Not only does our SEO team make recommendations for search engine optimisation of the online marketplace, but it is deeply rooted in various departments of the company as well. In this article, we are going to introduce the SEO team to you as well as tell you what makes their work for Kaufland.de so special – even in comparison to an agency!
SEO is not quite the same as SEO
Our SEO team is responsible for the implementation of technical details concerning Kaufland.de search engine optimisation. They spend most of their day-to-day business by analysing, phrasing, and implementing the corresponding recommendations for action – but they also work directly in the product teams. The measures worked out this way are then implemented not only by the SEO team as such, but also by many other departments, for example by the online editorial team.
Would you like to know more about the work of our online editorial team?
Then read our blog post here!
‘What makes us so special for the company is that we form an interface between various departments and can therefore have an impact on many different developments’, Marcel, the team lead of the SEO team, tells us. ‘SEO is both: On the one hand, it is a marketing channel used for customer acquisition with the aim of getting the attention of our potential customers. On the other hand, it is an integral part of product development (of the shop) to guarantee our customers a first-class user experience.’
Herrman, Senior SEO Manager (Team Assignment: Team Search Experience), also thinks that working at real.digital is very different from working at an agency:
First of all, you have a look at the user and only then figure out how the SEO tips can be reconciled. This is completely different from working at an agency, where there are always the same topics and tasks, and I can only make SEO recommendations. This is also something I particularly like about the company: You don’t just live in your SEO bubble. You also get a solid picture of the whole online marketplace, as well as insight into and impact on many other teams so that synergies can be created across teams!
One team, big impact
As the SEO department influences online marketing as well as product work, it is an interface between various departments. It is divided into two main departments: SEO Operations and SEO Projects.
SEO Operations include, for example, these areas:
- SEO administration
- Keyword research
- Backlink monitoring
- Performance analysis
- Identification of landing pages
- Phrasing of recommendations for action for other departments, such as the composition of product guides by the online editorial team
As part of SEO Operations, I am responsible for various classic SEO optimisations on the Kaufland.de website. This means, for example, that I look at how our categories perform and if there is still something to improve from an SEO point of view. Apart from that, I always look for new keywords and create landing pages that could be interesting for our customers. To do so, I use our internal SEO tools, which we continuously improve together with other teams. What I particularly like about my work is the possibility of experimenting freely and self-improvement. Even though I have only recently joined the company, I have been allowed to take on increased responsibility, which plays an important role for me. We support each other in our team greatly, and the fun is not neglected at any point.
The SEO Projects represent project-based work. Here, the SEO colleagues spend up to ten percent of their working time in other product teams of the company, due to so-called Team Assignments. There, they assist them with questions concerning technical SEO aspects, but also develop projects and carry out optimisations.
Team Assignments and SEO Projects
Kathrin, Marek, and Tim, along with other colleagues from the SEO department, are involved in diverse SEO Projects and deployed in various teams of the company.
Kathrin, SEO Manager (Team Assignment: Team Inspire), mainly deals with two major areas: SEO project performance measurement and identifications and conception of further possibilities of improvement. ‘Based on our most important KPIs, I identify potentials we still aren’t exploiting to the fullest so that we can both improve user experience and increase our search engine performance’, she tells us.
Especially for the improvement of user experience, I work with our product teams a lot, in order to explore the needs customers have while online shopping, and how we can respond to them at Kaufland.de.
Most notably, Kathrin likes the diversity and variety of her work: ‘SEO offers so many different, exciting areas. It never gets boring, and I can learn something new every day. Additionally, my area of work overlaps a lot with other teams, meaning, I can work with many different people, which is definitely a big plus I really appreciate.’
I am Marek. I make sure we rank well on Google, and I support the Marketing team. My goal is to always leave our competitors behind and provide an SEO benchmark for others. Moreover, it is an enrichment to be able to work with various departments and, by doing so, gain new perspectives on our online marketplace.
Tim, SEO Manager (Team Assignment: Team Evaluate and Team Acquire), is mainly involved in product development. This includes various projects in which he works closely with the product teams. ‘Above all, the technical aspect is important to develop new features that not only help users, but are also understandable for the search engine’, he states.
That’s where I always encounter challenges, such as new frameworks or other technical requirements. In addition to the technical SEO, I take care of diverse content areas and develop strategies that focus primarily on the user. Close cooperation is essential: Not only do I work closely with our in-house editorial team, but also with other departments, such as UX Research or A/B Testing.
Tim particularly likes certain aspects of his work, such as being faced with new challenges in the company: ‘Be it relaunches, technical development, or something else – I can grow with Kaufland.de and practice search engine optimisation on a high level.’
Are you interested?
‘Above all, you need a good product and, of course, good colleagues if you want to practice good SEO’, says Marcel. In his opinion, such colleagues should primarily have the following skills:
- Sincerity
- Creative work style
- Product-based mindset
- Technical affinity
- Proactivity
- Classic SEO craftsmanship knowledge
- Communication and negotiation skills (for example, in cooperation with other departments and teams)
If you want to know more about the domain change from real.de to Kaufland.de, watch this video featuring Marcel at Seodriven!