SEO Specialist (Full--time / Contract)

This position is virtual and open to residents of the 50 states and D.C. Compensation & Benefits:Stride, Inc. considers a person's education, experience, and qualifications, as well as the position's work location, expected quality and quantity of work, required travel (if any), external market and internal value when determining a new employee's salary level. This is an SEO-first role with content marketing responsibilities, focused on execution: on-page optimization, content refreshes, and data-backed briefs for priority pages.

Job Description

This is a full-time contract position. Ability to work independently, typically 40 hours per week, is required.

SUMMARY: As an SEO Specialist contractor, you will support organic search performance across multiple K12-powered schools' digital marketing efforts. This is an SEO-first role with content marketing responsibilities, focused on execution: on-page optimization, content refreshes, and data-backed briefs for priority pages. Your work will ensure that prospective families can easily find and evaluate school options through organic and AI-driven search.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS: Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential duties.

• Conducts keyword research and search intent analysis for assigned pages and topics.
• Performs on-page optimization including title tags, meta descriptions, headers, body content, and internal linking.
• Executes content refreshes on priority pages based on ranking and traffic data.
• Applies local SEO best practices to individual school location pages and geographic targeting.
• Flags technical issues such as indexation, canonicals, and crawl errors for the internal team to resolve.
• Builds data-backed content briefs with target keywords, intent, and structure.
• Reviews and optimizes content from writers before publication.
• Follows established SEO guidelines and templates across the subdomain network.
• Provides monthly performance updates on optimized and refreshed pages including rankings, traffic, and engagement.
• Ensures thorough, timely, and accurate communications.
• Executes tasks by utilizing various SEO technologies and platforms specific to the business.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES: This position has no formal supervisory responsibilities.

CERTIFICATES AND LICENSES: None required.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Three (3) or more years of hands-on SEO experience, in-house or agency, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Strong keyword research and search intent mapping skills.
• Proficiency with SEO tools such as SEMrush or Ahrefs, Google Search Console, and Google Analytics.
• Proven ranking and traffic improvements supported by specific examples.
• Working knowledge of on-page technical elements including indexation, canonicals, internal linking, and structured data.
• Strong written communication skills with the ability to create SEO-optimized content.
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills with attention to detail.
• Ability to work independently and within a team-oriented environment.
• Highly organized, detail-oriented, and able to meet deadlines consistently.
• High level of quality and accountability for work products.
• Unquestionable personal code of ethics, integrity, diversity, and trust.
• Ability to clear a required background check.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Experience with education, EdTech, or multi-location organizations. Experience with enterprise SEO tools such as BrightEdge.
• Familiarity with AI search visibility.
• Experience with enterprise content management systems.
• Experience with schema markup and structured data implementation.

WORK ENVIRONMENT: The work environment characteristics described here are representative of those a contractor encounters while performing the essential functions of this role. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• This position is virtual and open to residents of the 50 states and D.C.

Compensation & Benefits:Stride, Inc. considers a person's education, experience, and qualifications, as well as the position's work location, expected quality and quantity of work, required travel (if any), external market and internal value when determining a new employee's salary level. Salaries will differ based on these factors, the position's level and expected contribution, and the employee's benefits elections. Offers will typically be in the bottom half of the range.

• We anticipate this position will pay per $16.82 - $25.62 per hour. This is a temporary/contractor role, and you will be an employee of Workspend. This salary is not guaranteed, as an individual's compensation can vary based on several factors. These factors include, but are not limited to, geographic location, experience, training, education, and local market conditions. Randstad offers a robust benefits package for eligible employees that can include health benefits, retirement contributions, and p