Graham Charlton
Verified Expert in Marketing
Marketing Expert
Yarm, United Kingdom
Toptal member since August 6, 2024
Graham is an experienced content marketer with a strong knowledge of SEO solutions. In addition to having worked as an editor in chief and head of content for Econsultancy, ClickZ, Search Engine Watch, SaleCycle, and LXA, he has completed several successful freelance projects for B2B clients. With a focus on digital marketing, eCommerce, and marketing and sales technology, Graham thrives in projects centered around content strategy, content creation, and content for SEO.
Project Highlights
Expertise
- Content Audits
- Content Marketing Strategy
- Content Writing
- On-page SEO
- SEO Content
- SEO Tools
- WordPress
- eCommerce
Work Experience
SEO Strategist
TAB Boards International, Inc.
- Implemented recommendations from a search audit, improving visibility and organic search traffic.
- Reviewed content strategy and delivered recommendations to improve content quality and consolidate existing content.
- Implemented on-page improvements to boost CTR and engagement.
Copywriter and Content Strategist
Newstex, LLC
- Worked with the CEO and marketing team on a revamp of the website to target a wider audience.
- Created copy for landing pages. Homepages for target personas, a knowledge hub, and case studies.
- Worked with the leadership team to understand the target audience, the brand values, and to create persuasive copy targeted at key personas.
Head of Content
LXA (formerly MarTech Alliance)
- Created a series of best practice guides, survey reports, and online learning courses.
- Improved the SEO strategy and created evergreen content.
- Brought in approximately £500 million in revenue by creating custom ebooks for clients.
Editor in Chief
SaleCycle
- Created a series of compelling content pieces that generated hundreds of leads for sales teams.
- Increased search traffic to the website by more than 600% by creating targeted and optimized content.
- Boosted web traffic from a few thousand views a month to more than 60,000 views by creating quality content that addressed the audience's issues and interests.
- Leveraged proprietary data to create a series of infographics based around cart abandonment, which resulted in coverage from major digital publishers and increased search traffic.
Editor in Chief of ClickZ and Search Engine Watch
Contentive
- Addressed the decline in traffic for Search Engine Watch and vastly improved the quality of content.
- Analyzed ClickZ's decline in traffic and vastly improved the quality of content by focusing on detailed and informative content.
- Improved both sites' SEO performance by working with the SEO team to address key technical issues and enhance content quality, internal linking, and on-page optimization.
Editor in Chief
Econsultancy
- Built the digital marketing blog from a base of a few thousand users to more than one million per month.
- Turned the blog into one of the most prominent digital marketing and eCommerce blogs on the web.
- Leveraged content and on-page optimization to drive traffic for key business terms. We used content to gain premium rankings around digital transformation, which drove leads and business for our consultancy team.
- Worked with the research team to create content that would promote reports and generate subscriptions for the business.
- Created a newsletter that reached more than 150,000 readers.
Project History
eCommerce Guide
Created a series of long-form articles around eCommerce, driving traffic for ecommerceguide.com.
This was a freelance project I developed during lockdown, during which I edited the website for eCommerce Guide and created a wide range of content to drive traffic and improve rankings. This included creating a wide range of detailed articles around eCommerce and digital marketing.
Black Friday Hub Page
Created a lead magnet for SaleCycle, driving hundreds of leads for the sales team.
In advance of Black Friday 2017, we created a hub page on the topic that included a series of best practices for retailers and data on previous years. This was accompanied by an up-to-date stats counter at the time of the event, showing peak shopping times and key stats around cart abandonment. The page could be used and repurposed for subsequent years and ranked in the top three on Google.
State of Marketing Technology and Operations
https://www.lxahub.com/the-state-of-martech-2023/24Created a comprehensive overview of the market landscape and the issues marketers face around marketing technology and operations.
This project involved creating a comprehensive guide with detailed research, interviews with key industry figures, and a survey for CMOs and marketing leaders. The project required careful planning, beginning with survey planning and interpretation of results. The resulting content became one of the most detailed guides in the industry and attracted sponsorship from technology vendors.
Graham Charlton Portfolio
Edited and written for a wide range of websites, This document compiles links to my published content.
A list of links to articles and reports I’ve created as head of content, editor, or on a freelance basis. There are many more available, but this should provide an idea of my expertise and writing ability.
Education
Postgraduate Certificate in Education
University of Sunderland - Sunderland, United Kingdom
Bachelor's Degree in History
University of Northumbria - Newcastle, United Kingdom
Certifications
SEO: Applied On-Page Optimisation
Econsultancy
Skills
Core
SEO Tools, SEO Content, On-page SEO, Marketing Technology (MarTech), Content Strategy, Writing & Editing, Copywriting, Content Creation, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Content Marketing, Keyword Research, SEO Audits, Email Marketing, Digital Marketing Strategy, SEO Keyword Research, Marketing Strategy, Blogging, WordPress SEO, Brand Marketing, Organic SEO, B2C Marketing, Google SEO, Digital Marketing, Local SEO, LinkedIn Marketing, Social Media Marketing (SMM), Landing Pages, Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO), AI Marketing, Marketing Analytics, Lead Generation, SEO Backlinking, Off-page SEO, Backlinks, Marketing Research & Analysis, Content, Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI), Content Marketing Strategy, Search Engine Marketing (SEM), Pay-per-Click (PPC)
Platforms & Tools
Yoast SEO, Google My Business, HubSpot, Google Analytics, Content Management Systems (CMS), Ahrefs, Claude, Google Analytics 4 (GA4)
Business Models
B2B, SaaS, Business to Consumer (B2C)
Technical
Google Search Console
Other
WordPress, Web Content, Content Audits, Content Writing, B2B Marketing, eCommerce, AI Content Creation, Blogs, Social Media Content Writing, Ebook Writing, Article Writing, Ebooks, Marketing Writing, Storytelling, Technical Writing, Website Traffic, AI-based Content SEO, Website Audits, SEO Copywriting, Website Copywriting & Messaging, Answer Engine Optimization (AEO), Generative Engine Optimization (GEO), Growth Strategy, SEO Consultant, Landing Page Optimization, Keyword Mapping, AEO, Organic Content Marketing, Semrush, Microsoft Teams, Analytics, Email Content, User Experience (UX), B2B Lead Generation, Brand Building, Brand Awareness, Drip Email, AI Agents, Website Optimization, Technical SEO, Artificial Intelligence (AI), SEO with AI, eCommerce SEO, Large Language Models (LLMs), AI Tools, AI Prompts, General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), UX Writing, User Behavioral Analytics (UBA), AI-enabled Search, Generative Engine Optimization, GEO, Research, Lead Magnet, Seos, Editorial Process, UX Analysis, Data, Interviewing, Teaching, Education, History, Reports, Digital Publishing, Product Research, Zendesk, Customer Acquisition, Consulting, Coaching, Mentorship & Coaching, Online Course Design, Webflow
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