Catalyst Employee Spotlight: William Álvarez

You can have the best data and most sophisticated tools, but it doesn’t mean anything without great people. Fortunately, at Catalyst, we have no shortage of great people. From Search Associates to Search Directors, and from Project Managers to Managing Partners, each member of the Catalyst team is committed to maximizing client business results and making Catalyst a world-class agency. Read our Employee Spotlight series to meet some of the team members responsible for making Catalyst an all-star agency partner and a great place to work.

Meet William

Name: William Álvarez

Title: Director, Organic Search

How long have you worked at Catalyst?

I have worked at Catalyst for six years.

How long have you worked in SEO and what type of clients have you worked on? 

I’ve been in the in the digital space for over 20 years now, but focusing on search, organic and paid, since 2004. I’ve worked both agency side and also as an in-house marketer. I’ve worked with all types of small and enterprise clients in different verticals and industries including pharma, automotive, CPG, electronics, home, beauty, health, finance, among a few others.

How did you get your start in SEO?

I started working with a software development company that built SEO-ready websites.

What do you like most about working at Catalyst?

I like the flexibility to work on projects that I enjoy and the opportunity to come up with creative solutions that help drive client business results, and also that I work with folks who are smart and ahead of the curve in our practice.

What has been your greatest achievement or success in SEO?

There’s a long list of things I’ve done that make me feel really proud, but clients’ satisfaction is at the top. Nothing makes me happier than when clients they say that they are learning something new from me and that they are happy with their results.

In terms of standout SEO projects, one opportunity on an auto brand was really memorable. I was able to drive significant visibility for their website while leveraging all of their strategic media partnerships to maximize results, including ranking their YouTube videos in position one for popular events like the Super Bowl. My main contact at that company, now in a different business, remembered me and the work we did together and invited me to be a guest speaker at the biggest event in the hospitality industry in Las Vegas last year.

In your opinion, what is the most important SEO trend or change for 2020?

On one hand, Google Search constantly evolving to use more Structured Data on web pages; their SERPs are now like a visually attractive interactive magazine and not just the traditional blue links. And on the other hand, Google understanding content better in order to make better matches against searchers’ queries and intent.

If you had to give one recommendation to an advertiser who wants to use search or social marketing to achieve business results, what would it be?

My recommendation continues to be the same as many years ago: as new opportunities arise, do not wait too long to get on board with new technologies and innovation, dare to experiment. At the same time, evaluate the individual performance of all your digital marketing channels and assign resources as needed, but remember that they all work hand-in-hand.

Share a fun fact about yourself

Last year when I went on vacation to Greece, I flew from NYC to Athens on the same plane as one of our clients. What a small world!