Welcome to a new Weekly Interviews edition where we'll interview brilliant women in our industry and share their stories with the world! Anyone is welcome to share their story by simply filling this form, we encourage women from all walks of life in our industry to do so.
Introducing Carla Thomas, Content Strategy Consultant at Builtvisible. Carla is a Content Strategy Consultant specialising in on-page optimisation, link building and digital PR. She currently works at a London-based digital agency where her portfolio includes top insurance firms to household leisure brands. We asked her everything from how she first got into SEO to what empowers her to be the brilliant woman she is 💪🏽
Having enjoyed studying PR and advertising at university, I knew I wanted to pursue a creative career. My professional journey started at a job board where I specialised in client management, email and events marketing for a year. Following this, I applied for an entry level SEO role at a performance agency and progressed from there.
I enjoy all things on-page optimisation, in particular, producing SEO optimised editorial strategies as it allows for the perfect mix of creativity and technical.
I can't imagine doing my job without SEMRush! It is probably one of the few tools I've used across digital PR, link building, content strategy and SEO. The Keyword Magic Tool and Keyword Gap features are my go-to's.
I've had many as the SEO industry is one that moves and changes quite quickly right in front of you. I think my top AHA moment came pretty early on in my career, when I learned that SEO is most effective when taking UX into consideration. Optimising your site for both Google and people is highly beneficial from a SERP performance and conversion standpoint. It's often a tricky balancing act with a good amount of trial and error, but there's a great feeling of accomplishment when you strike it!
I've done some voluntary SEO workshops and training for social enterprises and charities which felt great to be a part of and share my knowledge. This is something I'm focused on continuing.
I've also worked on a content marketing campaign that received an award at the UK Search Awards. Having work recognised as outstanding was really motivational.
SEO is an interesting and fun industry to work in so go for it! I've always had great experiences and have learned so much and this shows no rate of slowing down.
Being a woman should in no way deter you from aiming high; there is more than enough space for us!
I knew I wanted to working in the digital PR, marketing and advertising space from when I was about 14 years old. Whilst I was in year 10, I completed a two week work experience placement at Toni&Guy in their digital and PR department shadowing Carolyn Whitehorne. It was super insightful and she made it really interesting for me. I even returned a year or two later as I enjoyed it so much! She has been pivotal in my professional journey and I'm not sure if I would have placed myself in this industry if it wasn't for her.
Staying positive and always having a willingness to learn whilst understanding I won't always get it right.
I've always worked with amazing teams of people in which we are all supportive of each other. I think the right environment is essential for growth.
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Thanks Carla for a truly insightful interview, you can connect with her on LinkedIn.
To view more interviews with brilliant women, check out our Interviews page. If you've enjoyed reading this interview, then we'd love for YOU to share your story with the world! Simply fill this form here, we welcome brilliant SEOs from all walks of life! 🙌🏽