SEO Team Lead

This company looks for people who show up as their whole selves, take ownership without being asked twice, and want more responsibility than their current title gives them. If that sounds like you, keep reading. They provide marketing services exclusively to independent professionals and brands in the automotive detailing, paint protection film, ceramic coating, and window tint industries. They are not a general agency. They understand this market's customers, how they search, and what turns a Google search into a booked job. They currently manage roughly 100 SEO accounts through outside white label vendors, and they are on pace to launch around 225 new client websites a year. That volume is outgrowing what a packaged vendor relationship can give them in quality control, scope flexibility, and client communication. This role exists to change that. Why This Role Exists Now SEO, and local SEO specifically, is one of the highest value services they sell and deliver for their clients. Right now, most of that work is executed through outside white label vendors. This hire changes that relationship. They need someone who can run those vendors, evaluate whether their contracts and scopes of work still make sense for the company, and start building the internal team and processes that let them bring the highest value work in house over time. They need more control over quality, scope flexibility, and client communication than a packaged white label model can provide. They need someone who can evaluate their current vendors on their merits: cost, scope, turnaround, and quality, and make a clear recommendation on each. They want an internal SEO leader who can document how the work should be done, train others to do it, and build a department that integrates tightly with web development & support. About The Role They are hiring a Director of SEO to own their SEO strategy end to end: local SEO delivery for their small business clients, their growing use of AI in search, and the relationships they currently hold with white label SEO vendors. You will start executing and advising from week one. In the first 45 to 60 days, you will audit their current white label vendor contracts and performance, and begin identifying and building out a handful of scopes of work they can bring in house, work that either mirrors or improves on what those vendors deliver today, along with the standard operating procedures that make that work repeatable. As you prove out results and judgment, this role is built to grow into leadership over an internal SEO team. You will also serve as the company’s internal SEO consultant on website development builds, working with their web team early in the build process so new sites launch search ready rather than getting audited and fixed after the fact. This is an advisory role on the web side. They are not asking you to manage web development vendors, only SEO vendors. You’ll Love This Job If... You'd rather own outcomes than tickets; you want to be the person a shop owner's rankings live or die by, and you take that seriously. You're already thinking about how AI search (AI Overviews, LLM citations, zero-click behavior) changes local SEO, and you want a place to actually test that thinking. You can look at content someone else wrote and make it meaningfully better; structurally, not just line edits, without needing to write every word yourself. You want a leadership track, not just a bigger workload. You're motivated by eventually building and running a team, not just doing more of the same work solo. You’ll Dislike This Job If... You want a fully built department, existing SOPs, and someone checking your work daily; none of that exists yet. You're building a chunk of it. You see vendor management or contract review as beneath your role. Evaluating what they are paying for and deciding what to bring in house is core to this job, not a side task. You need certainty about title and comp progression on day one and the growth path is real but earned, not guaranteed on a calendar. Core Responsibilities White Label Vendor Oversight and Evaluation Own the working relationship with the company’s current white label SEO vendors: scope, deliverables, turnaround, and quality. Evaluate vendor contracts on their merits, pricing, scope of work, service levels, and exclusivity or termination terms, and provide the company with a clear recommendation on each: keep, renegotiate, or replace. Within a 45 to 60 day span, identify a small set of scopes of work to begin bringing in house, ones that mirror or enhance what their vendors currently deliver, and start building the standard operating procedures that make those scopes repeatable without you personally in the loop on every account. Local SEO Execution Own Google Business Profile optimization, map pack ranking strategy, and on-page SEO for a portfolio of small-business (automotive detailing, PPF, tint) client accounts. Diagnose ranking issues and build a prioritized action plan per client, not a generic checklist. Track and report on local ranking movement, map pack visibility, and organic traffic using Ahrefs and other tools. AI and Answer Engine Optimization Strategy Build and evolve their point of view on how AI Overviews, LLM-based search (ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini), and zero-click behavior affect local SEO for small businesses. Translate that strategy into concrete, testable deliverables: content structure, schema/structured data, citation-worthy page formats, not just trend commentary. Track algorithm and AI search changes, and proactively adjust client strategy in advance. Content Direction & Editing Direct and edit SEO content produced by writers and contractors; briefs, structure, on-page optimization, and quality control before publication. Make sure content ties back to each client's actual ranking and conversion goals, not just word count. Tools, Reporting & Communication Use Ahrefs (required) for keyword research, competitor analysis, and rank tracking; comfort with Local Falcon or a similar local-rank tool is a plus. Report results in plain language that a shop owner can act on; no jargon, no fluff. Analyze performance trends and translate insights into actionable improvements for future campaigns. Their Core Values Before you apply, make sure these land for you. They don't just post values on a wall; they hire, fire, and celebrate based on them. Delivering a WOW experience through service Embrace and drive change Create fun and a hint of weirdness Be adventurous, creative, and open-minded Pursue growth & learning Build a positive team and family spirit Create open and honest relationships built on communication Be humble Never be afraid to ask for help Do it right, or don't do it at all. What Success Looks Like First 45 Days Completed a full audit of the company’s current white label SEO vendor contracts and performance, with a clear keep, renegotiate, or replace recommendation for each. Identified two to four scopes of work to begin bringing in house, chosen because they mirror or enhance what their vendors currently deliver, and started drafting the standard operating procedure for at least one of them. Independently managing Google Business Profile, map pack, and on page SEO for your assigned client portfolio. Embedded as SEO consultant on at least one active website development build. First 90 Days Shown measurable ranking or map pack improvement across your client portfolio. Built a documented process for content briefs and editing standards that another writer could follow. Long-Term Own SEO strategy across all client accounts. Help hire, train, and lead additional SEO team members as the department grows. Help them settle the right long term mix of internal and vendor delivered work, informed by what the first internalized scopes of work actually prove out. Requirements 6+ years of hands-on SEO experience with demonstrable results improving local/SMB rankings (map pack position, GBP visibility, organic traffic); bring examples, not just a resume line. Working knowledge of Ahrefs and or Comparable Tool: keyword research, rank tracking, competitor, and gap analysis. Competence across the range of what modern SEO now covers: traditional technical and on page SEO, local map grid tracking, AI driven SEO, and answer engine optimization. You do not need to be a master of every one of these. You do need to know enough in each to direct the work, judge whether it is good, and recognize when you should bring in outside expertise or hire someone who covers a gap you do not. Experience editing or directing content written by someone else, with a clear point of view on what actually makes SEO content rank and convert. A genuine, current interest in AI-driven search, not just awareness that it exists. Comfortable working independently in a remote, contract-to-hire structure with limited existing infrastructure. Proven ability to translate high-level SEO strategy into measurable business results. Excellent communication skills, with the ability to explain the impact of SEO to non-technical stakeholders and clients. Nice to Have Management or team-lead experience, though we're weighing trajectory and hunger to lead over a management title you've already held. Background working with local or small-business clients, ideally in a service industry. Familiarity with Local Falcon, Google Search Console, or other local-rank and search-performance tools. #J-18808-Ljbffr