Senior SEO Specialist

About Everspring

Everspring is a leading provider of AI-enabled education solutions. Our advanced technology, proven marketing approach, research-based instructional design services, and advanced AI-enabled services deliver outstanding outcomes for our university partners, powering success across higher education in the United States. We offer a range of full-service turnkey solutions, standalone single service offerings, and innovative self-service products that enable universities to establish and maintain themselves as leaders in the digital delivery of education. Based in Chicago, Everspring serves a growing number of colleges and universities. Built In Chicago has named us one of the "Best Places to Work" in 2021, 2022, 2023, and 2025. We were also certified as a Great Place To Work® in 2022, 2023, 2024, and 2025.

About the role

We are seeking a Senior SEO Specialist to own organic search strategy and client delivery across Everspring-managed microsites and partner-owned institutional websites. This role leads technical SEO, content optimization, site architecture, authority-building, and AI search visibility initiatives that improve discovery, citation, traffic, conversion, and enrollment outcomes. As an experienced individual contributor, this person serves as the primary day-to-day SEO and AI search contact for assigned clients. The role reports to the Director, Media Management and is located in Chicago, offering a hybrid work environment with a minimum of 3 days required in the office every week and additional days as business needs arise.

Responsibilities

• Develop and own integrated SEO and AI search strategies for assigned clients, aligning technical, content, authority, and measurement priorities with enrollment and business goals.
• Serve as the primary day-to-day SEO and AI search contact for assigned accounts, leading client meetings, presenting recommendations and performance, and managing expectations, timelines, and follow-through.
• Lead technical SEO audits, site migrations, redesigns, and launches, including prioritization and QA across crawlability, indexation, rendering, structured data, site architecture, Core Web Vitals, and page speed.
• Lead research that includes keyword, audience, competitive, and search-intent, content gap, behavioral, and emerging trend analyses. Identify and prioritize opportunities across traditional search, AI-generated answers, and emerging discovery experiences.
• Assess brand visibility, citations, mentions, and competitive presence across AI search platforms; translate findings into strategies that make institutional and program information easier to retrieve, understand, and cite.
• Create and review page-level recommendations, content plans, and briefs that improve relevance, information gain, internal linking, conversion pathways, and alignment with user intent.
• Partner with web, CMS, Creative, Analytics, MarTech, Partner Marketing, and Client Engagement teams to translate recommendations into clear requirements, resolve blockers, and verify implementation.
• Analyze organic and AI search performance using analytics, search, crawling, and visibility tools; connect leading indicators to traffic, lead quality, conversion, and enrollment outcomes.
• Support conversion optimization, crosslinking, digital PR, backlink development, and local search initiatives where they are relevant to client goals and program strategy.
• Support new-business efforts through audits, opportunity assessments, scopes, pitch materials, and participation in prospect conversations.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Communications, Business, Information Science, or a related field.
• At least three years of hands-on SEO experience, including ownership of technical, on-page, content, and measurement initiatives.
• Demonstrated experience evaluating or improving brand visibility in AI search, including understanding how AI platforms retrieve, synthesize, and cite web content.
• Strong technical and content SEO foundation, including crawl and indexation management, structured data, site architecture, migrations, keyword and intent research, and actionable briefs.
• Proven ability to manage client relationships and delivery, lead meetings, present complex findings clearly, and turn recommendations into coordinated action.
• Experience with Google Analytics 4, Google Search Console, Ahrefs or Semrush, crawling tools, and AI search visibility or citation-tracking platforms.
• Strong analytical and project-management skills, including the ability to connect search performance to meaningful business outcomes while managing multiple clients and deadlines.
• Experience working with content management systems and collaborating with developers, designers, content teams, and other implementation partners.

Preferred experience: higher education, lead generation, an agency or consulting environment, or with platforms such as Siteimprove.

Pay

The base salary hiring range for this position is $72,000–$82,000.

Benefits

• Hybrid work arrangement
• Paid parental leave
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• FSA and HSA options
• Employer-paid short-term and optional long-term disability
• 401k with an employer match vested immediately
• Generous PTO plan that accrues with tenure
• Professional development opportunities
• Tuition reimbursement program
• Discounted onsite gym
• Optional pet insurance

Schedule

Hybrid work environment with a minimum of 3 days required in the office every week and additional days as business needs arise.