Q and A: When will I start making decent money in SEO?

Dear Kalena...

I just started working for a SEO in the UK as an Organic Search Analyst starting at £15k. I did my degree in computing information systems plus some study in marketing for two years. My point is, how soon should I be making decent money in this? £19k for instance? As far as I can tell, a lot of my colleagues are not happy with their pay either and have been there a year or more with promises of a bright future. We are all getting a bit down. Is this usual for this type of industry and is it usual for people doing the same work to be on unequal pay? For instance a male/female pay difference?

Luna

Kalena's Answer:

Dear Luna

How long is a piece of string? In my experience, the salaries for SEO/SEM staff vary widely in the same town, let alone in the same country. Salaries for SEO and SEM experts in the U.S. are quite high, because of the demand for their services and the huge growth of the local search industry.

As for the employment conditions (especially male vs female) where you are, it sounds like the issues might be restricted to the organization you work for. You might want to get together with some of your fellow staff (safety in numbers and all that) and have a chat to your boss about future prospects and fair salary levels. If you all have good SEO skills that are hard to find in your area, there's no reason why you can't ask for better renumeration.

If you want some ammunition to take into your meeting, show your boss these posts about SEM salaries, especially SEM Salaries: What Can You Expect? Also have a read of this article: 11 Reasons Why You Should Consider a Job in Search Engine Marketing. It quotes a representative from one of the world's leading HR companies saying that SEO is considered a cutting edge career with a shortage of trained staff in the field.

Good luck!

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