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SEO In-Housing
When you're ready to create an in-house SEO function, make sure you're setting up with the right structure, talent, tools and processes.
Three ways to organize
an SEO capability
Fully outsourced
In this models a company outsources their SEO activities to a 3rd party agency and leverages the experience of the agency while avoiding the need to manage the function.
Blended model
The most common model where part of the SEO function resides in the company and 3rd party vendors are used for tasks that in-house team doesn't have a competency.
Fully in-housed
The rarest of the models, where the SEO capability is fully in-housed and no external partner resources are used. This typically takes place for teams with limited resources of very large teams.
A methodical approach
Creating an SEO in-house function requires a methodical approach to ensure that it meets the intended target and doesn't end up being a half as successful as using a 3rd party.
To make the SEO in-housing a success, Otisar, when assisting clients, uses the following approach:
- Business case. Before making the in-housing happen, we need to make sure that the business case behind it is strong enough. Sometimes the potential gains are unnecessary uplifted, while the downsides and risks are not fully acknowledged. By creating higher level of certainty in the project, it's easier to get all the senior stakeholder buy-ins and the resources necessary.
- Planning. This is a crucial step in ensuring a success of this project. It sets the stage for successful in-housing by outlining the strategy, timeline, and resources needed. This phase includes defining objectives, setting key performance indicators (KPIs), and establishing a roadmap to seamlessly transition from outsourced to in-house SEO operations.
- Hiring. The right talent will be the defining factor for whether this will succeed or not. This step involves creating detailed job descriptions, sourcing qualified candidates, and conducting thorough interviews to ensure you bring on board professionals with the skills and experience necessary to drive your SEO strategy forward.
- Tools. Based on the planning document and together with the newly hired time, the right set of tools is identified and deployed. This forms the data foundation that the team will work on.
- Systems. Establishing robust systems ensures consistency and efficiency in your in-house SEO efforts. This involves setting up workflows, defining processes, and integrating SEO with other business functions, such as marketing and IT, to create a cohesive approach to search engine optimization.
- Support. Once the team, tools and processes are set the team gets an on-going support, typically in a form of mentorship. This allows the team to maintain the edge with the help of 10+ years of experience and a fresh look on things.
Why hire me?
Imants Krezins
- 10+ years SEO experience.
- Has worked with companies from Fortune 500 to start-ups.
- Experience in both agency and client-side environments.
- Has delivered work across North America, Europe and Middle East.
- Has managed SEO campaigns across various industries: FMCG, luxury, automotive, energy, finance, travel, betting & gaming, apparel, furniture, publishing, IT.
- Highly technical - experience with all three major JavaScript frameworks. This website was hand-coded by Imants.
- Teaches digital marketing at universities and business incubators.
- Has an MBA from Swiss Business School.
- Has managed multi-million USD SEO budgets.
Direct, no-nonsense, and backed by experience.
Brands I have helped grow
What others say about me
How it works
Discovery call
We set a time for you to share your unique challenges and to identify how we can best work together.
Statement of work
You get a tailored statement of work that is aligned to solving your specific business situation.
Quick start
I get started in days, working on key areas of improvement to unlock full SEO potential of your business.
Get in touch
Frequently Asked Questions
SEO in-housing refers to the activity of creating an SEO capability, that fully or partially was carried out via a 3rd party partner.
The key benefits include greater control and flexibility, cost efficiency over the long term, seamless integration with other marketing departments, and the ability to build and enhance in-house SEO expertise.
Challenges include resource allocation (time and budget constraints), the need to hire and train skilled SEO professionals, keeping up with the latest SEO trends and updates, and managing and maintaining advanced SEO tools and software. Ongoing education and training are crucial to overcoming these challenges.
The first step is to ensure that proper thought has gone into making sure that SEO in-housing is the best course of action. The second step is to ascertain what are the real needs of the business and what resources are needed to fulfill those needs. This includes number and type of talent needed and the number and type tools the team will use. To ensure that the all is done according to best practice and the SEO in-housing doesn't end up in a fiasco, you should hire an experienced professional that can guide you through this process.
This will largely depend on the type of talent brought in, the budget and the size of the business.
The most essential SEO tools are:
- Google Search Console (GSC);
- Bing Webmaster Tools (BWT); and
- access to the web analytics software used by the company.
Then the next step is to choose either a all-in-one SEO (like Ahrefs or SEMrush) tool that satisfies most of the SEO teams needs. Once the team becomes more mature it can start using specialized tools for keyword research, rank tracking, back-link research, crawling, log file analysis, local listing management and similar.
This is the biggest challenge in any marketing discipline, but especially for small agencies and in-house SEO teams. If mid-to-large agencies can organize internal training seminars and cross-client learning case-studies, that is much harder for smaller teams.
Thus, a comprehensive plan needs to be created to ensure that team members are always up-to-date on the what is happening. This includes joining SEO forums, following people on X (previously Twitter), signing up to SEO specific email newsletters and attending conferences. The key is for the team members to be able to distinguish what is worth paying attention to and what is not, what is true and what is not.
Another big help can be hiring an SEO mentor, with whom the team can discuss the latest trends as well as see how, if at all, it applies to the specific business.
Absolutely. Small businesses can benefit from in-housing SEO by having direct control over their strategies and aligning them closely with their business goals. However that relies solely on the level of talent that is in place and what kind of support that that person or team gets. Too often people hired for the in-house roles don't the right skill-set and the results are sub-optimal, making the SEO in-housing project a failure.
Let's get started
On the discovery call let's explore how your business challenges can be addressed and how we can unlock your SEO potential.