Journey to SEO.

First of all, hello! People often ask how I got into SEO, so I wanted to share a bit about how I went from work experience to what I am doing now – working with top clients and the lovely people at Fountain.

I graduated from the University of East Anglia with a degree in Society, Culture and Media with very little idea of what my next chapter would be.

I had always had an interest in marketing (how we create desires and needs for things where sometimes we don’t even need or desire it until it’s marketed to us), but I wasn’t entirely sure if it was something I wanted to pursue.

I was lucky enough that my father knew the Managing Director of Fountain Partnership, Alice Rose, and she was happy to meet me for a chat to gain more of an understanding of what digital marketing is and what Fountain does. I was immediately intrigued by their data-driven approach – it made marketing seem more scientific and mathematical than I had previously assumed; making decisions based on data and facts.

After my chat with Alice, I went away and completed Google Skillshop courses in Universal Analytics and Google Ads and reached out again for some work experience.

In my work experience, I had the opportunity to learn about all three services (Paid, SEO and CRO) in more detail by completing tasks and sitting in on meetings to get a taster for the kind of work I could expect in a digital marketing agency. My work experience only lasted a few weeks, but it was an extremely valuable time and allowed me to narrow down what part of digital marketing I was most interested in – SEO.

Not long after finishing my work experience, the pandemic hit. I spent time on my own accord trying to learn aspects of SEO but struggled to put learnings into practice without a job. I knew I wanted to get into an agency, so tried applying for various digital marketing training positions with no success. I had thoroughly enjoyed my work experience, so I contacted Fountain and was fortunate enough to be offered the position of Digital Marketing Executive in the SEO team.

I joined a team of exceptional SEO-ers who are highly supportive and encouraging colleagues. I very quickly realised just how little I knew about SEO, but very much welcomed the challenge of getting to grips with the basics and slowly delving into the world of SEO.

Digital marketing is an industry which is ever growing and changing. So, even though I can look back and see how much I’ve gained from my time at Fountain, I know there will always be far more to constantly learn and develop in my specialism.

I cannot thank the team at Fountain enough for being a company that continually nurtures and inspires their employees to strive for the best for both themselves and their clients. The SEO team has grown from a team of 3 to a team of 8 in the space of under 2 years and I have been honoured to work alongside an incredibly talented and growing team of individuals.

And if you’re reading this and think the world of SEO could be for you, my three top tips would be:

• Don’t be afraid if you’re not sure what you want to do when you leave school, college or university – so many people don’t, but talking to people who do a range of different things really helped me.
• Make yourself stand out. Show you’re committed by doing things off your own back and learning and developing in your own time.
• Be brave! It’s scary to ask for help and apply for jobs, but if you don’t ask, you don’t get. People have been really happy to help in my career so far, and one day, I hope I will get to help someone else and return the favour.