MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution.
• Minimum of one year of experience in SEO strategy, search engine optimization, or digital marketing with a focus on organic search.
• Proficiency in SEO tools such as Brightedge, Google Search Console, Google Analytics, or other relevant platforms.
• Strong analytical skills with the ability to interpret data and generate actionable insights.
• Experience with on-page SEO, technical SEO, keyword research, metadata optimization, and AI-driven and GEO search trends.
• Ability to work collaboratively within a digital marketing team and across multiple stakeholders.
• Ability to write clean, effective optimized content.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor’s degree in marketing, digital media, communications, computer science, or a related field from an accredited institution.
• Minimum of two years of professional experience in SEO strategy, content optimization, and search engine ranking improvements.
• Experience working with a web content management system (CMS), such as Sitecore or WordPress, or web design or development roles.
• Familiarity with paid search strategy and how SEO aligns with SEM (search engine marketing) campaigns.
• Strong understanding of AI-driven search, voice search, and evolving trends in digital discoverability.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Lead AI research and implementation within the digital marketing team, ensuring Ball State remains at the forefront of AI-driven search trends. Research and deploy best practices for AI search engine visibility, including Google AI Overviews, Perplexity AI, voice search optimization, and AI-generated featured snippets and more.
• Serve as the University’s SEO expert within the Marketing and Communications division, driving strategies that enhance organic search visibility and improve website rankings for prospective students, faculty, staff, and community engagement.
• Manage and optimize pages using Brightedge and/or other SEO platforms or tools by conducting regular audits, analyzing performance, and developing data-driven recommendations for web content improvements.
• Conduct keyword research, competitive analysis, and search intent evaluations to guide advertising and web content creators in developing highly discoverable, user-friendly, and conversion-optimized content for Ball State University’s digital platforms.
• Implement on-page SEO best practices, including meta tags, header structures, internal linking strategies, and schema markup, ensuring pages are optimized for both search engines and AI-driven search assistants.
• Collaborate with digital strategists, content creators, web developers, and advertising and web team to ensure Ball State’s website structure, page templates, and site hierarchy align with SEO and UX best practices.
• Continuously optimize 350-plus academic program pages to ensure Ball State is maximizing search and AI visibility and reaching prospective students at critical decision-making moments.
• Monitor and analyze SEO performance metrics, generating ongoing reports for leadership and insights to inform decision-making and continuously improve search performance.
• Ensure compliance with Google algorithm updates, AI search trends, mobile optimization requirements, and accessibility standards to maintain and enhance organic search
• rankings.
• Work with paid search and digital advertising colleagues to ensure SEO strategies align with SEM campaigns, helping improve quality scores and maximize return on investment for paid search efforts.
• Manage relationships with Brightedge’s Managed Services team, overseeing their optimization efforts to ensure Ball State maximizes this service. Also, deploy AI tools within Brightedge and other SEO tools to ensure maximum value of the University’s investment in such technologies.
• Stay informed on industry trends, AI search advancements, and emerging technologies, making proactive recommendations to leadership for continuous improvements in Ball State’s SEO and AI discoverability strategy.
• Conduct training sessions and provide ongoing guidance for digital marketing team members, content contributors, and campus CMS publishers to ensure best practices in SEO, AI-driven search optimization, and digital content discoverability.
• Perform other related duties as assigned, supporting the University’s digital transformation efforts and web content strategy.

The SEO and Digital Marketing Strategist in University Marketing and Communications will strengthen Ball State University’s online presence by optimizing web content for search engines and emerging AI-driven search trends. As a key member of the digital team, this role will:

• Lead SEO (Search Engine Optimization) and GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) strategies.
• Support SEM (Search Engine Marketing) initiatives.
• Use tools like BrightEdge to audit sites, develop strategies, and implement technical and content optimizations across bsu.edu and affiliated websites