Having recently graduated from university I decided I would get a job in search engine optimisation (SEO), which it turns is easier said than done. Based on my experience of finding a job, I have decided to compile a few tips related to getting a job in SEO for people who may be new to the industry. Recruitment agents look away now.
Experience
So you have come out of university with no experience? Well that is a bit of a problem unless you do something about it. Most jobs I applied for asked about my prior experience, or I was rejected due to having too little experience. You can get experience in many different ways. If you have access to a Web site, try applying some SEO techniques to it that will help to improve rankings within a search engine. Another tip would be to try asking a friend if you can help out with the SEO on their Web site – this is good for both sides as it gets you more experience, and it gets them higher rankings.
Have a Blog
SEO experience doesn’t have to be commercial; a blog is a great way to showcase your talents. In each of the SEO interviews I attended, I was either complimented or asked questions about my blog. A blog is good way of applying some SEO knowledge to a personal project, and it can help you gain a better understanding while showing you are proactive within the SEO community.
Become Part of the Community
If you don’t read any SEO blogs and don’t keep up to date with the latest news (such as the beta release of Bing) then you are going to be exposed for it during an interview. Companies like to see that you take an interest in the Web outside of work, so get posting on forums, readings blogs, and create a Twitter account.
A few blogs worth reading are:
Avoid Recruitment Agencies
Having talked to around 30 recruitment agents during my job hunt, I would highly recommend not giving them the time of day. Once my CV was on job Web sites such as Reed and Jobsite, I was being called two or three times a day by people claiming to be able to get me a job. The only thing that recruitment agents did was to get my hopes up over nothing. If you are going to apply for an SEO job, do it directly to companies. I created a covering letter and sent it to 50 media/SEO companies within the Manchester area, and within 30 minutes I had five responses (and ended up with roughly 10 interviews arranged after a week).
Update Your CV
If you are going to send your CV around to lots of companies, make sure it is fully updated. If you have any experience in SEO what so ever, put it on there. Companies like to see that you know what you are talking about, and if you have achieved any search engine rankings that are worth mentioning; mention them.
Good Luck!
Obviously these tips are just some of the things I picked up during my job hunt, and won’t necessarily apply to every body. If you have any more tips that you think would be appropriate, or don’t agree with something I’ve said, then please feel free to leave a comment on this article and I’ll try my best not to let the WordPress Akismet plugin mark it as spam!
No related posts.
2 | Kieron Hughes
June 19th, 2009 at 4:10 pm
Yeah I completely agree with your idea of apprenticeships via universities, autom. My university gave me literally no help in finding a job whatsoever, which was very annoying.