Sr. SEO Specialist

Important Notice for Applicants:At Bixal, we want to ensure a transparent and secure application process for all candidates. Official communication will come from an email address ending in @bixal.com or from @bixal.na.teamtailor-mail.com. Messages from other sources may be fraudulent, and you should exercise care to avoid any links or attachments included.Bixal will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Need Assistance or a Reasonable Accommodation?If you need assistance or a reasonable accommodation to complete your application, we're here to help. Please reach out to us at View email address on click.appcast.io and let us know how we can support you. You do not need to share personal details or disclose the nature of your request. You can expect a response from a team member within 24 hours during the regular work week and on the next operating day during the weekend or holidays.Why Bixal?Bixal is a consulting company headquartered in Fairfax, VA, working alongside governments and organizations to help them deliver better services and experiences to the communities they serve. Using evidence-based knowledge and technology, Bixal empowers clients to deliver on their missions more effectively by fostering a culture of learning and continuous improvement.Our values:People-First: Emphasizing the importance of people in all aspects of work.Collaboration and Transparency: Valuing teamwork and open communication.Growth Mindset: Encouraging innovation and continuous improvement.Creating Lasting Impact: Focusing on meaningful outcomes and positive change.About the role:Bixal is seeking a Senior SEO Specialist for a project that supports a large-scale outreach and engagement effort, delivering strategic communications, content and creative services, digital strategy, and audience engagement across public-facing websites, applications, and social media platforms. The work is paired with the IT, cybersecurity, and data operations needed to keep that digital presence secure, reliable, and available around the clock. The program's mission is to ensure the intended audience receives timely, accurate, and accessible information about the programs, services, and policies that affect them — with content and platforms built to scale, adapt to changing needs, and hold up to federal compliance and security standards.The Senior SEO Specialist owns the program's search engine optimization strategy and execution, driving organic visibility and search performance across all public-facing websites and applications. This is a senior, largely autonomous role responsible for setting SEO benchmarks, running technical and content-based optimization programs, and advising Government stakeholders and content, communications, and social media teams on how to maximize discoverability — from traditional keyword and technical SEO through emerging areas like schema markup and voice search.This is a full-time position contingent on contract award by our client, with a defined performance period of one year with two one-year option periods. This role offers you a unique opportunity to make a meaningful impact on a project that aligns with Bixal’s mission of delivering innovative, human-centered solutions. While the role has a fixed duration, we are committed to transparency and collaboration, keeping you informed about contract updates and new opportunities. At Bixal, we support your professional journey, ensuring your experience reflects our inclusive, purpose-driven culture and prepares you for future success.LocationThis role can work remotely from anywhere in the USA. You must be legally authorized to work in the US.  Bixal does not provide visa sponsorship. Compensation:The salary range for this role is $100,000 – $110,000. In the spirit of transparency, most offers tend to land near the midpoint of the range. We make compensation decisions thoughtfully, considering your experience, the skills you bring, and our commitment to internal equity. Fairness and transparency are core to how we operate.Responsibilities:Own the end-to-end SEO program, conducting regular performance analyses benchmarked against Federal, DoD, and industry best practices, and delivering actionable recommendations to leadership.Establish SEO baseline metrics and KPIs and report progress against targets on an ongoing basis.Analyze search engine visibility, user behavior, conversion rates, and technical SEO health (e.g., page load speed, crawl/site errors), driving continuous optimization based on findings.Conduct regular SEO validation checks (e.g., broken links, errors, and other site performance issues), coordinating remediation with technical stakeholders.Lead keyword research focused on user intent and long-tail search behavior; design and implement internal linking, schema markup, and site-speed optimizations to improve organic rankings and click-through rates.Develop and execute link-building and content-promotion strategies (e.g., press releases, content syndication, partnerships) to build domain authority; extend SEO strategy to voice search and event-specific landing pages.Incorporate audience research and communications planning insights into keyword targeting and content-priority decisions.Contribute SEO-specific test scenarios and success metrics to usability testing efforts, translating findings into optimization recommendations.Advise across content strategy and lifecycle management on how SEO considerations should be embedded in planning and governance.Advise content and editorial teams during content development on SEO best practices, ensuring new and updated content is optimized for search at the point of creation.Provide SEO and keyword input to paid and earned media planning to ensure messaging and campaigns are optimized for reach and relevance.Ensure social media and community-facing content is optimized for searchability and discoverability across digital engagement channels.Provide keyword and search-trend guidance to social media content planning, informing editorial calendars and content themes to maximize organic reach.Deliver staff training and workshops on SEO best practices to build organizational SEO literacy.Provide regular SEO reporting and present findings/recommendations to Government stakeholders.Other relevant duties as qualified/trained to performQualifications:This position requires an active Secret Clearance.BA/BS in Marketing, Digital Communications, Data Analytics, or a related field.Minimum 10 years of hands-on SEO experience, including technical SEO, on-page optimization, and content-driven SEO strategy for large, high-traffic websites.Demonstrated experience with SEO/analytics tooling (e.g., Google Search Console, Google Analytics, SEMrush, Ahrefs, Screaming Frog, or equivalent).Proven experience setting and tracking SEO KPIs and delivering data-driven performance reporting to non-technical stakeholders.Working knowledge of schema markup/structured data, site speed optimization, and technical SEO diagnostics.Experience developing keyword strategy grounded in user intent and long-tail search research.Nice to Have Skills and Experience:Experience supporting SEO for a DoD, federal, or other large government-facing digital presence.Experience with voice-search optimization and FAQ/structured content strategy.Relevant certifications (e.g., Google Analytics, HubSpot SEO, SEMrush certifications).Experience mentoring junior SEO or content staff.How We Support Our Team:Flex hours401K with matching incentiveParental LeaveMedical/dental/vision benefitsFlex Spending AccountCompany provided short-term disability and life insuranceCommuter benefitsPaid Time Off (PTO)11 Paid holidaysOur company is committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all individuals and complies with all applicable federal, state, and local anti-discrimination laws. Employment decisions are based on merit, qualifications, and business needs.