Dubbed the “pioneer of SEO copywriting” by Forbes, I’ve spent my career helping digital writers blend traditional copywriting skills with cutting-edge SEO technology.
Some of the original SEOs, including Jill Whalen and Chris Sherman.
My career started in the late 1990s, at the dawn of search engine optimization (SEO). Back then, there was a handful of smart men and women working in the industry and setting best practices. We travelled all over the world, teaching people how to integrate SEO (and SEO copywriting) into their marketing mix.
Me, meeting Sergey Brin at an early Google Dance. Yes, I was blonde back then.
Throughout my wild and wonderful career, I’ve worked with a wide range of clients, helping them craft authoritative and engaging content that drives traffic and revenue. Past clients include search engines, AAA, Mainline Information Systems, College of DuPage, CruiseCritic, AWAI, NBC, Fortune 50 companies, and many other B2B and B2C companies.
Photo after an AAA Washington meeting.
I’ve been blessed to have presented at hundreds of conferences worldwide, including Direct Marketing Association events (where I served as past chair of the DMA’s Search Marketing Council), Pubcon, SMX Advanced, MarketingProfs, the Darden School of Business, and even a dive bar in Portland, OR. I still love training companies and speaking at events, and I consider being in front of people my happy place.
Speaking at an AWAI event.
What a long, strange trip it’s been.
My SEO Copywriting Certification training (now the Writers + Robots community) served hundreds of writers and in-house marketers, including folks from Papyrus, Dow Jones, Marriott, NBCi — even the Royal Canadian Air Force.
Training digital writers is my passion, and I’ve presented at hundreds of conferences, as well as developed white-label SEO content training programs. I’m even an instructor for LinkedIn Learning.
Me at the LinkedIn Learning campus recording my B2B Content Marketing: SEO Content Writing course.
Today, in today’s new AI-everything world, my focus has shifted to utilizing AI as a strategic tool for enhanced content creation, ideation, and data gathering.
For businesses, this can mean:
Creating a custom GPT to write social posts faster, while still maintaining a company’s brand voice.
Working with companies for a few hours a month to create a strategy, train team members, and evaluate returns.
Teaching in-house writers how to write content that converts, positions, and is cited in AI results.
Helping groups learn ethical ways to use ChatGPT for research, writing, and brainstorming.
I love helping companies find how AI can save them time and help them write copy that positions — without turning their content into robotic mush. If you love a high-energy speaker who loves helping her audience have multiple “light bulb” moments, contact me.
In my spare time, I volunteer for parkrun, an international non-profit that runs free 5K events every Saturday.
Me at Mary S. Young parkrun.
You’ll also find me at local events, including women’s networking events.
Presenting at West Linn Ignite wearing the first Google Dance t-shirt.
Are you wondering how I can help your business? Is your company AI writing-curious and wants to implement things the right way? Let’s chat — contact me.
“Heather is simply a stellar consultant. Her insights across a number of different SEO and content marketing areas have been invaluable. I highly and without reservation recommend Heather to anyone looking for SEO or content marketing help.”
