Degree(s): BJ '08

Whereabouts: United States, Kansas City, Missouri

Heather Physioc, BJ ’08, spends her days ensuring things get discovered. As a specialist in search engine optimization, or SEO, her job is to help the Web content of her clients rise to the top of an Internet search results list. It is work she finds fulfilling not only because of the results it yields for her clients, but also because it allows her to combine all of her journalism interests.

“I realized that SEO was this perfect blend of advertising, marketing, digital media and journalism that I had been looking for,” Physioc says. “I felt like I finally found something that was at the merger of my different skill sets, where it wasn’t a disadvantage to have skills in different disciplines.”

“I realized that SEO was this perfect blend of advertising, marketing, digital media and journalism that I had been looking for,” Physioc says.  “I felt like I finally found something that was at the merger of my different skill sets, where it wasn’t a disadvantage to have skills in different disciplines.”

Her career in SEO has not come easily or naturally. Instead, it has been a journey of self-discovery that has required her to look at new ways to use her skills and, at times, to redirect her path.

Early Influences

For Physioc, self-discovery started at the Missouri School of Journalism while studying strategic communication. One of her professors, Steve Kopcha, introduced her to advertising copywriting, which had a lasting impact on her. Although she would not realize it till later, the skills she learned in Kopcha’s beginning copywriting class laid foundational work for her SEO career.

“Search engine optimization is all about optimizing content to be found on search engines. Whether it’s Google, YouTube or the iTunes App Store, if something needs to be found online it’s my job to get it found – which requires top-notch copywriting to compete with everyone else,” Physioc says.

From Kopcha, she learned more than she could have imagined as he continually challenged her work in the classroom. “He had the most personal investment in me and provided me with the resources I needed to be successful,” Physioc says.

One of the many impacts Kopcha had on her education was urging her to apply for MOJO Ad, the student-staffed advertising agency that works with national brands to develop strategies and campaigns to address various marketing and advertising challenges.

Initially, Physioc was interested in the copywriting side of advertising, which she had revolved most of her course work around; however, she also had an interest in art direction. Kopcha pushed her to step outside of her comfort zone, and when she made the decision to apply for MOJO Ad her senior year, she landed the art director position.

Taking on something new that was of interest to her – but not something she felt completely confident in – was another experience that laid the groundwork in her self-discovery journey. When it came time for her first job in advertising, having these experiences under her belt proved beneficial.

Discovering SEO

After graduation, she took an entry-level position at Visionworks Marketing & Communications, a small advertising agency in Columbia, Missouri. The smaller agency environment offered something a larger agency did not – the opportunity to work on a variety of projects from website project management to account services. Eventually she was assigned to work on an SEO task for a client’s website. Part of this job included keyword research to find specific search terms that users typically enter into search engines when trying to find something. The exposure to this part of website management piqued her interest and was her official introduction to her eventual career in SEO.

“They knew I wasn’t an SEO expert. They saw that I had a degree in journalism from Mizzou. They saw that I had experience in content writing and content marketing. They saw that I had some past digital experience. And they saw potential in me,” Physioc says.

While working with Visionworks, she learned of an SEO specialist position available at PlattForm Advertising in Lenexa, Kansas, and saw an opportunity to move into an SEO-related job. Since search engine optimization was a new field for her, she prepared for her interview by doing as much research on SEO as possible to make sure she knew exactly what the position would entail. In the process, Physioc felt she had finally discovered the career that she was meant to have.

PlattForm Advertising hired her, and she made the move back to her hometown of Kansas City to begin working as an SEO specialist. Physioc was grateful that despite her lack of direct SEO experience, PlattForm took a chance on her.

“They knew I wasn’t an SEO expert. They saw that I had a degree in journalism from Mizzou. They saw that I had experience in content writing and content marketing. They saw that I had some past digital experience. And they saw potential in me,” Physioc says.

She finally found her fit. The PlattForm position opened the door to what she really wanted to be doing, which was taking marketing and communications, and translating them into the digital world in an applicable and measurable way. She had found a way to turn her jack of all trades background into a very specialized career.

Ready for Something Big

She remained at PlattForm for nearly six years, gaining practical experience as their senior site manager. Eventually Physioc felt ready for a larger clientele and a more specific role.

VML, a global digital marketing agency in Kansas City, provided her with that opportunity. She was hired as an SEO channel director, where she began working on brands like Gatorade and Wendy’s.

Aside from working with bigger brands, she welcomed the chance to take on a higher and more specific leadership role. She went from managing the client-side of the business at PlattForm to working on the agency-side at VML.

Now in her new role with VML, she is currently working on managing and growing her team, a necessary move because of a growing client demand for their services.

Side Project Gone Right

Her past work experience and current position have provided Physioc with a wide range of expertise in SEO. Early in her career she made the decision to do some freelance work on the side. And after about five years of doing her own projects, she decided to create a firm of her own as a part-time endeavor.

“My goal in life is to be able to do my job and earn a reasonable salary from anywhere in the world. Travel and experiencing all that life has to offer is very important to me, so I decided that in order to have that in the long term, I needed to create that flexibility myself,” Physioc says.

Tentacle Inbound, a remote digital business, is Physioc’s startup company that focuses on doing work with small businesses. While maintaining her position at VML, she also manages the majority of Tentacle Inbound work by herself; however, as more projects come up, she farms out portions of them to contract employees. This project management strategy allows her to grow the company without taking on too much herself, and also to grow her clientele by being able to offer more services.

Managing her business and her position at VML has been quite the balancing act. “By day my attention is 150 percent at VML. And when I go home I change gears and my Tentacle Inbound clients get all of my attention,” Physioc says.

The clientele of VML is much larger than the clientele of Tentacle Inbound, helping her avoid any client conflicts between her two positions. “VML is fantastic about it,” Physioc says.

Although her company, career and family keep her busy, she believes it will be worth it as she works toward her long-term goals. “I see myself doing this for many more years to come, but eventually, I want to proudly lead a woman-owned business that makes an impact on small and medium businesses, improves local economies and creates jobs for people.”

In the meantime, Physioc plans to keep discovering new challenges and opportunities within her field to prepare for that eventual future.

“I am a believer that with some hard work and elbow grease in the short-term, we can set ourselves up for flexibility and fulfillment in the long-term,” she says.

Eleia Yonke is a senior studying strategic communication. She is from Wadsworth, Illinois, and hopes to work in Chicago after she graduates in May 2015. Yonke has interned for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society-Illinois Chapter and the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources at the University of Missouri.