their needs and supporting diverse experiences that contribute to meeting goals.
• Accessibility: simple websites that are developed with accessibility in mind caters for a higher volume of users and can be impactful in setting the tone for other competitors to follow.

Proper technical support, the use of inclusive language, good UX design and accessibility can mean a great difference in achieving higher website rankings. SEO specialists collaborate with diverse IT jobs in ensuring everyone works together toward common and positive goals. Effective collaboration to achieve the above will naturally gravitate the business toward successful outcomes.

Duties and responsibilities of SEO specialists

As illustrated throughout this article, the duties and responsibilities of SEO specialists vary, due to their wide array of roles that contribute to supporting improved website rankings for a company. Nevertheless, commonalities between SEO specialists in the context of their duties and responsibilities include:

• Competitive benchmarking exercises,
• Create and maintain relevant social media channels,
• Create and develop diverse marketing strategies,
• Respect and keep up-to-date with industry best practises,
• Discover link-building opportunities,
• Ensure company website(s) are developed with SEO in mind,
• Analyse diverse analytic platforms to monitor marketing campaigns,
• Negotiate contracts with clients,
• Ensure copy on website(s) is simple and easy to understand,
• Perform frequent keyword analysis, and
• Strategise means to improve website rankings.

In this IT job in Malta or elsewhere, SEO specialists are involved from the beginning of marketing initiatives, in strategising processes to support company objectives whilst maintaining current platforms are up-to-date. SEO trends come and go, meaning it’s up to these specialists to ensure they’re in touch with the industry and can continue to apply best practises.

Salary expectations 

The demand for SEO specialists is rapidly increasing, leading the career with fast-paced growth capabilities alongside impressive salary raises. The Castille Salary Survey is based on the average gross basic salary ranges we have seen offered in the local market over the last 12 months. This survey is updated quarterly, remaining representative of current market trends.  

For a global perspective, it is worth keeping in mind that sources vary and are subject to change with time. Considering these variances, salaries for SEO specialist jobs consistently reflect an average salary ranging from $45,000 to $80,000 a year. These numbers vary according to level of experience, specialisation, and other associated living costs. 

Education and qualifications of SEO specialists

The education and qualifications of SEO specialists differ, as there aren’t commonly any bachelor’s degrees that are totally focused on SEO. However, many individuals pursue a degree in marketing, communications, or computer science. For jobseekers looking to develop their on-site or remote careers within SEO, seek opportunities or coursework that focus on digital media, communications strategy, analytics and metrics, and so forth.

Additionally, you may choose to explore other certifications to improve your SEO skills. Depending on your interests within SEO practises, there are numerous on-site or online qualifications that can support your training goals in this domain. Generally, you should seek to understand the foundations of SEO, which include keyword research, link building, on-page optimisation, and technical optimisation.

Trending technologies and skill sets 

The skill sets of SEO specialists tend to vary over time, typically alongside the development and innovation of technology that can transform their role to be more effective in meeting goals. The skills of a SEO specialist, like many IT jobs in Malta or elsewhere, are largely technical, including:

• Keyword research: keyword research is an integral part of the SEO specialist job, for such analysis can inform short- and long-term strategies across various marketing tactics. Identifying and solidifying keywords for a company helps ensure that content is cohesive, and all contribute to improving a website’s ranking.
• Competitive SEO analysis: an important part for any marketer, SEO analysis that runs alongside competitive research is valuable for keeping up with industry trends and improve your own SEO efforts.
• Copy and content writing: SEO specialists are expected to oversee all content that goes out on behalf of a company, and many a time, this means proof-editing and writing content to ensure they represent the right company voice.
• Technical SEO: typically, technical SEO revolves around the performance of a website. SEO specialists work with numerous on-site and remote careers in a technical team to ensure a website is optimised according to speed, security, search engines, and so forth.

Whilst the goals of a SEO specialist are vast and varied, their technical expertise works closely with interpersonal qualities that can help specialists manage teams and collaborate effectively with various stakeholders. Characteristics like communication and empathy are valuable to succeeding in a career as a SEO specialist.

Career path of a SEO specialist

An increasing demand for SEO specialists means various opportunities for career growth in this area. SEO specialists work with various technologies to support their business objectives alongside the support from teamwork. Nowadays, SEO specialists can work on-site or remote careers, within any preferred industry.

To successfully pursue an on-site or remote career as a SEO specialist, it’s important to seek relevant work experience early on. Look for opportunities that can grow your skill sets, specifically in digital communications and marketing. Then, you’re able to begin applying to jobs in Malta or elsewhere in the hops of successfully attaining the SEO specialist role and work your way towards higher levels of seniority.

Begin your SEO specialist career with Castille 

Now that you’ve critically assessed what working as a SEO specialist is about and whether it is right for you, you are able to kickstart your career in this ever-growing field. As technology and the workforce continues to rapidly advance, the role of a SEO specialist remains a career suitable for the long-haul.