Head of SEO - Remote - UK or Hybrid - Malta.
Head of SEO
We are seeking a senior, hands-on Head of SEO to define and deliver the organic search strategy for an established online casino business as it transitions into a regulated market and undergoes a full platform rebuild.
This is a pivotal role responsible for protecting and growing existing organic performance while ensuring the new platform is built on best-practice SEO foundations from the outset. The Head of SEO will own strategy across technical SEO, migration planning, content, digital PR, AI-driven search optimisation, reporting, and long-term capability development.
This is a senior leadership role, but not purely managerial. The business requires someone who can set clear direction, influence Product and Technology decisions, and remain close enough to execution to deliver hands-on work in a lean environment. The ideal candidate will combine strategic leadership with deep, modern SEO expertise.
Experience in highly competitive, regulated industries—particularly gambling or gaming—would be highly advantageous.
Key Responsibilities
SEO Strategy & Organic Growth
- Define and own the end-to-end SEO strategy and roadmap.
- Protect and grow existing organic visibility, rankings, and traffic during platform rebuild and regulatory transition.
- Identify and prioritise growth opportunities across brand, non-brand, content, technical SEO, and authority building.
- Embed SEO into broader acquisition strategy, working closely with Product, Marketing, Data, Content, UX, and Compliance teams.
- Monitor competitor activity and market trends to inform ongoing optimisation and opportunity identification.
Technical SEO, Platform Rebuild & Migration
- Own all SEO requirements for the platform and front-end rebuild.
- Ensure the new site is architected with strong SEO foundations, including crawlability, indexation, site structure, internal linking, structured data, canonicalisation, page speed, Core Web Vitals, and mobile-first performance.
- Lead end-to-end SEO migration planning, including URL mapping, redirect strategy, metadata, content preservation, risk mitigation, and post-launch monitoring.
- Conduct regular technical SEO audits and ensure issues are prioritised and resolved effectively.
- Partner closely with Product, Engineering, platform providers, and front-end teams to embed SEO requirements early in the development lifecycle.
Content, On-Site Optimisation & AI Search
- Define the SEO content strategy across key areas including casino pages, game categories, educational content, responsible gambling, brand trust, promotions, and commercial landing pages.
- Optimise existing content and define requirements for new content within the rebuilt platform.
- Establish clear content frameworks covering quality, search intent, internal linking, and structured optimisation.
- Prepare the business for evolving search behaviour, including AI-driven search, generative engines, and answer-based discovery models.
- Leverage AI tools to improve research, planning, and workflow efficiency while maintaining quality, compliance, and brand integrity.
Digital PR, Authority & Off-Site SEO
- Define and lead the digital PR and link acquisition strategy to build authority in a highly competitive market.
- Collaborate with Brand, PR, Content, and external partners to develop campaigns that support both visibility and credibility.
- Monitor backlink profile quality and manage off-site SEO risk.
- Ensure all authority-building activity is sustainable, compliant, and appropriate for a regulated environment.
Analytics, Reporting & Performance
- Define SEO KPIs across visibility, rankings, traffic, acquisition, conversion, content performance, and technical health.
- Work with Data and Analytics teams to develop robust SEO reporting using tools such as Google Search Console, GA4, Snowflake, Power BI, and other SEO platforms.
- Deliver regular performance insights and actionable recommendations to senior stakeholders.
- Use data to prioritise initiatives and continuously refine the SEO roadmap.
Team, Partners & Capability Building
- Act as a hands-on SEO lead in the short term, delivering directly without reliance on a large team.
- Define the future SEO operating model, including in-house capabilities and external agency or specialist support.
- Manage SEO agencies, freelancers, and digital PR partners where required.
- Build SEO capability and awareness across Product, Content, UX, Technology, and Marketing teams.
- Support the evolution of a lean, scalable SEO function over time.
Compliance & Brand Trust
- Ensure all SEO activity aligns with gambling regulations, advertising standards, and responsible gambling requirements.
- Work closely with Legal, Compliance, and Responsible Gambling teams to ensure content accuracy and approval where necessary.
- Support the development of high-trust content that enhances brand credibility during regulatory transition.
- Proactively mitigate SEO-related regulatory, reputational, or customer protection risks.
Required Experience
- Significant SEO experience, ideally in a senior in-house role within a competitive digital environment.
- Strong technical SEO expertise, including site architecture, migrations, structured data, crawl and indexation management, performance optimisation, and mobile-first SEO.
- Proven experience managing large-scale site migrations or platform rebuilds.
- Strong content SEO experience, including keyword strategy, content architecture, search intent mapping, and quality frameworks.
- Understanding of AI search, generative search experiences, and evolving organic discovery trends.
- Experience working cross-functionally with Product, Engineering, UX, Content, Analytics, Marketing, and Compliance teams.
- Strong analytical skills with the ability to translate SEO data into commercial insight.
- Experience managing agencies, budgets, tools, or external partners.
- Proficiency with tools such as Google Search Console, GA4, Screaming Frog, Ahrefs, Semrush, Botify, Lumar, Power BI, or equivalent platforms.
- Experience in gambling, gaming, financial services, travel, marketplaces, or other regulated/highly competitive sectors is highly desirable.
Key Skills & Capabilities
- Strategic thinker with strong hands-on execution ability.
- Deep technical SEO expertise.
- Strong commercial awareness and prioritisation skills.
- Comfortable operating in a lean, fast-moving environment.
- Ability to influence Product and Technology decisions.
- Strong stakeholder management across technical and commercial teams.
- Data-driven, pragmatic, and outcome-focused approach.
- Clear and confident communicator with senior stakeholders.
- Curiosity and understanding of AI, automation, and the future of search.
- Ability to build long-term capability, not just manage day-to-day activity.
Amelia Snuggs
Senior Recruitment Consultant
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