Social media marketing is all about being where your audience is.

If your target audience is active on a platform, then you should be, too. And if you’re looking to speak to a younger demographic, Snapchat can be a powerful marketing tool for your business.

Snapchat is the fifth largest social media network in the world – but it’s one of the most misunderstood (and underestimated) by marketers.

So, if you’re concerned about missing the boat on this platform, you’re not alone. You’re also not out of touch – you just need a comprehensive guide to get started. And you’re in the right place.

In this updated guide to Snapchat marketing, we’ll provide you with a deep dive into the multimedia messaging platform, explain who’s using it, and give you the strategies you need to add it effectively to your marketing mix.

Why Use Snapchat For Marketing? (Is It Still Relevant?)

Successful marketers focus on grasping every opportunity to reach potential customers – and Snapchat continues to offer unique opportunities.

As of 2024, Snapchat boasts over 406 million active daily users, with more than 80% of them being 34 or younger. The platform reaches 90% of the 13-24-year-old population worldwide and 75% of 13-34-year-olds in over 25 countries.

This makes it an ideal platform for targeting Millennials, Gen Z, and, increasingly, Gen Alpha.

While it might not have the massive user base of Facebook or YouTube, it drives impressive engagement. According to recent data, the average Snapchat user opens the app over 40 times per day and spends about 30+ minutes daily on the platform – which means people interact with their social circles on Snapchat more than any other social network.

Yet, when it comes to marketing, Snapchat is a relatively untapped territory. While every brand seems to have a Facebook and Instagram presence these days, comparatively few have a foothold on Snapchat. And that just means more opportunity for your brand.

The boon of Snapchat is how it’s optimized for authenticity. Given the ephemeral nature of the app and the more unfiltered style of content approach, brands can use the platform to connect with their audience in ways that feel genuine and immediate – which is more valuable than ever.

And, as if all of this wasn’t enough, Snapchat has established itself as a competitive force in the social commerce market. With its augmented reality (AR) shopping experiences, you’re able to build immersive shopping experiences for users through the app – something most other platforms can’t compete with.

By now, it should be crystal clear why Snapchat could be a strong addition to your marketing strategy. So, how do you get started? Let’s break it down.

How Does Snapchat Work? A Brief Overview

If your social media experience is primarily with platforms like Facebook, Instagram, or X (Twitter), Snapchat’s interface may initially feel like a whole new world.

Snapchat’s design is unique – it’s built for spontaneity, exclusivity, and in-the-moment content creation. When you open the app, it goes directly to the camera, making it super easy for you to capture and share videos and photos (called “Snaps”) in just a few seconds.

You can then edit these Snaps using a variety of filters, stickers, and AR Lenses before sending them directly to your chosen friends or adding to your “Story,” which remains viewable for 24 hours. There’s also a newer Spotlight feature, similar to TikTok, for sharing short-form videos with wider audiences.

The app offers a host of other features, including a Snap Map, an AI-powered chatbot, and disappearing direct messages. Long story short: There are a bunch of innovative and creative ways for brands to engage with audiences on Snapchat.

What Brands Are Best Suited To Snapchat Marketing?

Let me be clear: Snapchat isn’t for every brand. There’s a reason why it’s less frequented than some other social media platforms. That said, if your target audience includes younger consumers, it’s absolutely worth considering.

Brands that are best suited to Snapchat are those that present a youthful image and tone and prioritize authenticity, “realness,” and creativity. If your brand image is highly professional or you have red tape around your marketing efforts, you should likely look elsewhere.

Lifestyle brands, fashion labels, beauty products, entertainment companies, and tech startups – these are the kinds of companies that typically see success on the app.

But really, the opportunity exists for any type of brand that is interested in using Snapchat’s tools to create immersive, engaging content that resonates with the platform’s users.

How To Get the Right “Tone Of Voice” For Snapchat

I mentioned tone above – and on Snapchat, tone of voice is a big deal. The platform itself is playful and casual, so you’re not likely to find success using an overly formal or professional tone.

Instead, your brand should focus on having a genuine conversation with users and infusing your content with humor.

Here are some tips for nailing the Snapchat tone of voice:

• Keep it light: People go to Snapchat to be entertained. Leave your hard sales pitch at the door.
• Prioritize authenticity: It’s a place to show the human side of your brand, whether it’s through user-generated content or behind-the-scenes Snaps.
• Engage, engage, engage: Snapchat has a ton of interactive tools for engaging directly with users, like polls, Q&As, and more. Put them to use!

How To Create A Snapchat Strategy For Business

So, you want to create a successful Snapchat strategy. You can just start posting content sporadically, right? Wrong.

You need to start by understanding your brand’s goals and audience, and then determining the type of content that will best help you reach those people on Snapchat specifically. Here are some steps you can take to start building your Snapchat strategy:

• Decide what you want to achieve on the platform. Maybe it’s brand awareness, community building, or increasing sales – once you know your goals, you can build your content approach around them.
• Know your audience. As with any kind of marketing strategy, this is crucial.
• Experiment and be creative. Try your hand with some of Snapchat’s different tools (like Bitmoji, AR Lenses, filters, etc.) to create content that resonates with your audience. Don’t just choose one type of content and settle – you can (and should) experiment with a variety of Snaps, Stories, and Spotlight videos.
• Be consistent. All great marketers know that consistency is key – and it’s the same story on Snapchat.
• Keep a good balance. Of course, you want to sell your brand to users, but don’t go all in on self-promotional content. Make sure you’re balancing organic, engaging storytelling with talking about yourself.
• Learn (and follow) Snapchat best practices. This is a no-brainer. Spend time on the platform to find what works, and see how you can adopt it in your own strategy.

Types Of Content That Work Best On Snapchat

Snapchat is all about driving engagement. What does that look like in action? Here are some examples of content approaches that work particularly well on the platform.

1. Sneak Peeks & Teasers

Launching a new product or service? Snapchat is a great place to drive excitement by giving your audience teasers or sneak peeks at what’s to come.

You might think about dropping hints about the product, sharing a quick glimpse, or some other behind-the-scenes moments to encourage anticipation among your Snapchat followers.

Warner Bros., for example, has used teaser content to promote its upcoming movie releases.

2. Behind-The-Scenes Content

Speaking of behind-the-scenes, this type of content is tailor-made for Snapchat.

Showing your audience what goes on behind the curtain at your brand is a clever way to create a sense of exclusivity and make people feel like insiders.

3. User-Generated Content (UGC)

You’ve heard about user-generated content – well, Snapchat is a place where UGC really thrives. Consider prompting your followers to create their own Snaps that feature your products or brand, and then share them along with a custom hashtag. Then, you can amplify the strongest ones in your own Stories.

UGC is proven to be a highly effective way to generate social proof, increase brand loyalty, and build a stronger social community.

Javy Coffee is one example of a brand that leveraged UGC by featuring real customer testimonials and stories about how they enjoy the coffee concentrate. This helped the company create relatable ads that resonated with its audience.

4. Interactive Content

One thing that separates Snapchat from most other social media platforms is its interactivity. And brands have plenty of opportunities to get in on the action!

Try devising interactive moments for your followers, whether it’s a simple poll, a challenge, or a unique AR Lens. These allow users to really get involved and have a fun experience with your brand – and can lead to new UGC for you, as well.

For example, e.l.f. Cosmetics used AR Lenses combined with Bitmoji to allow users to virtually try on makeup, creating a highly interactive experience for its audience.

5. Exclusive Offers

Want to really impress your Snapchat followers? Reward them. From promo codes to exclusive discounts or early bird access to new products, there is no shortage of ways to treat your audience.

It’s great for them but beneficial for you, too. It gives people a reason to keep engaging with your content and following your brand.

Advertising On Snapchat

While organic content is at the heart of Snapchat, the platform also offers some unique and powerful paid advertising options. The company also rolled out a new ad platform update in August 2024 that provides enhanced analytics, improved targeting, and more.

1. Snapchat Ads

Served to users in between user-generated content, these are full-screen, vertical video ads.  They’re not dissimilar to Instagram Stories, and can include interactive elements such as having a user swipe up to visit a website.

The Salvation Army’s Snapchat Ads featured videos depicting real-life stories of individuals impacted by its services, emphasizing themes of hope and transformation. These ads connected emotionally with viewers and included a swipe-up option to learn more or donate, making the content both impactful and actionable.

2. Sponsored AR Lenses

One of Snapchat’s unique offerings is its custom AR Lenses, which brands can create for users to experience.

You can create Lenses that allow users to virtually “try on” products, for example, put people in a humorous visual setting or even have them play games. At times, they can even respond to users’ movements or the environment around them.

These can be hyper-engaging and drive a lot of interactions – like Volkswagen did when it used an AR Lens to enable people to experience its ID.3 electric vehicle virtually. Using the Lens, people could place a virtual model of the car in their environment, explore its features, and even change the color.

3. Filters

These are static overlays that you can apply to your Snaps once they’re created – and brands are able to design their own to delight Snapchat users. These are typically non-interactive but are fun visual enhancements that enable people to add some creative flair to their content.

Post Consumer Brands created its own custom Snapchat Filter to promote its Honeycomb cereal – and it was very sweet!

4. Dynamic Ads

Snapchat’s Dynamic Ads enable brands to automatically create and deliver personalized ads to users based on their behavior and interactions with your company. For example, if a user visits your website and looks at a specific hat, Snapchat might serve them an ad for that product.

If you work for an ecommerce company, these might be particularly interesting to you, as you can automate ad creation based on your product catalog – so you don’t need to lift a finger.

Fashion brand Free People has used Dynamic Ads to automate personalized ads for users, ensuring that those who viewed specific items on its website were later served ads featuring those exact products on Snapchat. It resulted in a 396% increase in demand.

5. Commercials

These are non-skippable Snapchat video ads that usually appear within the platform’s premium content, like Snap Originals.

They’re short – three to six seconds for a Standard Commercial and up to 180 seconds for an Extended Play Commercial (though users can skip after the first 6 seconds) – and are optimized for high visibility.

They typically focus more on storytelling than some of the other ads on the network.

Let’s Get Snapping!

Yes, Snapchat is still an effective marketing platform for reaching younger audiences – but you must be mindful about your strategy and approach.

With its unique blend of high engagement, unique creative tools, and loyal audience, Snapchat offers brands a variety of ways to connect with their target consumers.

Hopefully, this guide has given you the insights and inspiration you need to build a successful Snapchat marketing strategy in 2024.

Now, it’s time to put these ideas into action and start Snapping your way to success.

More resources: 

Featured Image: Andrey_Popov/Shutterstock

Zillow, Trulia, Redfin. These names appear in almost every conversation about buying, selling, or renting property. This is not because people are particularly interested in these platforms but because they’ve become the default starting point for most property searches.

The best illustration of this is that out of over 4.5M keywords that Zillow ranks for, bringing them an estimated 32.7M visits from search, the top keyword is “zillow”. And did you know that’s a more popular search term than “houses for sale” or even “apartments”?

You might think there’s really nothing left for realtors and agencies. But here’s the twist: their niche focus is their secret weapon. These local experts can outshine the big names, proving that sometimes, being small is the biggest advantage.

This is where SEO comes in. SEO (search engine optimization) for real estate involves strategies to boost your visibility in Google’s organic search results. This visibility brings free, consistent traffic that grows as you create more optimized content.

The opportunity for boutique, small, and medium real estate businesses lies in four key areas:

1. Hyperlocal keyword targeting.
2. Long-tail keywords with high intent.
3. Local link building.
4. Exceptional customer service that fuels positive reviews, boosting your local search rankings.

In other words, you need to do SEO better where it counts.

In this article, I’ll share strategies and tips from SEO experts in the real estate sector, along with insights from high-performing niche sites. Our focus is exclusively on SEO, so we won’t cover search ads or listing your business on aggregators, as you’re likely already doing those.

Many topics within real estate will count as Your Money or Your Life (YMYL). In recent years, Google has recognized that certain subjects, including real estate, require higher standards of trustworthiness.

Any content should go through multiple fact checks before publication, and each data point should be well sourced with an external link where possible as this will aid authority. 

Laura Nuttall, SEO Account Manager, SEO Works

Now, let’s see what we can do about those challenges.

I won’t go into the basics of GBP profiles. I’m sure most of you already have one, and if not, you can get up to speed with our full guide for beginners.

What I’d like to emphasize here is two things.

A GBP is one of your best bets to outrank both big sites and local competitors. I can’t even cite a specific expert here because they’ve all said the same thing. That’s because the so-called map pack featuring GBPs often shows on top of regular organic results.

A GBP is your answer to big brands. They have the marketing budgets, the authority on Google, and brand awareness. A GBP gives you a strong local presence backed by reviews and the effort you take to make the profile stand out.

You have to keep in mind that the profile is not just something that people will see only once, and only if they find it through Google. Even if they discover you in other ways, they will circle back to the GBP to see if you can be trusted.

Secondly, there are a few things that can make or break a GBP:

• Listing each branch separately.
• Giving people reasons to leave a positive review.
• Showing who you are and how you work in the photos feed.

Make sure you list branches separately. This is important because Google ranks GBPs based on the distance of the searcher or the location used in the query to the business (among a few other things). So if you want to be visible in all of the cities or neighborhoods where you have a physical address, make sure to list them separately.

Reviews are one of the most impactful ranking factors for GBPs. Virtually everything about them counts: how many are there, what’s the overall ranking, are they fresh, do you respond to them, etc.. Google pretty much reads them just as a potential client would.

Obviously, the goal is to get as many positive reviews as possible. But here’s the tip: not all of them need to come from actual real estate transactions. You can receive excellent reviews by just being helpful.

Next, list ALL your services. By listing all services, you increase your chances of appearing in a wider range of relevant searches. Example below:

Finally, consider adding photos of your team and client interactions. This isn’t about Google rankings — it’s all about how people think. Photos of your team and happy customers help new clients feel like they know who they’re trusting with their biggest assets. Most GBPs just show normal real estate photos. Just make sure to ask for their permission first.

I’ve gathered a few examples of photo feeds that stood out in my research. Photos like these draw attention yet don’t require much effort to make.

Keywords are the words and phrases that people type into search engines to find what they’re looking for. In SEO, you use keywords as topics for your content so that when someone uses the keywords, they can find your content.

The keyword strategy should focus on niching down if you’re a small or medium-sized real estate business (or you’re working for such a client). Keywords with high search volume are usually harder to rank for. Plus, these big keywords often relate to the national market, not your local area. They’re less likely to bring you leads from nearby customers.

Use the niche market to your advantage and focus on using long-tail keywords with low to medium competition. Rather than looking to target broader terms like “real estate” or “investment property UK”, target more specific phrases like “luxury homes in Manchester” or “affordable property in york”. 

Laura Nuttall, SEO Account Manager, SEO Works

A huge challenge is figuring out where big competitors leave content gaps and missed keyword opportunities. Big real estate platforms dominate the market, so you need to dig deep into what they aren’t addressing. 

Tools like Ahrefs’ Keywords Explorer show what words people use when looking for real estate to buy or an agent to help them sell. Let’s look at how you can use this tool to find the best types of keywords.

Local and hyperlocal real estate keywords

Local and hyperlocal keywords are search terms that are highly specific to a particular geographic location or small community. These keywords typically include:

• Neighborhood names.
• Street names.
• Local landmarks.
• Local attractions.
• Zip codes or postal codes.
• Specific districts within a city.
• Names of local businesses or institutions.
• City comparison (e.g., Portland vs. Austin).

Rather than targeting neighborhood key terms alone, you should also hit landmarks, popular streets, and more. Build expertise and authority through neighborhood-specific landing pages with unique local content. You sacrifice some volume, but you attract highly qualified traffic and increase your chances of showing up at the top of the right search results pages. 

To find your keywords in Keywords Explorer:

1. Type in broad terms related to the area you operate. For example, in Las Vegas that could be “las vegas, arts district, charleston heights, fremont street, green valley, henderson, los prados, sumerlin, twin lakes, unlv”.
2. Go to the Matching terms report.
3. In the Include filter add types of the real estate you offer. For example “real estate, house, condo, homes, properties”. Make sure to use the Any mode.

From that point, you can use additional filters to refine results. For example, to find low to medium-difficulty keywords set the KD filter to Max 30.

As you browse through the keywords, add them to a list.

Here are some examples I found:

Questions and real estate buying/selling terminology

Answers to popular questions and terminology allow you to attract customers seeking information first, show off your relevant listings, and get people to contact you for more details.

You can use these same seed keywords to find questions that buyers and sellers are asking. All you need to do is use the Questions tab:

For example, here’s a page explaining some of the basic terms. It generates an estimated 795 organic visits each month.

Local guides

These keywords include a geographic location and offer insights about the local area, like neighborhoods, restaurants, bars, attractions, or real estate market trends.

For instance, Live Love Santa Cruz, a boutique real estate, targets various keywords related to local services and attractions. I’ve listed some keywords where she ranks in the top 10: sushi, beaches, surfboard services; you get the idea. It’s practically a local guide’s blog attached to a real estate business.

To find these keywords, you can again use the standard set of locations and these modifier keywords: “best, things, top-rated, event*, guide, list, tips, map, information, resource, transportation, park*, recreation, shopping”. You can add your own or ask AI to expand this list.

Sidenote.

The asterisk acts as a wildcard for modifier keywords. It will automatically include all the words that start with “park.”

Since these keywords can have irregular structures, it’s a good idea to use competitive keyword research.

To do this, type in “blogs about [local area]” or “[local area] blogs” in Google. If you’re an Ahrefs user, you can use the toolbar to reveal SEO data for each site. Choose sites with the most traffic (ST) and click the KW link.

This will show you the keywords the site ranks for — your new source of content inspiration.

Unique features and buying scenarios

Brandy Hastings from SmartSites and Ally Dyck from seoplus+ mentioned a specific subset of keywords: properties with unique features and specific buying scenarios. For instance “pet-friendly apartments in [suburb]” or “townhomes for sale with low HOA fees”. These keywords typically have low search volume, but they’re high in intent.

Here are some of the ideas you can use for keyword modifiers: “for, near, with, buyer, close to, invest, relocate, retire, in”. Use them with seed keywords related to the type of realty you offer.

1. Type in types of real estate as seed keywords.
2. Open Matching terms report.
3. Set the following filters. Include: add the modifier words mentioned above. Optional filters for finding easier keywords: KD up to 30, Lowest DR Up to 40 in top 10.
4. Open the Cluster by terms tab.

From there, look for the areas you serve and browse keyword ideas.

Real estate decisions take time, and users are often at different stages of their journey. Your goal should be to engage visitors and guide them toward taking the logical next step rather than pushing for an immediate conversion.

I like to think holistically about the different stages someone may be at as they’re researching an area or neighborhood. Informational guides can be really useful for the earlier stages as people are just learning about a place and determining if it’s a good fit. Things like neighborhood overviews, school profiles, guides to local amenities. Then as people start narrowing down their search, more transactional pages optimized for queries like “homes for sale in Neighborhood X” can be effective. 

Here’s a simple example of this concept. One of the pages that generates the most traffic for Hudsons Property is a guide to renting and buying a home in London. Each guide links to other relevant content on the site, including London areas.

The visitor can learn not only how to buy or rent but also where. The area guides take them a step further in their buyer’s journey, providing a form to inquire about real estate options.

And that is the whole idea. Each page needs to deliver a logical next step for the visitor to get in touch.

Here are some other ways real estate sites try to engage visitors.

Highlight selected real estate in a neighborhood guide. Even if someone is not ready to buy yet, pictures of nice homes will likely draw them in.

Get Calendly and integrate it with your site. This will give people a quick and easy way to contact you, without back-and-forth with setting up meeting dates.

Encourage contact by making a special offer, such as a free valuation.

Keep main contact options visible at all times. You can include them in a floating menu bar. Simple yet effective. It reduces the time to find contact details and demonstrates your openness.

Establishing trust isn’t just about appealing to human psychology — it’s also a critical factor in Google’s ranking algorithm, built into the EEAT concept.

EEAT is how Google’s systems are trained to determine a page’s credibility. The acronym stands for Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness, with the last element being the most important.

It basically means that a website exhibiting strong EEAT signals is more likely to rank well in search results because Google aims to provide users with credible and reliable information.

Here are some ways you can cater to potential customers and Google.

Getting a TLS certificate is an absolute must. This protects sensitive information, like login credentials and personal details, from being intercepted by malicious actors. It also displays a padlock icon in the browser’s address bar, visually signaling to users that the website is secure.

On Dana Fitzpatrick’s site, I found these few hundred pixels that clearly establish this realtor’s credibility. It features impressive performance data, a compelling testimonial, and a series of recognitions highlighting her experience.

On Nathan Sherman’s site, I found this:

And I couldn’t agree more — these sold properties acts as strong testimonials. They’re not just a list of past transactions; they’re a visual showcase of an agency’s success story.

Moreover, they catch your eye, because not every agency keeps their sold properties in a visible spot on their site. I know it caught my attention when I first saw this after looking at dozens of real estate sites.

Here’s a real estate business that went the extra mile, although with very simple means. Room Real Estate captured the family business spirit in a short video. This video introduces the visitor to two generations who have worked hard for their success.

Mobile-friendliness is a ranking factor and a must-have if you want your visitors to stick around. Photos of houses and apartments look better on a big screen, but many of your visitors will use a smartphone instead.

To illustrate, here’s the mobile vs desktop distribution looks on most real estate-related keywords I’ve seen so far.

It’s very easy to test your site for these factors. You can use free tools such as our Webmaster Tools. The tool will show you affected pages, tips on how to fix them, and whether the changes you implemented worked.

That said, fixing those things will require some technical skills. So unless you’re a realtor by day and a web developer by night, you might want to get someone to help you.

Backlinks, also known as inbound or incoming links, are links from one website to another. Search engines like Google see these links as votes of trust.

Link building is one of the pillars of SEO as more backlinks from unique domains can improve your search rankings.

There are many tactics to get backlinks, so you need to choose wisely. Based on expert opinions and an analysis of high-performing real estate sites, here’s where you can get quality backlinks:

• Directories.
• Press.
• Podcasts, shows, and public speaking.
• Local organizations, schols, and events.
• Your terminology and data pages.

Let’s look at them in more detail.

1. Directories

Directories are organized listings of websites, typically categorized by topic, industry, or location. For example, Circa is a niche directory for old house listings. They also feature agents and brokers.

Getting your site on a directory is pretty simple. Depending on where you’re listing, you might just add your info yourself, fill out a form and wait for approval, or “pay to play”.

A quick search of online directories or business listings will give you enough sites to keep you busy for a few hours (for example this list from HubSpot). On top of that, I’d recommend you also check out our advanced guide to this type of link building and find some hidden gems.

2. Press

Backlinks from the press come from providing journalists and bloggers a reason to mention you, and therefore, link to you.

For instance, you can offer expertise like Michael Bondi.

Or get your listings featured like Berkshire Property Agents.

You will find lots of requests from journalists requests on HARO, Help a B2B Writer, and similar sites.

Consider reaching out to local press outlets with real estate-focused story ideas. For example, you could propose an article exploring ‘Why there’s a surge of homes for sale in [specific area]’. Alternatively, offer your expertise to journalists working on real estate-related pieces.

If you have a bit more budget, you can hire a PR or link building agency to seek out the right opportunities.

3. Podcasts, shows and public speaking

These events often list speakers or participants on their websites, providing an opportunity for valuable backlinks from reputable sources.

Whenever you get a chance to appear on a show, conference, or lecture, ask for a link back to your site.

4. Local organizations, schools and events

Local organizations, schools, and events often link to sponsors, businesses that are involved in charities or community initiatives, and helpful resources.

These backlinks might need a bit more effort but the benefits of networking will likely surpass SEO. Here are a few ideas to try:

• Join local business associations and chambers of commerce.
• Reach out to local schools and offer to participate in career days or provide educational resources about real estate.
• Sponsor local sports teams or cultural events.
• Volunteer for community service projects or organize charity events.
• Create and share valuable content about the local real estate market, homebuying tips, or neighborhood guides.
• Offer free workshops or seminars on real estate topics for community members.
• Partner with local non-profits for fundraising initiatives.
• Offer internship opportunities to local students interested in real estate.

5. Terminology and data pages

Citing data and facts is one of the most popular reasons to link. Become the source, and you might earn lots of links this way passively.

To get an idea of what kind of resources earn links in real estate, you can look at competitors’ sites in Ahrefs’ Site Explorer. Just paste their domain and go to the Best by links report.

Final thoughts

I’ve seen many realtors create video content for YouTube, including virtual property tours, and neighborhood showcases. However, just a few of my sources mentioned this strategy. For inspiration, check out Brad McCallum’s channel. To find keywords for YouTube SEO, you can use tools like vidIQ.

Finally, I want to quickly discuss your KPIs. Since buyer’s journey in this business can be quite long, a good idea would be to track the correlation between SEO metrics and closed deals. To crunch the numbers, simply ask ChatGPT.

We measure the ROI of SEO from the number of quality leads that are generated by our website and then correlate them with closed deals, giving a clear picture of how organic search is contributing to our bottom line. 

Got questions or comments? Send me a message on LinkedIn.

As research for this article, I’ve asked eight top hiring managers to share the #1 SEO interview question they’re asking candidates right now, so you can understand what types of questions hiring managers are asking.

The hiring managers I talked to came from a range of different backgrounds: agency, in-house, and enterprise businesses.

It’s impossible to prepare for every question ahead of the interview, but it’s important to put yourself in their shoes and diligently do your research.

At a minimum, you should consider:

• What’s important to them and their business?
• Why should they hire you?
• Can you demonstrate a thorough understanding of SEO and bring the receipts to prove it?

Ok, that’s enough from me—let’s see what the hiring managers had to say.

This question comes from  Sam Page, Director of SEO, Slack:

A competitor has implemented a new SEO strategy. How do you analyze their strategy and when do you consider implementing something similar?

How to answer

This question came from Jimisha Thakrar, Head of Organic Performance at MG OMD:

“How would you handle a situation where someone in leadership wants immediate SEO results?”

How to answer

The next question comes courtesy of Fabrizio Ballarini, Organic Growth at Wise:

If you could create any page you want on your current website, what would you create?

How to answer

This question came from Itamar Blauer, Senior SEO Director at StudioHawk:

What do you think the most significant Google update has been in the past two years, and why?

How to answer

Firstly, I want to understand whether the candidate keeps up to date with the SEO industry and search landscape. 

Secondly, I want to see how the candidate can prioritize and be critical. 

Lastly, I want to get an insight into how the candidate sees different SEO areas and their significance.

I’d look for answers around the various Helpful Content Updates over the past year or so, as these have been fairly significant. Mentions of broad core algorithm updates are also fine but (generally) not as significant.

Tip

To answer this, you need to make sure you’re very extremely familiar with all the latest Google algorithm updates and be able to critically evaluate their significance.

You can use Ahrefs’ Site Explorer Google updates overlay to see whether updates correlate to traffic increases or decreases for the website you’re analyzing.

Here’s the question Daniel Foley Carter, Director at SEO Stack, likes to ask candidates:

How would you perform SEO testing, and why is it so important?

How to answer

Tip

You can monitor your performance of SEO tests using the Portfolios feature in Ahrefs.

This question comes from Rachel Walton, Head of SEO at Quirky Digital:

How do you prioritize which SEO work should be completed first?

How to answer

Next up, here’s a question from David Schulhof, Director of Digital at PHA Group:

What should be the main priority for brands investing in SEO today, and why?

How to answer

Our final (and very big) question comes from Philip Gamble, Head of SEO at Zenith:

What do you think the impact of AI Overviews will be on SEO as a channel?

How to answer

Final thoughts

Are you an SEO hiring manager and want to contribute to this article? If so, share your favorite SEO interview questions here or contact me on LinkedIn.