How To Build an SEO Team: A Quick Guide

Many digital marketing professionals consider search engine optimization (SEO) an essential component of a successful content marketing strategy. While SEO initiatives can dramatically improve website visibility, they aren’t always easy to pull off alone.

A high-quality SEO campaign requires everything from backlink and keyword research to an in-depth knowledge of the latest SEO trends and search algorithm updates. If you’re feeling overwhelmed by the thought of your next campaign, hiring an SEO team may be the right move for you.

This guide will introduce you to several common SEO team members and explain the roles of each. We’ll also explore different approaches to hiring SEO professionals to help you find the right option for your needs.

Common SEO team roles

SEO teams come in a wide range of shapes and sizes. A small company may have a single person doing a variety of roles, but large corporations often have entire departments dedicated to SEO.

But if you’re looking to improve your SEO metrics—to increase your blog’s visibility or attract the right customers to the top of your sales funnel, for example—you won’t need to hire enough SEO experts to fill a boardroom. The breakdowns below are intended to give you a better idea of what different SEO team members have to offer and their specializations.

SEO manager

Think of an SEO manager as your campaign’s architect. They’ll create and outline the vision for your campaign’s strategy and oversee its execution every step of the way. This senior team member should have both advanced strategic and technical SEO skills and also exceptional project management capabilities.

In overseeing SEO efforts, an SEO manager often does a bit of everything. Some of their duties might include:

• Collaborating with clients or internal departments on campaign strategy
• Creating a content road map or project brief
• Reporting on the results of site audits and website traffic data
• Creating content optimization strategies for new and existing content
• Researching competitors, keyword rankings, and backlinks
• Communicating with other internal teams or stakeholders
• Delegating tasks to other team members and overseeing their fulfillment

Finding the right SEO manager for your marketing team can have a substantial impact on your campaign’s success. Look for candidates who are well-versed in every aspect of SEO as well as any research or analytical tools you intend to use.

You don’t need to hire someone full-time to get this expertise—many businesses start with freelance SEO managers on a project or monthly retainer basis.

SEO specialist

SEO specialists are foundational to a successful SEO team’s efforts to draw in more organic traffic. These SEO experts have a range of different skill sets, and their exact roles may vary depending on the project or client.

Some primarily develop marketing strategies, create high-quality content, and conduct internal and external outreach initiatives. Others also offer valuable on-page and off-page content optimization services. Here are some examples of services commonly offered by technical SEO specialists:

• Using SEO programs to conduct keyword research
• Creating high-quality content designed to increase organic traffic
• Optimizing content through keyword usage, backlinks, and internal links
• Executing on-page SEO strategies such as targeted page titles, meta titles, meta descriptions, headers, and URLs
• Enhancing website crawlability with HTML tags, alt text, and canonical tags
• Increasing user engagement through social media management, updates, or content creation
• Conducting SEM (search engine marketing) or PPC (pay-per-click) advertising campaigns
• Acting as an SEO analyst by tracking metrics and KPIs (key performance indicators)

If you want to increase your content’s SERP (search engine results page) rankings, an SEO specialist can explain how to do it. These talented professionals are competent in a range of SEO tools and strategies that give your website its best chance at success.

Freelance SEO specialists can fill specific gaps, whether you need help with link building, local SEO, or one-off audits.

SEO content writers and editors

Even the most successful SEO team will struggle to leverage a piece of subpar content. Google’s algorithm takes dozens of different ranking factors into account. But the search engine’s most important SERP ranking factors are designed to reward high-quality content.

That’s where SEO writers and editors come in. These professionals work together as content-producing dream teams to develop, create, and polish exceptional content. Their job is to convince a viewer to click your link and to convert them into paying customers, follow your call to action, or turn them into repeating viewers.

SEO content writers and editors commonly offer services such as:

• Determining the right voice and style for a specific target audience
• Collaborating on content strategy or campaign ideas
• Performing keyword research to optimize content
• Creating blogs, articles, website copy, social media posts, or other digital content
• Reviewing and refining writing from varied sources, including AI-generated content
• Crafting people-first content that attracts and engages audiences
• Understanding the difference between keyword usage and keyword stuffing
• Incorporating off-page SEO tactics, such as backlinks to high authority sources
• Executing internal and external linking strategies
• Understanding how impactful copy can increase conversion rates

The best SEO content creators can integrate keywords so naturally that readers never even notice them. Highly skilled writers and editors can help make the jobs of the rest of your team a lot easier.

Freelancers give you flexibility to scale content creation based on your publishing goals, without the long-term commitment of a full content team.

Technical SEO

Technical SEO experts are the professionals who build websites and keep them running at their best. However, their role in website optimization goes far beyond providing a channel for content delivery. SEO web developers also handle technical SEO factors that can have a large impact on a site’s SERP positioning.

Factors like site speed, security, and accessibility can all make a website more attractive to visitors and search engines alike. A web developer can help with technical SEO tasks such as:

• Implementing SSL (secure sockets layer) and other essential security measures
• Improving site speed
• Troubleshooting issues that could affect user experience
• Implementing the proper redirects and server response codes
• Enhancing crawlability with an XML (extensible markup language) sitemap and efficient site architecture
• Ensuring that a site is mobile-friendly
• Fixing issues such as duplicate content or broken links
• Monitoring the quality of external backlinks
• Helping plan and implement content cluster strategies

Part of what makes web developers such vital team members is that they can often spot overlooked website issues. The right SEO developer can be a valuable asset when it comes to ensuring that your site offers the best possible experience.

Freelance web developers with SEO experience can be brought in to fix specific site issues or improve performance during high-priority projects.

How SEO strategists, managers, and specialists differ

While SEO roles often overlap, each one brings a different focus. A strategist defines the big-picture roadmap—audits, business goals, and keyword frameworks. The SEO manager ensures that the roadmap gets executed, overseeing the workflow, timelines, and team alignment.

 SEO specialists handle the hands-on implementation, whether it's optimizing content, running audits, or building backlinks. Content writers are there to ensure the messaging ties in with the goals of the brand.

Assemble the right skill sets

Hiring a full SEO team may be the right choice for an organization, but is an approach that may not make sense for everyone. If you’re a small business owner, or the head of a department in a larger organization, you may want to focus less on titles and more on assembling a team with the skills you need for your project.

You might be able to find professionals who can fulfill multiple roles. For instance, you might find a copywriter who is also a skilled SEO strategist or an SEO editor who also offers web development services. Here’s an overview of the skill sets needed for different stages of a project.

• SEO strategy. If you’re just getting started, an SEO strategist is likely a good first step. They’ll do a site audit to determine your needs, which can help you understand what to look for in an SEO manager and other team members.
• Keyword research. Keyword research is a foundational SEO skill. If you’re looking for help boosting existing content, you may be able to start with a skilled SEO writer or editor.
• Link building. SEO strategists and web developers can help with link building and creating outreach strategies for generating high-quality backlinks.‍
• Content creation. Many SEO editors, strategists, and managers started out as writers and may offer writing skills in addition to their technical skills..‍
• Technical SEO. SEO managers are often proficient in several aspects of technical SEO. But if performance optimization is your main concern, then a solid web developer may be your best bet. ‍
• Analytics. Analytics tools like Google Analytics and Semrush can track metrics that lead to valuable insights. An SEO manager or specialist should be well-versed in tracking KPIs; you may also find editors or writers who offer these services.

How to structure an SEO team for scale

A scalable SEO team doesn’t need to be built all at once. Instead of hiring a full department, many businesses build gradually, adding the right people as campaigns grow. This approach gives you more flexibility and budget control.

Here’s a sample progression:

• Start with strategy. Begin with a freelance SEO strategist to audit your site, define goals, and outline your roadmap. This sets the foundation for all future work.
• Add writers and editors. Once you have clear targets and keywords, bring in SEO-savvy content creators to start publishing optimized content.
• Introduce technical support. When organic traffic grows or site issues emerge, tap a freelance web developer or technical SEO pro to improve crawlability, speed, or site architecture.
• Scale with specialists. As your traffic grows, consider adding link builders, outreach pros, and SEO analysts to manage reporting and growth.

This step-by-step structure helps businesses prioritize outcomes over headcount, making it easier to scale up or down depending on campaign needs.

Consider hiring options

You can pursue several different approaches to hiring an SEO team, each of which comes with its own unique set of considerations. Let’s look at each to give you a better idea of which is right for you.

In-house SEO teams

A popular choice for medium to large organizations, in-house SEO teams work full time for a single employer. This approach offers a reliable and convenient solution for organizations with consistent, high-volume digital marketing needs.

In-house operations also allow team members to become experts in the company’s branding, which can help with long-term consistency. The drawbacks are that not everyone has the budget or need to employ a staff of full-time SEO experts, and content can become formulaic when the same people create content 40 hours a week for the same company.

You can structure an in-house SEO team in a variety of ways. Some of the most common SEO team structures include:

• Centralized. A centralized team is run by a single point of authority, such as a team leader or a specific team within an organization. This can help increase efficiency and consistency.
• Decentralized. In a decentralized team, decision-making authority is spread out over multiple SEO strategists, teams, or departments. While achieving consistency may be harder, decentralization may work for companies that want to enable teams in different areas to focus on localization.‍
• Hybrid. A hybrid setup usually involves splitting SEO efforts between an in-house team and a third party, such as a marketing agency. Hybrid teams can contribute to effective scaling but hinge on strong communication between the two content teams.

SEO agencies

If you need to assemble a broad team of SEO experts who can handle complex strategies, an SEO agency is worth considering. Hiring an agency may also be your best bet if you’re looking to achieve all the benefits SEO has to offer without requiring a hands-on approach.

A good SEO agency has a team of experts who can handle everything: the initial strategy stage, building pages with on-page SEO to technical SEO, and tracking KPIs. They’ll work with you to determine your needs and develop a strategy designed to achieve your goals.

One of the major drawbacks of hiring an SEO agency is that the work can get very expensive very quickly. According to an Ahrefs survey, many agencies charge monthly retainers ranging from $500 to $1,500 and hourly rates that range from $75 to $100 per hour. In general, you should be prepared to pay several thousand dollars for a single project.

SEO freelancers

SEO freelancers can be great options for individuals, small businesses, or anyone with flexible SEO needs. SEO freelancers are independent professionals who offer the same services as in-house or agency SEO experts, often at a fraction of the cost.

While assembling your own freelance SEO team may require some work upfront, it’s a very flexible option that offers a high level of creative control. You’ll be able to choose which experts you need for each stage of your project, no matter how large or small it may be.

If you’re ready to outsource completely, you can even hire a fully remote team. Freelancers offer a cost-effective solution to scaling existing in-house or agency teams on a flexible basis.

Enable your team

If you decide to hire an in-house team or assemble a team of freelancers, set them up for success. In the following sections, we’ll break down several considerations to keep in mind and how they apply to each type of SEO team.

Supply essential tools

From keyword research tools and analytics platforms to technical SEO software, a range of tools is required to achieve SEO success. If you plan to hire an in-house SEO team, you’ll be responsible for providing everything your employees need. Before investing in software and platform subscriptions, familiarize yourself with various SEO tools and options such as:

• Google Search Console. The essential SEO tool for monitoring your site’s search performance and understanding how Google views your site.
• Google Analytics. A comprehensive web analytics service that tracks and reports website traffic, offering insights into user engagement and behavior patterns.
• Ahrefs. A powerful SEO toolset that specializes in link analysis, keyword research, competitor analysis, and site audits to improve website visibility and ranking.
• Semrush. An all-in-one marketing toolkit for digital marketing professionals, featuring capabilities in SEO, PPC, content, social media, and competitive research.
• Moz. An SEO software suite that provides tools for keyword research, link building, site audits, and page optimization to help increase website traffic and rankings.

While some freelancers supply their own software, this isn’t always the case; discuss options with potential candidates. You may want to consider subscribing to certain tools so you won’t be forced to rely on a freelancer for access on a long-term basis.

Foster a culture of SEO success

While you personally don’t need to become an SEO expert, learning the basics of SEO fundamentals will allow you to better communicate with your team. Online learning platforms like Coursera and Udemy offer a solid collection of SEO courses for all levels. HubSpot even offers a certification course you can take for free.

Stay on top of the latest SEO trends through industry sites like Search Engine Journal and encourage your team members to share new ideas. Welcoming open communication and collaboration with your team will help form long-lasting working relationships.

Measure and adapt strategies

Last but not least, make sure at least one person on your team understands how to set achievable SEO goals and track them with relevant KPIs. This job generally falls to an SEO manager or strategist, who can help you set goals that align with your objectives.

Tracking these metrics consistently is a great way to measure your team’s success and highlight any areas that need improvement. If you’re interested in learning more about tools like Google Analytics, check out the free courses available through Google Analytics Academy.

Build your SEO team with Upwork

If you’re interested in hiring freelancers for your SEO dream team or to supplement your current in-house team, find the experts you need on Upwork, the world’s human and AI-powered work marketplace.

Top SEO professionals, with the skills needed to help you achieve your goals, use Upwork to find their best clients. Sign up for a free client account today to hire SEO experts and bring your project to life.

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Upwork is not affiliated with and does not sponsor or endorse any of the tools or services discussed in this article. These tools and services are provided only as potential options, and each reader and company should take the time needed to adequately analyze and determine the tools or services that would best fit their specific needs and situation.