In 2012, the SEO industry in the UK was worth over £500 million annually, growing 18% from 2011 figures. The US SEO industry is even bigger, topping $16 billion in 2010. In a time of general malaise about the economy, this industry is growing rapidly, and the good times look set to continue.
This is great news for any SEO business looking to expand along with companies' search marketing budgets, as there is plenty of work to be done. There is so much, in fact, that most SEO departments, consultancies and agencies are looking to hire new employees to keep up with the demand. This does raise the question, however, of what to look for when hiring new SEOs.
So what do the best and brightest SEOs in the US and the UK look for when they are hiring? Read on to find out. Take note: Their answers may surprise you.
What makes the ideal SEO employee?
Not joking. A bit OCD, a bit ADD, and experience in marketing, public relations, and library science. When presented with a long page of source code, do they faint or confidently explain the good, bad, and ugly in it without having to see the page in a browser? Do they spend time online when they are not working? Do they have their own individual presence established online? If they saw Matt Cutts at a conference, would they hide?
What makes the ideal SEO employee?
Someone that has not learned bad habits, and that will be a leader on their projects. They must be a great written and spoken communicator, they need to know what they do not know and endeavor to fix that, and they have to be excited about problem solving. They need to stick to the methodology while seeing opportunities to surpass the competition. Our ideal candidate is fantastic at time management and organization, is service focused, and lives for internet marketing. Their technical background should be (entry-level) basic, and they need to be a quick and accurate student. At a senior level they need a solid foundation across many markets and technologies, without the baggage of learned spam techniques. They should be able to teach, lead, and communicate as the expert on a complex project. Historically we have found great success in training our employees from an intern to expert level (10 years with our firm). And, yes, we have many technical staff that have been with us that long.
What makes the ideal SEO employee?
There are two things we look for in all hires at Distilled: smart and gets stuff done. Other stuff is a bonus but if they have these two qualities, we can often teach them the rest! Personally, I also look for someone who actively learns new stuff in their spare time and seems to have a genuine passion for something. For example, I like SEOs who may have set up their own blog or website and have spent a bit of time knowing how it feels to get it ranking and the challenges that can present. It shows initiative and a passion that is hard to teach.
What makes the ideal SEO employee?
The ideal SEO employee is someone without a huge ego who realizes that he or she is never done learning, will often be wrong, and isn't afraid to try something new and forego old methods that no longer work. It's someone with a brain that's logical and creative, someone with the communication skills to write well or come up with amazing ideas. It's also someone with an obvious passion for the work, as if you don't give a damn about what you're doing, I doubt you'll ever be brilliant at it.
What makes the ideal SEO employee?
This is actually quite a tough question because there's a lot of different types of people who could all be incredible SEOs. SEOs that are analytical often produce great work, especially if they enjoy digging into the data and focus on the story rather than just the numbers to work out why things are how they are. Some of the best SEOs I've ever worked with have been highly technical. They've got a great understanding for how to structure sites so they're ideally suited for search as well as users, and knowing how to code helps them talk to developers better. Having said that, there are other skill sets outside of coding that can lead to an excellent SEO employee, like being able to build relationships with site owners with ease. A great SEO employee is also a good communicator, and can easily explain complex technical issues in ways that non-technical people can understand. But overall I think the best SEOs are the ones who are naturally curious and, when they find a problem, can't help but try to solve it.
Wil Reynolds – Seer Interactive
What makes the ideal SEO employee?
Curiosity, competitiveness, and compassion. Curious because I want to work with people who have that curiosity of "how does this work" to always be there, the desire to seek out answers is key too. Competitiveness because I want to work with people who push me to get better, who want to win, and when they lose it stings!! Those are the folks who leave when the job is done, and it personally messes up their day when something goes bad. Compassion means that they don't let their competitiveness overrun their ability to have compassion for others and to have empathy for other folks.
What makes the ideal SEO employee?
For any calibre of SEO, whether junior or senior, there couldn't be a better way to learn about this industry than by maintaining your own site. It's all very well reading about SEO (and that's certainly a good thing), but actually doing it enables you to fully understand what you're recommending to clients or your team. This brings me on to my next point, which is creativity and initiative. These attributes in the ideal candidate shouldn't just be applied to cool content ideas, but also to how they handle the technical side of SEO. As many of us know, every site is different, and the correct solution to one site's problem might be vastly different from a similar issue on another site.
What makes the ideal SEO employee?
We don't subscribe to the theory that SEO employees have to be good all-rounders because it's actually very useful to have specialist technical people and specialist creative people working on the account. How many great creative people also have great technical skills? Very few. We are a 50-person agency, so we have the resources to have specialist teams working on the individual campaign components rather than trying to have generalists who don't have the detailed skills. We use experienced strategists to run our clients' accounts, and they are the primary point of contact, so they need great SEO skills and great account management skills. Those are probably the key criteria we look at for this role.
Kelvin Newman – Sitevisibility
What makes the ideal SEO employee?
A while back I wrote a free book about Link Building called "How to Become a Clockwork Pirate," and while a lot of that advice was pre-Penguin, there's one area I think I was on the right page: The ideal SEO has two different skills sets, the creative and the methodical. People are going to sit at different places on the spectrum, but the most successful SEOs I've worked with sit somewhere in the middle. They're people prepared to come up with good ideas but accept that a great idea without hard work is useless. Equally, they understand sometimes it's about putting in the hours and follow-up; that's the difference between success and failure. I think Seth Godin summed it up really well: "Real Artists Ship."
Image credit Wordle.net
Conclusion
Each expert answered a single question — What makes the ideal SEO employee? — in incredibly different ways. Some wanted specialists, and some preferred all-rounders. Some liked to build the new employee's knowledge almost from scratch, while others were looking for people with solid knowledge of the industry. Still, time and again the same qualities popped up.
The ideal SEO employee should:
- Be smart.
- Be motivated to learn — even off the clock.
- Be a problem solver.
- Maintain their own site in their off-time.
- Be both logical and creative.
- Be an excellent communicator who is able to build relationships.
- Have a passion for technology and the internet.
- Be willing to try new things.
- Constantly push to improve themselves, their approach to SEO problems, and others.
At the end of the day, few of these qualities have much to do with HTML or information architecture. Instead, they seem to focus on personality traits like leadership, tenacity, curiosity, and self-motivation.
The next time you find yourself searching for the ideal SEO employee, just remember that the ideal SEO employee is someone with the right personality. The technical know-how can be taught.
The ideal SEO boss is also someone "without a huge ego who realizes that he or she is never done learning."
Bill
Big egos are a tough one to deal with especially when you are the boss. Very important to consider when you are hiring as sometimes ones own ego gets in the way.
I think the key is that any good "SEO" knows that they are never done learning. When you think you know it all - you actually know very little. I thought I knew a thing or two but after MozCon I left with an incredible amount of useful information that I hadn't heard before.
simply love this tip from Julie Joyce!
If you have a huge ego and think that you are or almost the best one can be... then you are not meant for SEO...I believe SEO or digital marketing as a whole is an industry where an ideal people should be literally thirsty about the word NEW!
The huge ego is one of the top creators of crappy bosses. It's not only about the SEO bosses. If you don't learn how to deal with your ego, you will be seen by your employees as a bad manager.
I love the post :-)
Ego's or sometimes HIPPOs can be the most difficult thing to deal with. Especial if they are actual good at the job.
SEOs must keep on learning, mainly from others mistakes. There is no room to experiment in some aspects and might lead to a downfall of an SEO in seconds. SEOs must mainly know how difficult its to rank and must be the one who always does everything keeping users in mind.
My ideal employee is someone is goes looking for the answers. I don't know everything there is to know about SEO (I suspect no one really does) so when an employee has a question do they spend 2 minutes looking for the answer and call it quits or do they dig and dig and find lots of information and sources and learn even more than they originally set out looking for? That's what I want to see!
Nick
Very valid comment about how much effort is someone prepared to go through to find answers.
I have to agree with the learning off the clock (everyone at my company is constantly trying to get better) we all hate the taste of losing too! Some of the best SEO's I know are ones who can reach out to people and get the answer they are looking for (almost like a ideal salesman) a lot of SEO is building relationships and if you have someone who is great at that they will most certainly be a good SEO with the right training.
I personally like people who can look at data too. How can you make the right decision if your guessing instead of looking at facts. Data (analytics) is one of the most important aspects in our business....understanding what is working, what isn't and most importantly why it worked or didn't so we can replicate it or make sure we don't do it again.
We try to fill our office with those two types of people (highly technical/logical and highly emotionally intelligent)....Also one benefit of having these two types of personalities are they are polar opposites - yes that sparks some heated arguments from time to time, but it also provides two distinct ways at looking at problems you have a logical opinion and a creative opinion at your finger tips.
In my opinion when someone in passion about something they become that thing. So a person who is passionate about SEO as the saying goes 'will eat, drink and sleep SEO'.
I'm a little surprised that none of these experts mentioned culture fit. Perhaps that is regarded as so obvious that it doesn't need to be mentioned, but even from this post alone it is obvious that different companies have different personalities and likely are all very different places to work. Being a perfect fit in one place doesn't mean you'll be suitable everywhere.
Iain
That was thing that surprised me a bit as well, the different skills different organisations/owners looks in essence for the same role. What would be interesting but beyond the scope of the article is what do clients looks for when they are hire a SEO internally.
Great blogpost, Aamir - and a good read this morning. My only problem with it, is that its found in the wrong section. Moz staff: Promote to main blog :)
In my opinion (in addition to your great summary at the end), a good SEO is an excellent interpreter. He/She can communicate well with site owners, and translate into tech lingo for developers/techs and vice versa.
Anders
:-)
There is an interest point made by Patrick from Branded 3, in a team structure you can some individuals who are highly skilled in one area (like architectural changes) but weak in other areas (community building), as long as the team has all the necessary skills. With regards to an excellent interpreter personally I would agree it is a core skills that all SEOs should have whether they are talking to developer/techs or CMOs.
P.S. I have a feeling this post is going to be promoted to the main Moz Blog. Nice Work!!!
I think the topic is a great idea and worth the promotion :)
I hope so to :-)
Aggree completly - a really smart topic - well presented
Thank you very much
It seems like what everyone is looking for in an ideal SEO employee is what people would ideally want in all employees. Hard worker, finds answers on their own, not a big ego, never stops learning etc.
Agree 100%
Implied, but perhaps worth stating: A good employee is teachable. Teachability, as I am referring to it, is more than simply a willingness to learn, but an eagerness to do so shown by effort (e.g., asking questions, taking notes, reading books, etc.).
josh-Lee
An excellent point that didn't occur to me when I put this article together.
Thank you for sharing.
A helpful article, too, I should say!
I can't remember where I read this, however a tip I've found very useful when recruiting SEO's (and is applicable to any industry) is whether I would be happy to go on a long car journey with that person.
From an SEO perspective, I'm generally attracted more to those who show some entrepreneurial spirit and have their own side projects - this usually separates those who can from those who say they can. Finally, a thirst for learning. We work in such a fast moving industry that is increasingly expanding to other online marketing channels that a desire to expand knowledge is key to ensuring we keep up with client requirements.
Andrew
I remember one of the first projects I landed was because the team I was going to work with liked Star Trek (which I did to). The Project Manager believed it was something that would gel the team together and some ways he was right. So I do agree if you are happy to take a long car journey with someone then it is a good indication they are right for your team.
A good SEO is not stationary and will realize that a futureproof online marketing strategy revolves around the live person behind the screen, and not on a technical advantage.
Saying that, I must admit that it is often very handy to be a bit technical, but in the long run, the tools change far more often that the users do.
Rene
The tools of yesterday are doomed to the scrap yard and our skills are redundant if we don't continue to learn.
Exactly. To continue learning, is to continue surviving.
Really very interesting point raised by you. Its true that only self motivated and self learner candidate can only become the good SEO professional which company also looks over this.
Thanks,
Very well said. :)
Awesome list! The best part about this is that I just had a converation with a person very young to the industry (he's about 20). He thinks that no one will hire him because he is young and inexperience. He is Levi Whalen @leviwhalen. His Klout score is a freaking crazy 66! I bust my ass online every day and can only manage a meezly 55...I told Levi, "look, there are companies that would much rather hire you because you are young and passionate about social media [and I do mean on fire], than hire some 4-year grad from a liberal arts college with a business degree."
The job posting I see here prove that. I'm going to send it to him right now.
It would be great to see another, similar post, on what job postings look like for community managers. That is what my young friend Levi really wants to be more than anything else in the world.
Cheers!
You never you may see another post from me on this issue ;-)
When we hire SEO's (which is always) we look for someone with a ton of knowledge about search/social that has ZERO knowledge of SEO. That's right. We like to train people that have zero knowledge about SEO because ususally the ones that know all about SEO (and don't have jobs making six figures) are the ones that come in the first day with laptops filled with "tools."
Patrick
I have spoke to SEOs who share the same beliefs they prefer to hire people with zero SEO experience so they don't come to work with a set of 'tools' as you put it. On the other side it can be argued having someone who already knows SEOs allow oneself or the company to have multiple different approaches or viewpoints on the same problem which can be beneficial.
Day by day update by Google makes job tough to a SEO expert. Nobody say that he/she is perfect in SEO. New SEAO tactics or Learning is necessity of future SEO.
The Boss gives a lot of importance to the ability to speak with him, to answer his questions, to be critic with his opinion, to your answer and the "way" you do it, because he assume you will threat his (and your future) customers in the same way... and that's one of the most important things, that value even more than your SEO technical skills. That's what I learned in my work experiences :)
Great Article...nice collection of opinions.. At my work, we value experience and passion. Passion, creativity and experience. Its important to hire someone who loves the field, has experience and and take SEO to the next level with creativity
Carla
Sometimes experience is a good way to gage passion as you know if someone has been doing the job there is more like a passion for it. But as we know that isn't always the case unfortunately.
In my opinion, an ideal seo employee should keep learning and solve problems by himself. As for Google's algorithm is changing all the time, so keep close attention to that and adjust works is important.
Great post,
According to me for being a ideal employee...
Market Research and Analysis - data+analyze+be smart
Every day, brush your marketing strategy...
Gyan
Agreed, what I would add is creativity is becoming a very important skill for SEOs
The ideal SEO employee will look to improve their skill set every day. They should spend time reading at least one article on a reputable site, like in the Moz blog, where they learn expert techniques every day. Since SEO is a skill that one must excel in on a regular basis, the ideal SEO employee will constantly work to learn a minimum of one new technique every single day. Imagine how much they will end up learning after 360 days. Oh and not just read and learn one new skill each day, but actually use that skill that same day in order to practice what they learn, and to get results from their work. This is the type of employee that I want working for me!
Great post.
Comes down to someone who:
Kevin
Agreed. This skills are highly valuable to virtually any industry especially SEO.
Ignore--double posted and could't find delete.
Great post and I love how pretty much everyone said that, the skills can be taught. In a field that is constantly changing we need people who are passionate and can take the punches, to continue to learn.
Richard
That you for that. I do like the term 'punches' which can be a difficult skill to master.
Aamir
Great Post... The main thing in this field is who is good at researching, experimenting, creativity, learning, communication, the ideal seo is a package of these things...
Thanks Aamir. I agree with all of the characteristics you've listed above for an ideal SEO.
My two cents - He/She would be someone who aims to run ahead / at the speed of Google.
-KAS
Running faster then Google would be ideal :-)
Creativity is something I always come back to when I think of the ideal employee.
SEO is growing for sure.Its something that every Website owner requires but many of them still do not know what SEO is about. I do not want to mention the name but I did SEO for a quite rich and famous travel businessman. He just do not know what keywords are and what is SEO. He just know that his previous site with partner bring sales for him via Google.Many and many Website owner still do not know what SEO is about and how it is beneficial for our site.I think the volume can rapidly goes up if we start awareness campaign.
SEO guys alone is nothing but I think its the team that really makes this volume goes up and it will continue to grow for sure until Google brings some other birds back to back.Penguin, panda and now HummingBird.
In order to become an ideal SEO employee you must have an excellent written and verbal skills with a huge background in internet marketing. He/she must be able to solve problems also and be organized.
great tips to be a great employee in all field i will say not only in seo.
I was looking for information on this topic for a long time and here I find many posts with very interesting and didactic content, many thanks go on like this
A SEO employee need to be self motivated, highly dedicated towards his goals. Great Article.!! Great collection of reviews.. In my opinion, for getting success experience, dedication and creativity mater a lot. Thanks for sharing the post. Insightful Post with lots of opinions and ideas.
Awesome post
The ideal SEO has two different skills sets, the creative and the methodical - This!
Hello Guy's
Any one say me how much density use in content for keyword in websites ?
Nicely written Aamir, I think these are the core qualities which every SEO employees should have or concentrate on it. I think people want only designation or other things, they don’t know about their expertise and skill for this. I give you thumbs up for this incredible post.
My favorite answer comes from Bruce Clay: without bad habits+leader. On the (small) French market, management skills make the difference between two careers.
Next article: what makes an ideal SEO employer? ;)
That would be an interesting article would need to think of a way to get relevant content for it.
Yes, this is fact that daily analysis of anything convert a well mathematics knowledge gainer.
Arpit
Analytics and a mathematical mind goes a long way.
Creative creative and... creative. Oh.. and should be good in math ;)
Daniel
agree, agree, agree and agree again. Creativity and mathematics in my opinion are the two sides of the coin for SEO
It looks like rather than answering the question, Branded3 used this opportunity to plug their business.
This is great advice from some very big names in the industry! The desire to keep learning and the ability to keep with new trends in the industry are very important, considering how often our industry does change. SEO is not a field where you have an initial training period and can then go on auto-pilot; what you're working on and the tactics you're using will change frequently.
Another good point to keep in mind, once you've established a candidate's potential for SEO, is how their personality fits in with the organization. You want someone who will add something positive to your team (aside from the work they produce). A candidate could be an amazing SEO, but if they don't mesh well with your company culture, it'll be a disappointing situation for both you and the candidate. An ideal candidate is someone with whom you'll be happy to work and who will be happy to work with you.
Caroline,
Culture fit is something that was totally overlooked in the article. Thank you for pointing it out. I agree 100% if someone just doesn't fit with the culture of the organisation it is not going to work out.
Great post Amir. These are the ideal qualities which every seo person should focus on, doesn't matter on which designation he/she is. Thumbs up for the post. Hope to see this post on Moz Blog. :-) Good luck
Umar
Thank you for your kind words. There are characteristic traits in my opinion which when exist in a person can propel a person in any career.
The ideal SEO employee should be SELF INNOVATIVE.. What you say?
100% agree, a quote I just found which I believe is relevant:
"Everyone who's ever taken a shower has had an idea. It's the person who gets out of the shower, dries off and does something about it who makes a difference." - Nolan Bushnell
Fascinating read. It's always good to know what are these people looking for. Sometimes we must understand that our own weaknesses can also be strengths when it comes to performing well at our jobs. Lack of knowledge is not a weakness if you have the drive to seek out answers and learn from your mistakes.
John
Well said a wise person knows their weakness. Knowing ones weakness gives one the ability to overcome them.
Maintain their own site(s) in their off time
hmmm, in breaks may be ok :)
flexibility and an open mind for new ways would also help an SEO employee
I have always found giving people time within the day to do stuff like that helps them see the wood from the trees. That level of flexibility usually (but not always) is beneficial for the employer and employee.
I completely agree with flexibility and open mindedness.
Great for new SEOs! I prefer 3Ps; passion, perseverance & positive attitude. One should have the passion to learn, to perform, persistence in work & have positive attitude at any situation. One should not just follow or believe in whatever information one get from anywhere but should test and analyze that information through proper observation.
Dillip
I would agree that the 3Ps is a nice way to summarise what to look for in an SEO. One of the challenges with SEO is the ability to establish causality and whether it is still applicable now.
Thank you for your comments.
Thank for sharing this valuable information on the selection criteria of these big players in the SEO industry. Personally when i am going to select anyone, I am only looking for the ability to learn new things and looking for passion in that person. Nice post!!!
Stephen:)
Stephen
Passion and ability to learn new things can carries someone a long way and I agree they are pivotal skills when looking to hire especially in an industry where there is no real formal qualifications.
I feel for SharkSEO - Recently their was a VERY black hat product on a specific black hat forum that was their exact name, it was appearing above their results for their own brand name a while back, it's still 1st page. Fantastic article though! I think Kevlin's got it spot on, you need to be able to be creative about obtaining links, coming up with your own methods and building content but still be organized and have methodology to the madness!
creativity without a methodology can lead to chaos so Kelvin's comments are spot on.
And he/she should be a Passionate Learner as well.
Good work Aamir.
It is difficult to make someone a passionate learner so to find someone who already has that skill is fantastic.
Exactly what I meant :)
The thing is, SEO keeps changing. It has gone beyond link building, so its always advisable to employ someone with at least a small marketing knowledge and someone who knows where Google's head office is. lol, that was a joke, but hey, that will help make your SEO a bit more easier.
Mark
Keeping a track of what Google is doing is key to success. For me SEO by the Sea by
Bill Slawski is one of the best places to understand what Google is up to.
Since the search engines evolving everyday beyond expectations, I like the people who don't get tired in finding WHY and HOW. WHY A SPECIFIC WEBSITE IS RANKING SO HIGHLY? HOW CAN MY WEBSITE RANK TOO? WHY A SPECIFIC WEBSITE HAS NOT AFFECTED BY PENGUIN? hOW COULD I MAKE MY WEBSITE LIKE TOO? ETC. ETC...
If the logic is also mixed with the same passion it (the SEO) can be an asset for the company.
Sasha
An excellent observation.
There are times when I really scratch my head and trying to figure out why a site ranks over me. If you can find someone who has the drive to find out why and then implement those finding (assuming they don't a long term negative issues) then that is a great person to have on your team,.
Fantastic post. As someone trying to get a job in SEO, I'm on the flip-side. The mentality may be different in Australia as I am turned away for 'not knowing enough' about SEO. It has been two years since I was made redundant from the SEO company I worked for. I'm still trying to get back into the industry, but factors like 'passion' and 'dedication' don't seem to matter much. Skills can be taught, and I wouldn't have the knowledge I currently have if I wasn't capable of learning. I know 'culture' and 'fit' play a part, but my interview feedback is usually "we like you, but you don't have enough experience".
Angela
If it is experience is the missing element then this is something which you can gain fairly quickly. Sometimes experience either equates to working on the latest SEO tools/trends/updates or could mean working on a larger variety of projects. My advice is to get experience (even if it unpaid) on the major verticals within the industry (travel, finance etc.) and become an active member of the community. Create a couple of posts on YouMoz about SEO as an example.
Great Post Amir, I am happy to see your second post here. Your idea behind this post is really superb, I am thinking why its not come in my mind :D
Bilal
Thank you. I am sure you can come up with a better idea then this, even I am thinking what can I do next?
Great Article...I have to add that what makes a great seo employee is someone who is part teacher, part ocd, and plays the devils advocate. The mantra that Moz has taught me is are you relevant, do you offer value, now apply technical skills. What I look for in a great SEO employee is 50 percent artist, 40 percent human being, and ten percent robot.
Dorron
There is no doubt being a robot at times really helps. Good analogy.
Out of them all, Eric Ward is the most spot on. Not only does his answer provide further insight into the "soul" of a quality SEO, but his answer is both entertaining and makes you think.
Being a rocking SEO takes both logic and art. You never stop learning and, if you're unwilling to connect with people offline, how will you connect with people online? It's all about knowing your craft, standing out, and being open to learning from others.
SEO involves such a diverse skill-set - its not surprising at all that the employers answered very differently. The job is also always changing (algorithm updates, new insights, etc.) so I think the most important quality is find someone who's adaptable and willing to learn.
I believe even in their differences there are trends we can can conclude on which could be said to be the core skills one requires.
These are all great answers, 1 thing I look for (among all these others) is someone who studies the competition so well that it allows them to stay ahead of the curve. If a competitor is doing something better or different that works I like that SEO to be able to sit back and say without an ego " that is brilliant, why didn't I think of that?" !
So true, every so often I look at a competitor and I think wow why didn't I think of that.
Nice post - I think the key factor for me is someone that's genuinely passionate about online marketing. If their heart isn't in the role then it usually won't pan out very well. The SEO industry is constantly changng and it is up to you as an individual to be proactive and keep up to date - if you don't have a passion for it then you're never going to be able to do that.
Matthew
Thank you for your comments and I agree with you that passion is one of the core ingredients.
This information can help SEO improve more on their job. And let me add, love and passion in what they do. Great post!
Jim
Thank you for your comment, love and passion is a great way to articulate that core skill that drives someone to excellence.
Great read, but I can't help feel 'versatility' was missed - if there's one thing I've found over the years, it's that without being versatile and open to change, it can be difficult to see the success needed.
Dan
Versatility is a better way to explain willing to try new things. Thank you for that.
I think SEO is one of the few professions that provides a space where someone with right and left brain strengths can excel. The better you are at dealing with different personality types the more effective you can be as well. You need to communicate with developers, clients, designers, marketers, webmasters, other agencies and more. Then there's also the domain expert and the knowledge of different industry verticals (ie. you need to have the same skills as a content manager on top of your SEO skills). I think though, the most important part is that you just naturally want to be doing SEO things and even if it wasn't your job you would find yourself tinkering with it anyway. In that sense I think having your own website is more of a symptom of someone who cares about SEO rather than the cause.
Great article, and some really interesting responses from the experts.
But like Paddy said, "getting stuff done" - That's what matters.
Steven
Paddy/Distilled have that great mantra of 'getting stuff done' and fundamentally great ideas mean very little if they don't materialise.
is there anyone to hire me :D