Hourly Wage: SEO Addict Rand Fishkin: Search Engine Marketing Consultant

Name: Rand Fishkin
Job Title: CEO and Search Engine Marketing Consultant at seomoz.org
Where: Seattle, WA
Education:  3.75 years at the University of Washington, Rand Fishkin was a Finance Major in the Undergraduate School of Business
Years of Experience: Started writing batch files as a kid, Rand Fishkin grew up in Frontpage, 4 years in SEO consulting.
Salary: Rand Fishkin earns $400/hr for being a Search Engine Marketing consultant. A white hat (above board) SEO marketer at a small company might have a salary between $40k and $80k depending on location, experience and other factors.

Search Engine Marketing Consultant Job Description:

Read, learn and dialogue about search engine marketing from sunrise until sunset; Interface with clients, teaching them how to optimize their sites; make daily blog entries; travel to search enginge marketing conferences around the globe.

What the heck is SEO?

Rand Fishkin describes SEO (search engine optimization) as the art of building and optimizing websites to make sure that search engines can find them when relevant keywords are searched. Whereas the right moves can net you thousands of visitors and attention, the wrong moves can hide or bury a site deep in the search results where visibility is minimal.   Read more…

Check out Michael Martinez’s 2006 SEO Dictionary to demystify the crazy terminology of SEO. He defines SEO as “The art of designing or modifying Web pages to rank well in search engines.  Now mostly superceded by link building.  Except when Rand Fishkin gets involved.  Then it’s superceded by link baiting.” What is link baiting? According to Martinez, it is a synonym for “Rand Fishkin.”

What else does the infamous Rand Fishkin do?

In addition to his work online with the SEOmoz blog & articles, you will find Rand Fishkin speaking at the Search Engine Strategies conference series around North America (and Europe, too).

If you’re trying to get a job in SEO…

Rand Fishkin truly believes you should be in love with the Internet, a quick learner and an avid reader. If you’re interviewing for a job in SEO right now, ideas and understanding of how the Internet works are far more important than SEO experience.

What does Rand Fishkin love most about his job as a Search Engine Marketing Consultant?

Working with his family, being a part of the SEO community – both white and black hat, the constant challenge of keeping up with search engine technology. And, of course, being able to use his knowledge to help people. Rand loves everything about search engine marketing. If he were doing anything else but this…it would be this.

What other jobs pay as much as Rand Fishkin’s job or Search Engine Marketing Consultant? Take the PayScale Salary Survey and find out.