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25 Creative Examples of About Us Pages

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25 Best About Us Page Examples On The Web

The About Us page of your website is an essential source of information for all who want to know more about your business.

About Us pages are where you showcase your history, what is unique about your work, your company’s values, and who you serve.

The design, written content, and visual or video elements together tell an important story about who you are and why you do it.

How can you make the most of this integral part of your marketing strategy?

In this article, you’ll learn what makes an exceptional About Us page.

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You’ll find 25 examples of the best ones out there, too, to inspire your own About Us page design and content.

The Components Of A Great About Us Page

There isn’t a winning template to create a great About Us page. However, there are key components to make a convincing pitch with your brand story.

Your Mission

You don’t need to outright say, “our mission is ____,” but you should convey the mission of your business in your About Us copy. This is key for attracting talent, as well as leads that have Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) goals.

Your Story (History)

Every business has an origin story worth telling, and usually, one that justifies why you even do business and have clients.

Some centennial enterprises have pages of content that can fit in this section, while startups can tell the story of how the company was born, its challenges, and its vision for the future.

Your Services (And Benefits)

Of course, you have a homepage and dedicated pages for your products, but summarizing your offerings on the About Us page is crucial to tie them in with brand values in your messaging.

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Highlight the benefits and showcase what you do (and why it is unique).

Your Social Proof

Reviews, client logos, case studies, and results bring consistency to your About Us page. It’s what really proves what you are saying is real and the impact you can bring to future clients.

With these components in mind, you will have a framework from which to build an engaging and unique About Us page.

However, if you are looking for some inspiration, the 25 examples below will guide your creative process.

Screenshot from ToyFight, January 2022

ToyFight is an award-winning creative design agency.

You’ll find the About Page at the top of the menu under the Who section.

This page has a unique feel, thanks to the deconstructed action figures representing the founders, Leigh Whipday and Jonny Lander.

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The great attention to detail and interactivity also reflect the company’s 16 years of experience.

To sum up, this page stands out by providing the perfect mix of fun and information.

Band About Us PageScreenshot from Band, January 2022

Band is a multidisciplinary creative studio based in the Pacific Northwest.

Their About Us page stands out by showcasing some of their unique and creative projects.

No number of words could hope to tell one of their potential clients nearly as much as these pictures can.

In this case, the 25 pictures featured on Band’s About Us page are worth much more than the 170 actual words you’ll read on the page.

The magical visuals and overall simple look and feel make this About Us page one of our top picks.

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Anton & Irene About Us pageScreenshot from Anton & Irene, January 2022

This might be the most distinctive website we’ve come across.

Anton & Irene is a design agency based in Manhattan.

Why are they a distinctive web presence?

Because their page takes parallax scrolling to the next level.

The snowy effects, bold colors, and quirky visuals create a truly captivating experience.

Pierro Caron About Us pageScreenshot from Pierro Caron, January 2022

Pierro Caron is a French artisan sculptor.

Want to know our favorite part about his page?

The honesty.

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Here is a man with great respect for wood and handcrafted sculptures that “tell a story and testify to the richness of one of our most precious resources.”

His website is light, easy to read, and filled with inspiring quotes and photos of his labors of love.

Blake Fili Suárez About Us pageScreenshot from Blake Fili Suárez, January 2022

Who doesn’t love a good bio?

Especially one that starts with “I was born in good ol’ Madison, Wisconsin. The son of a Librarian and a Researcher.”

It also goes on to tell you how he and his family survived Hurricane Andrew and how his sister was born that night.

Who is this guy?

Blake Fili Suárez is an illustrator and designer with a fantastic sense of humor.

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His quirkiness comes through thanks to his humorous tone and goofy picture.

The page, while minimalist in design, offers a glimpse into Suárez’s colorful personality and his impressive block of work.

LessFilms About Us pageScreenshot from LessFIlms, January 2022

If you were a “super awesome” video business, what medium would you choose to show people what you do?

Video, of course.

LessFilms is a video production company based in Florida with clients and team members all over the world.

On their about page, you’ll find a humorous 50-second video along with a short list of facts summarizing their love for tacos, travel, and karate – a theme that certainly permeates most of the content on the website.

Doomtree About Us pageScreenshot from DoomTree, January 2022

DoomTree’s page starts off as a coming-of-age story about how “a mess of friends” built the record label that made them a household name in Minneapolis.

However, it’s really the audio and the visuals that got us hooked.

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Why tell, when you can show, right?

Explore their About Us page to meet the crew, listen to their songs, and get the latest news.

Cupcakes and Cashmere About Us pageScreenshot from Cupcakes and Cashmere, January 2022

On this website’s main page you will find everything lifestyle-related – fashion, food, beauty, home decor, and more.

But it’s the About section that introduces you to the team that makes this website an endless source of inspiration.

The page introduces founder Emily Schuman, as well as her blog, books, and fashion collection.

Want to stay in touch?

No problem – the page also features useful links to her social media pages, as well as her online shop.

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NOWNESS About Us pageScreenshot from NOWNESS, January 2022

NOWNESS is a video channel providing the best in global arts and culture.

Therefore, it’s only natural that their About Us page features a compilation of various videos they host.

The content’s diversity and the team’s curatorial expertise are another reason to keep you browsing.

To stay in line with their video-centric aesthetic, the text on their page is short and concise.

However, it still provides enough guidance for browsing the website and even contributing.

Access the awards section and see why NOWNESS is currently a powerhouse in online film and video.

MailChimp About Us pageScreenshot from Mailchimp, January 2022

Millions of people use Mailchimp every day to create, send, and track email newsletters.

That’s the clever part behind Mailchimp’s About Page.

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It’s a great example of how to use such a page as a sort of pre-sales platform.

It’s simple, fun and effective, quite colorful, and displays a welcoming mix of diverseness.

Tate About Us pageScreenshot from Tate, January 2022

Tate’s About Us states that their mission is to “increase the public’s enjoyment of British art […] and international modern and contemporary art.”

So said, so done.

How come?

Because this page eases the journey for any reader seeking to take them up on their mission.

Scroll down to find out who they are, how to stay in touch, and everything in between.

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Yellow Leaf Hammocks About Us pageScreenshot from Yellow Leaf Hammocks, January 2022

Yellow Leaf Hammocks is trying to save the world one hammock at a time.

Their goal is to break the cycle of extreme poverty by empowering local artisans in Thailand to earn a stable income.

The brand’s About Page is filled with uplifting stories of impeccable craftsmanship and tight-knit communities.

As a result, it’s just as inspiring as their devotion to sustainable change.

Eight Hour Day About Us pageScreenshot from Eight Hour Day, January 2022

You had me at “Well hello there.”

Well, that’s exactly how the About Us section of Eight Hour Day starts – a welcoming greeting.

For that reason, it also made us browse for more.

Why?

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Because as much as you love good design and inspiring illustrations, you also want to meet the people that curate all the content for you.

Furthermore, it’s equally rewarding when you realize that they are just as eager to start a visual dialogue with you.

Nathan Strandberg and Katie Kirk are doing what makes them happy, and this is obvious throughout their page.

Lonely Planet About Us pageScreenshot from Lonely Planet, January 2022

You know you’re about to hop on a journey when a website’s About Us page tells you to “Just go.”

This is a website for travelers, so the layout is perfect for those eager to explore.

As you scroll down, you discover what Lonely Planet stands for, and their visual aid offers a preview of their services.

The perks?

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You see everything in one go and decide for yourself what you take on your journey.

Will it be their apps, their printed guides, or their website?

In any case, every resource becomes an inexhaustible well of travel inspiration.

So, are you ready to go?

Gummisig About Us pageScreenshot from Gummisig, January 2022

Gummisig is a freelance web designer who likes to talk about himself in the third person.

He also makes great use of oversized text to bring attention to his work in a humorous manner.

Perhaps what’s striking about this page is that it introduces Gummisig’s portfolio, but also reflects his free spirit and commitment.

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And while he mentions the household names he worked for in the past, he remains approachable and open to new collaborations.

Scroll down to discover his preferred action items.

Hint: He wants to know your secrets!

Perhaps the most striking feature behind this page is that it acts as a preface to the designer’s portfolio, mirroring his free spirit and a remarkable passion for design.

While he proudly states the companies he has worked for (IKEA is just one of the bigger names to pop up), he does so in a manner that is not boastful.

Amnesty International About Us pageScreenshot from Amnesty International, January 2022

Amnesty International is more than an NGO.

It is a global movement of more than 7 million people that are campaigning for a better world, where human rights are central.

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It is no wonder that the pronoun we is prevalent throughout their page.

Filled with quotes, videos, and testimonials, their page makes you believe that you can hope for a better world. And they have the facts to prove it, too.

If you scroll down, you can access all their accomplishments on the road toward better social change.

After you understand their global footprint, you should also imagine – imagine the possibility of a world where human rights are at the center of discussion.

Good enough reason to stay in touch, no?

Chattanooga Renaissance Fund About Us pageScreenshot from Chattanooga Renaissance Fund, January 2022

The top part of the Chattanooga Renaissance Fund page aims to attract entrepreneurs into the Chattanooga area of Tennessee.

How?

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By describing its history and the companies that already invested there, such as Amazon or Volkswagen, to name a few.

Which begs the question: What prompted these companies to move there?

Find out by reading more about the fund’s members and how they contributed to its growth.

This is especially reassuring because they are also here to help you.

Whether you’re a startup, investor, or third party, the page has a dedicated section for all its users.

All you have to do is prove that you want to turn ideas into existence.

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DORÉ About Us pageScreenshot from DORÉ, January 2022

This website started off as a photography blog founded by Garance Doré.

Eventually, it became a place for inspiration with a growing team that’s eager to question everything.

Whether it is style, femininity, or modern dilemmas, no topic remains off limits.

Ready to contribute to the discussion? By all means, you are most welcome.

The team reads all your comments and is ready to turn your thoughts into their command.

Not sure where to start?

Scroll down to see their work in videos and use the pictures at the bottom to access their Instagram page.

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Bulldog Skincare About Us pageScreenshot from Bulldog Skincare, January 2022

How can you convince men to delve into skincare?

You bring their best friend on their side – a dog.

Meet Bulldog Skincare, the company that aims to make skincare options dedicated to men readily available.

To have you sold, their About Us page greets you with the adorable mug of a bulldog.

This quickly becomes your guide to finding the products that will help you look and feel your best.

As you scroll down, you are growing familiar with the products and are slowly but surely befriending the brand itself and its values.

Their skincare is made from a mix of natural and carefully-selected man-made ingredients.

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It’s also vegan and certified by Cruelty Free International.

Their page is so good, it’s no wonder they have a ‘Shop Now’ button every step of the way.

Don’t mind if I do.

Couro Azul About Us pageScreenshot from Couro Azul, January 2022

Navigating through Couro Azul’s About Us page is like a journey through the unknown.

The kind of journey that keeps you scrolling down for more.

The company makes leather upholstery for cars and trains, and its history and trajectory are equally fascinating.

In addition to the visual delight, the page is also interactive and engaging.

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Why?

So that you can understand what the company values from a first browse: 100% in-house products.

Their certificate for ecologic distinction attests to their commitment to environmental best practices.

Girlboss About Us pageScreenshot from Girlboss, January 2022

The entire Girlboss website is simply inspiring.

The brand aims to redefine success for millennial women – by providing the tools and connections they need to own their futures.

Girlboss empowers them by providing the tools and connections they need to own their futures.

Furthermore, every bit of content you’ll find on this site oozes with passion, humor, and resourcefulness.

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These key traits are sewn into the fabric of Girlboss’ global success.

Purple, Rock, Scissors About Us pageScreenshot from Purple, Rock, Scissors, January 2022

If you want people to understand your company’s values, then put them in bold black and white print – just like Purple, Rock, Scissors did.

Their entire website is a technological marvel.

With its quaint background animation, concise content, and creative visuals, this page is definitely an eye-catcher.

There’s also an openness about it that will unfailingly draw you in.

Mixd About Us pageScreenshot from Mixd, January 2022

It’s not often that you see an About page that puts so much emphasis on its “meet the team” section.

Each member is portrayed with a short description and an almost full-body shot, complete with their social media accounts.

Boasting big, bold elements and sharp colors, this page excels at making a great first impression.

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6tematik About Us pageScreenshot from 6tematik, January 2022

There are many things we love about this website, but for brevity’s sake, we’ll narrow it down to two.

First, their main page is highly interactive.

The simple act of pushing a key or moving the mouse reveals a key piece of info about the brand. Because of that, it feels like watching a modern silent movie.

The second thing is the way 6tematik introduces us to its team.

Each member is portrayed by a minimalist caricature that is defined by one obvious trait. Some have long pink hair, others a bushy beard or big glasses.

These traits add a touch of personality to each member’s portrait, without giving too much away.

Big Cartel About Us pageScreenshot from Big Cartel, January 2022

Made by artists for artists, Big Cartel is an online platform that makes it easy to build and manage an online store.

The simple yet impactful mission statement and the candid employee photographs make this About page refreshingly different.

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Each photo in the gallery is unique and personal.

As a result, you won’t find any staged or boring ID-badge-type photos – just a wonderful display of diversity.

Final Takeaways

After analyzing in detail the 25 examples of About Us pages in this article, these are the final takeaways to keep in mind when crafting yours:

Creativity makes your page stand out.

For many companies, the About Us page is just a formality to fill in the sitemap rather than convey a unique marketing message.

However, some brands go beyond, designing eye-catching imagery and writing humorous copy to stand out from the competition. You need to find your unique angle for your About Us page to actually be read.

Feature the people behind the brand.

Whether you are a solopreneur, a dynamic duo agency, or a full-blown global enterprise with hundreds of team members, letting people shine makes an engaging About Us page.

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Some of the examples in this article (such as Big Cartel), feature headshots packed with personality, which convey brand values better than any words.

Tie in social proof with your social responsibility.

Showcase results, but also convey the difference your organization is bringing to the world.

Yellow Leaf Hammocks and Mailchimp are two examples from this article that feature on their About Us page how their products are changing their communities for the better.

More resources:


Featured Image: Naumova Marina/Shutterstock




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Google Confirms Links Are Not That Important

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Google confirms that links are not that important anymore

Google’s Gary Illyes confirmed at a recent search marketing conference that Google needs very few links, adding to the growing body of evidence that publishers need to focus on other factors. Gary tweeted confirmation that he indeed say those words.

Background Of Links For Ranking

Links were discovered in the late 1990’s to be a good signal for search engines to use for validating how authoritative a website is and then Google discovered soon after that anchor text could be used to provide semantic signals about what a webpage was about.

One of the most important research papers was Authoritative Sources in a Hyperlinked Environment by Jon M. Kleinberg, published around 1998 (link to research paper at the end of the article). The main discovery of this research paper is that there is too many web pages and there was no objective way to filter search results for quality in order to rank web pages for a subjective idea of relevance.

The author of the research paper discovered that links could be used as an objective filter for authoritativeness.

Kleinberg wrote:

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“To provide effective search methods under these conditions, one needs a way to filter, from among a huge collection of relevant pages, a small set of the most “authoritative” or ‘definitive’ ones.”

This is the most influential research paper on links because it kick-started more research on ways to use links beyond as an authority metric but as a subjective metric for relevance.

Objective is something factual. Subjective is something that’s closer to an opinion. The founders of Google discovered how to use the subjective opinions of the Internet as a relevance metric for what to rank in the search results.

What Larry Page and Sergey Brin discovered and shared in their research paper (The Anatomy of a Large-Scale Hypertextual Web Search Engine – link at end of this article) was that it was possible to harness the power of anchor text to determine the subjective opinion of relevance from actual humans. It was essentially crowdsourcing the opinions of millions of website expressed through the link structure between each webpage.

What Did Gary Illyes Say About Links In 2024?

At a recent search conference in Bulgaria, Google’s Gary Illyes made a comment about how Google doesn’t really need that many links and how Google has made links less important.

Patrick Stox tweeted about what he heard at the search conference:

” ‘We need very few links to rank pages… Over the years we’ve made links less important.’ @methode #serpconf2024″

Google’s Gary Illyes tweeted a confirmation of that statement:

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“I shouldn’t have said that… I definitely shouldn’t have said that”

Why Links Matter Less

The initial state of anchor text when Google first used links for ranking purposes was absolutely non-spammy, which is why it was so useful. Hyperlinks were primarily used as a way to send traffic from one website to another website.

But by 2004 or 2005 Google was using statistical analysis to detect manipulated links, then around 2004 “powered-by” links in website footers stopped passing anchor text value, and by 2006 links close to the words “advertising” stopped passing link value, links from directories stopped passing ranking value and by 2012 Google deployed a massive link algorithm called Penguin that destroyed the rankings of likely millions of websites, many of which were using guest posting.

The link signal eventually became so bad that Google decided in 2019 to selectively use nofollow links for ranking purposes. Google’s Gary Illyes confirmed that the change to nofollow was made because of the link signal.

Google Explicitly Confirms That Links Matter Less

In 2023 Google’s Gary Illyes shared at a PubCon Austin that links were not even in the top 3 of ranking factors. Then in March 2024, coinciding with the March 2024 Core Algorithm Update, Google updated their spam policies documentation to downplay the importance of links for ranking purposes.

Google March 2024 Core Update: 4 Changes To Link Signal

The documentation previously said:

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“Google uses links as an important factor in determining the relevancy of web pages.”

The update to the documentation that mentioned links was updated to remove the word important.

Links are not just listed as just another factor:

“Google uses links as a factor in determining the relevancy of web pages.”

At the beginning of April Google’s John Mueller advised that there are more useful SEO activities to engage on than links.

Mueller explained:

“There are more important things for websites nowadays, and over-focusing on links will often result in you wasting your time doing things that don’t make your website better overall”

Finally, Gary Illyes explicitly said that Google needs very few links to rank webpages and confirmed it.

Why Google Doesn’t Need Links

The reason why Google doesn’t need many links is likely because of the extent of AI and natural language undertanding that Google uses in their algorithms. Google must be highly confident in its algorithm to be able to explicitly say that they don’t need it.

Way back when Google implemented the nofollow into the algorithm there were many link builders who sold comment spam links who continued to lie that comment spam still worked. As someone who started link building at the very beginning of modern SEO (I was the moderator of the link building forum at the #1 SEO forum of that time), I can say with confidence that links have stopped playing much of a role in rankings beginning several years ago, which is why I stopped about five or six years ago.

Read the research papers

Authoritative Sources in a Hyperlinked Environment – Jon M. Kleinberg (PDF)

The Anatomy of a Large-Scale Hypertextual Web Search Engine

Featured Image by Shutterstock/RYO Alexandre

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How to Become an SEO Lead (10 Tips That Advanced My Career)

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How to Become an SEO Lead (10 Tips That Advanced My Career)

A few years ago, I was an SEO Lead managing enterprise clients’ SEO campaigns. It’s a senior role and takes a lot of work to get there. So how can you do it, too?

In this article, I’ll share ten tips to help you climb the next rung in the SEO career ladder.

Helping new hires in the SEO team is important if you want to become an SEO Lead. It gives you the experience to develop your leadership skills, and you can also share your knowledge and help others learn and grow.

It demonstrates you can explain things well, provide helpful feedback, and improve the team’s standard of work. It shows you care about the team’s success, which is essential for leaders. Bosses look for someone who can do their work well and help everyone improve.

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Here are some practical examples of things I did early in my career to help mentor junior members of the team that you can try as well:

  • Hold “lunch and learn” sessions on topics related to SEO and share case studies of work you have done
  • Create process documents for the junior members of the team to show them how to complete specific tasks related to your work
  • Compile lists of your favorite tools and resources for junior members of the team
  • Create onboarding documents for interns joining the company

Wouldn’t it be great if you could look at every single SEO Lead’s resume? Well, you already can. You can infer ~70% of any SEO’s resume by spying on their LinkedIn and social media channels.

Type “SEO Lead” into LinkedIn and see what you get.

Searching for SEO Leads using Linkedin

Tip

Look for common career patterns of the SEOs you admire in the industry.

I used this method to understand how my favorite SEOs and people at my company navigated their way from a junior role to a senior role.

For example, when the Head of SEO at the time Kirsty Hulse, joined my team, I added her on LinkedIn and realized that if I wanted to follow in her footsteps, I’d need to start by getting the role of SEO Manager to stand any possible chance of leading SEO campaigns like she was.

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The progression in my company was from SEO Executive to Senior SEO Executive (Junior roles in London, UK), but as an outsider coming into the company, Kirsty showed me that it was possible to jump straight to SEO Manager given the right circumstances.

Career exampleCareer example

Using Kirsty’s and other SEOs’ profiles, I decided that the next step in my career needed to be SEO Manager, and at some point, I needed to get some experience with a bigger media agency so I could work my way up to leading an SEO campaign with bigger brands.

Sadly, you can’t just rock up to a monthly meeting and start leading a big brand SEO campaign. You’ll need to prove yourself to your line manager first. So how can you do this?

Here’s what I’d suggest you do:

  • Create a strong track record with smaller companies.
  • Obsessively share your wins with your company, so that senior management will already know you can deliver.
  • At your performance review, tell your line manager that you want to work on bigger campaigns and take on more responsibility.

If there’s no hope of working with a big brand at your current job, you might need to consider looking for a new job where there is a recognizable brand. This was what I realized I needed to do if I wanted to get more experience.

Tip

Get recruiters on LinkedIn to give you the inside scoop on which brands or agencies are hiring. Ask them if you have any skill gaps on your resume that could prevent you from getting a job with these companies.

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Being critical of your skill gaps can be hard to do. I found the best way to identify them early in my career was to ask other people—specifically recruiters. They had knowledge of the industry and were usually fairly honest as to what I needed to improve.

From this, I realized I lacked experience working with other teams—like PR, social, and development teams. As a junior SEO, your mind is focused 99% on doing SEO, but when you become more senior, your integration with other teams is important to your success.

For this reason, I’d suggest that aspiring SEO Leads should have a good working knowledge of how other teams outside of SEO operate. If you take the time to do this, it will pay dividends later in your career:

  • If there are other teams in your company, ask if you can do some onboarding training with them.
  • Get to know other team leads within your company and learn how they work.
  • Take training courses to learn the fundamentals of other disciplines that complement SEO, such as Python, SQL, or content creation.

Sometimes, employers use skill gaps to pay you less, so it’s crucial to get the skills you need early on…

Skills gap illustrationSkills gap illustration
Source

Examples of other skill gaps I’ve noticed include:

Tip

If you think you have a lot of skill gaps, then you can brush up your skills with our SEO academy. Once you’ve completed that, you can fast-track your knowledge by taking a course like Tom Critchlow’s SEO MBA, or you can try to develop these skills through your job.

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How to Become an SEO Lead 10 Tips That AdvancedHow to Become an SEO Lead 10 Tips That Advanced

As a junior in any company, it can be hard to get your voice heard amongst the senior crowd. Ten years ago, I shared my wins with the team in a weekly group email in the office.

Here’s what you should be sharing:

  • Praise from 3rd parties, e.g. “the client said they are impressed with the work this month.”
  • Successful performance insights, e.g “following our SEO change, the client has seen X% more conversions this month.”
  • Examples of the work you led, e.g. if your leadership and decision-making led to good results, then you need to share it.

At Ahrefs I keep a “wins” document. It’s just a simple spreadsheet that lists feedback on the blog posts I’ve written, the links I’ve earned and what newsletters my post was included in. It’s useful to have a document like this so you have a record of your achievements.

Example of wins spreadsheetExample of wins spreadsheet

Sidenote.

Junior SEOs sometimes talk about the things “we” achieved as a team rather than what they achieved at the interview stage. If you want the SEO Lead role, remember to talk about what you achieved. While there’s no “I” in team, you also need to advocate for yourself.

One of my first big wins as an SEO was getting a link from an outreach campaign on Buzzfeed. When I went to Brighton SEO later that year and saw Matthew Howells-Barby sharing how he got a Buzzfeed link, I realized that this was not something everyone had done.

So when I did manage to become an SEO Lead, and my team won a prize in Publicis Groupe for our SEO performance, I made sure everyone knew about the work we did. I even wrote a case study on the work for Publicis Groupe’s intranet.

Silver prize winning at publicis groupeSilver prize winning at publicis groupe

I’ve worked with some incredibly talented people, many of whom have helped me in my career.

I owe my big break to Tim Cripps, Laura Scott, and Kevin Mclaren. Without their support and encouragement, I wouldn’t be where I am today. Even before that, David Schulhof, Jodie Wheeler, and Carl Brooks let me mastermind some bonkers content campaigns that were lucky enough to succeed:

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Digital Spy Coverage for emoji campaignDigital Spy Coverage for emoji campaign
Some of the coverage I got for a stag and hen do client, back in the day.

I wasn’t even an SEO Lead at that point, but they gave me the reins and trusted me.

So, how can you find your tribe?

  • Speak to recruiters – they might hold the ticket to your next dream job. I spoke to many recruiters early in my career, but only two recruiters delivered for me—they were Natasha Woodford, and Amalia Gouta. Natasha helped me get a job that filled my skill gap, and Amalia helped me get my first SEO Lead role.
  • Go to events and SEO conferences, and talk to speakers to build connections outside of your company.
  • Use LinkedIn and other social media to interact with other companies or individuals that resonate with you.

Many senior SEO professionals spend most of their online lives on X and LinkedIn. If you’re not using them, you’re missing out on juicy opportunities.

Example of Linkedin recruiter messageExample of Linkedin recruiter message
Example of a recruiter message I got just after I joined Ahrefs.

Sharing your expertise on these platforms is one of the easiest ways to increase your chances of getting a senior SEO role. Because, believe it or not, sometimes a job offer can be just a DM away.

Here’s some specific ideas of what you can share:

I’ve recently started posting on LinkedIn and am impressed by the reach you can get by posting infrequently on these topics.

Here’s an example of one of my posts where I asked the community for help researching an article I was writing:

Linkedin post exampleLinkedin post example

And here is the content performance across the last year from posting these updates.

Linkedin-Content-PerformanceLinkedin-Content-Performance

I’m clearly not a LinkedIn expert—far from it! But as you can see, with just a few months of posting, you can start to make these platforms work for you.

Godard Abel, co-founder of G2, talked on a podcast about conscious leadership. This struck a chord with me recently as I realized that I had practiced some of the principles of conscious leadership—unconsciously.

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You can start practicing conscious leadership by asking yourself if your actions are above or below the line. Here are a few examples of above and below-the-line thinking:

Above and below the line thinkingAbove and below the line thinking

If you want a senior SEO role, I’d suggest shifting your mindset to above-the-line thinking.

In the world of SEO, it’s easy to blame all your search engine woes on Google. We’ve all been there. But a lot of the time, simple changes to your website can make a huge difference—it just takes a bit of effort to find them and make the changes.

SEO is not an exact science. Some stakeholders naturally get nervous if they sense you aren’t sure about what you’re saying. If you don’t get their support early on then you fall at the first hurdle.

Business plan with no detailBusiness plan with no detail
Source

To become more persuasive, try incorporating Aristotle’s three persuasive techniques into your conversations.

  • Pathos: use logical reasoning, facts, and data to present water-tight arguments.
  • Ethos: establish your credibility and ethics through results.
  • Logos: make your reports tell a story.
Persuasive techniquesPersuasive techniques

Then sprinkle in language that has a high level of modality:

Modality of languageModality of language

Some people will be able to do this naturally without even realizing it, but for others, it can be an uphill struggle. It wasn’t easy for me, and I had to learn to adapt the way I talked to stakeholders early on.

The strongest way I found was to appeal to emotions and back up with data from a platform like Ahrefs. Highlight what competitors have done in terms of SEO and the results they’ve earned from doing it.

Sidenote.

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You don’t have to follow this tip to the letter, but being aware of these concepts means you’ll start to present more confident and persuasive arguments for justifying your SEO strategies.

When I started in SEO, I had zero connections. Getting a job felt like an impossible challenge.

Once I’d got my first SEO Lead job, it felt stupidly easy to get another one—just through connections I’d made along the way in my SEO journey.

I once got stuck on a delayed train with a senior member of staff, and he told me he was really into Google Local Guides, and he was on a certain high level. He said it took him a few years to get there.

Local Guides is part of Google Maps that allows you submit reviews and other user generated content

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When he showed me the app, I realized that you could easily game the levels by uploading lots of photos.

In a “hold my beer” moment, I mass downloaded a bunch of photos, uploaded them to Local Guides and equaled his Local Guide level on the train in about half an hour. He was seething.

Google Local Guides Screenshot Level 7Google Local Guides Screenshot Level 7

One of the photos I uploaded was a half-eaten Subway. It still amazes me that 50,974 people have seen this photo:

1713812167 453 How to Become an SEO Lead 10 Tips That Advanced1713812167 453 How to Become an SEO Lead 10 Tips That Advanced

This wasn’t exactly SEO, but the ability to find this ‘hack’ so quickly impressed him, and we struck up a friendship.

The next month that person moved to another company, and then another few months later, he offered me an SEO Lead job.

Tip

Build connections with everyone you can—you never know who you might need to call on next.

Final thoughts

The road to becoming an SEO Lead seems straightforward enough when you start out, but it can quickly become long and winding.

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But now armed with my tips, and a bucket load of determination, you should be able to navigate your way to an SEO Lead role much quicker than you think.

Lastly, if you want any more guidance, you can always ping me on LinkedIn. 🙂



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7 Content Marketing Conferences to Attend in 2024

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7 Content Marketing Conferences to Attend in 2024

I spend most of my days sitting in front of a screen, buried in a Google Doc. (You probably do too.)

And while I enjoy deep work, a few times a year I get the urge to leave my desk and go socialize with other human beings—ideally on my employer’s dime 😉

Conferences are a great excuse to hang out with other content marketers, talk shop, learn some new tricks, and pretend that we’re all really excited about generative AI.

Without further ado, here are the biggest and best content marketing conferences happening throughout the rest of 2024.

Dates: May 5–7
Prices: from $795
Website: https://cex.events/
Location: Cleveland, OH
Speakers: B.J. Novak, Ann Handley, Alexis Grant, Justin Welsh, Mike King

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CEX is designed with content entrepreneurs in mind (“contenpreneurs”? Did I just coin an awesome new word?)—people that care as much about the business of content as they do the craft.

In addition to veteran content marketers like Ann Handley and Joe Pulizi waxing lyrical about modern content strategy, you’ll find people like Justin Welsh and Alexis Grant exploring the practicalities of quitting your job and becoming a full-time content creator.

Here’s a trailer for last year’s event:

Sessions include titles like:

  • Unlocking the Power of Book Publishing: From Content to Revenue
  • Quitting A $200k Corporate Job to Become A Solo Content Entrepreneur
  • Why You Should Prioritize Long-Form Content

(And yes—Ryan from The Office is giving the keynote.)

Dates: Jun 3–4
Location: Seattle, WA
Speakers: Wil Reyolds, Bernard Huang, Britney Muller, Lily Ray
Prices: from $1,699
Website: https://moz.com/mozcon

Software company Moz is best known in the SEO industry, but its conference is popular with marketers of all stripes. Amidst a lineup of 25 speakers there are plenty of content marketers speaking, like Andy Crestodina, Ross Simmonds, and Chima Mmeje.

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Check out this teaser from last year’s event:

This year’s talks include topics like:

  • Trust and Quality in the New Era of Content Discovery
  • The Power of Emotion: How To Create Content That (Actually) Converts
  • “E” for Engaging: Why The Future of SEO Content Needs To Be Engaging

Dates: Sep 18–20
Location: Boston, MA
Speakers: TBC
Prices: from $1,199
Website: https://www.inbound.com/

Hosted by content marketing OG HubSpot, INBOUND offers hundreds of talks, deep dives, fireside chats, and meetups on topics ranging from brand strategy to AI.

Here’s the recap video:

I’ve attended my fair share of INBOUNDs over the years (and even had a beer with co-founder Dharmesh Shah), and always enjoy the sheer choice of events on offer.

Keynotes are a highlight, and this year’s headline speaker has a tough act to follow: Barack Obama closed out the conference last year.

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Dates: Oct 22–23
Location: San Diego, CA
Speakers: TBC
Prices: from $1,199
Website:
https://www.contentmarketingworld.com/

Arguably the content marketing conference, Content Marketing World has been pumping out content talks and inspiration for fourteen years solid.

Here’s last year’s recap:

The 2024 agenda is in the works, but last year’s conference explored every conceivable aspect of content marketing, from B2C brand building through to the quirks of content for government organizations, with session titles like:

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  • Government Masterclass: A Content Marketing Strategy to Build Public Trust 
  • A Beloved Brand: Evolving Zillow’s Creative Content Strategy 
  • Evidence-Based SEO Strategies: Busting “SEO Best Practices” and Other Marketing Myths

Dates: Oct 24–25
Location: Singapore
Speakers: Andy Chadwick, Nik Ranger, Charlotte Ang, Marcus Ho, Victor Karpenko, Amanda King, James Norquay, Sam Oh, Patrick Stox, Tim Soulo (and me!)
Prices: TBC
Website: https://ahrefs.com/events/evolve2024-singapore

That’s right—Ahrefs is hosting a conference! Join 500 digital marketers for a 2-day gathering in Singapore.

We have 20 top speakers from around the world, expert-led workshops on everything from technical SEO to content strategy, and tons of opportunities to rub shoulders with content pros, big brands, and the entire Ahrefs crew.

I visited Singapore for the first time last year and it is really worth the trip—I recommend visiting the Supertree Grove, eating at the hawker markets in Chinatown, and hitting the beach at Sentosa.

If you need persuading, here’s SEO pro JH Scherck on the Ahrefs podcast making the case for conference travel:

And to top things off, here’s a quick walkthrough of the conference venue:

Dates: Oct 27–30
Location: Portland, OR
Speakers: Relly Annett-Baker, Fawn Damitio, Scott Abel, Jennifer Lee
Prices: from $1,850
Website: https://lavacon.org/

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LavaCon is a content conference with a very technical focus, with over 70 sessions dedicated to helping companies solve “content-related business problems, increase revenue, and decrease production costs”.

In practice, that means speakers from NIKE, Google, Meta, Cisco, and Verizon, and topics like:

  • Operationalizing Generative AI,
  • Taxonomies in the Age of AI: Are they still Relevant?, and
  • Out of Many, One: Building a Semantic Layer to Tear Down Silos

Here’s the recap video for last year’s conference:

Dates: Nov 8
Location: London
Speakers: Nick Parker, Tasmin Lofthouse, Dan Nelken, Taja Myer
Prices: from £454.80
Website: https://www.copywritingconference.com/

CopyCon is a single-day conference in London, hosted by ProCopywriters (a membership community for copywriters—I was a member once, many years ago).

Intended for copywriters, creatives, and content strategists, the agenda focuses heavily on the qualitative aspects of content that often go overlooked—creative processes, tone of voice, and creating emotional connections through copy.

It’s a few years old, but this teaser video shares a sense of the topics on offer:

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This year’s talks include sessions like:

  • The Mind-Blowing Magic of Tone of Voice,
  • The Power of AI Tools as a Content Designer, and the beautifully titled
  • Your Inner Critic is a Ding-Dong.

(Because yes, your inner critic really is a ding-dong.)

Final thoughts

These are all content-specific conferences, but there are a ton of content-adjacent events happening throughout the year. Honourable mentions go to DigiMarCon UK 2024 (Aug 29–30, London, UK), Web Summit (Nov 11–14, Lisbon, Portugal), and B2B Forum (Nov 12–14, Boston, MA).

I’ve focused this list solely on in-person events, but there are also online-only conferences available, like ContentTECH Summit (May 15–16).

Heading to a content conference that I haven’t covered? Share your recommendation with me on LinkedIn or X.



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