My Career History
Sierra Trading Post was founded in Reno, Nv. in 1986. It began as a simple mail order company selling closeout and off-quality outdoor gear and clothing. Through a friend I got a job helping label and zip-code sort the first batch of catalogs. The need arose for picking, packing, and shipping orders; all of which I did for a few years after school and summer. After stints taking phone orders, processing returns, and doing retail; I eventually moved to Washington. In the mean time, Sierra Trading Post relocated to Cheyenne, Wy. where I reunited with the company in 1997.
In 1998 I got immersed in e-commerce; first designing then managing a fast growing Internet Retailer Top 100 website: SierraTradingPost.com. I oversaw the creation and continued growth of various channels including site design, photography, web marketing, email marketing, internal search, and site merchandising. I worked closely with software development, marketing, customer service, buying, merchandising, inventory control, fulfillment, and returns. I oversaw projects including third party content delivery and software integration. I acted as lead tester for all new development. E-commerce quickly became our main sales channel.
In 2007 I moved back to Washington and worked remotely as the SEO Specialist for Sierra Trading Post. I was responsible for all aspects of organic search and reporting. I defined all SEO specifications for category naming, on-page SEO, and new idea development. Organic sales grew every year and we successfully launched a new website with new URL structure without loss to SEO performance. In 2013 Sierra Trading Post was sold to the TJX Companies, Inc.
Near the end November of 2102 I started working for Nordstrom, in Seattle, as a SEO Project Manager. I worked with a small team collaborating on sitewide SEO strategies and development ideas. We also evangelized the importance of SEO company-wide and spread best practices. I was instrumental in developing ideas to improve overall SEO site performance. I created and maintained project specifications and worked closely with our development partners. Divisionally I was responsible for Shoes and Cosmetics which held the top 2 spots for the highest SEO growth by division for 2013.
In April of 2015 I was offered a position of E-Commerce manager for Cellars Wine Club. I was excited about the position as it would allow me to bring together all my knowledge and experience to maintain, update, and market an e-commerce website. The site had not been managed for several months. The affiliate channel was the only marketing. I would have a list of 25,000 email names to work with. The website also had a Google link penalty. I quickly got to work clearing up website issues, adding new content, implementing redirects, and learning the ins-and-outs of WooCommerce for WordPress. I optimized the site for SEO, set up paid search campaigns, and started a weekly email marketing program. I was successful in getting the Google penalty removed. I built a website for a sister company, www.SumerianBrewingCo.com and started work on a new version of the wine club site built with AbleCommerce. Though sales rose dramatically, I was let go in August of 2015.
In September I was offered my old position back at Nordstrom. I managed the technical SEO. This included developing roadmaps, creating JIRA tickets, forecasting lift, testing releases, troubleshooting, weekly crawling, as well as developing new ideas for continued growth.
In October of 2019, I was offered a Sr. Technical SEO position. I am excited for a chance to work a growing start-up in a burgeoning industry. I love working at Leafly!
I design, develop, and maintain websites for artisans and small-businesses owned by friends and family. I also make etchings.
Specialties: SEO, Web Design, Online Marketing, HTML, CSS, WordPress, BrightEdge, Conductor, Botify, DeepCrawl, Screaming Frog, Google Search Console, Google Analytics, Excel, Powerpoint, and Photoshop.