Writer, Editor, Content Marketer.

Thomas Wachtel is a versatile writer and content marketer with experience writing for SEO, educational and informative writing, editing and proofreading, content ecosystem management, and managing internal relationships.

References enthusiastically provided upon request. To see a PDF of my résumé, click here.

Skills

Writing and editing content of all types, including blogs, white papers, emails, social posts, web copy, and more.

Talented SEO writer with strategic experience, specializing in writing copy that Google crawlers and human readers love.

Executing on a content strategy, up to and including single-handedly writing, editing, and managing a brand’s full content ecosystem.

Collaboration throughout the strategic and creative process, working with other writers, art directors and designers, editors, subject-matter experts, executives, and external resources like PR agents.

Experience

Marketing Content Strategist, Automotive Finance Corporation — November 2022–August 2023

Role and Responsibilities

  • Managed and implemented content strategy for autofinance.com

  • Helped to launch the AFC blog and new website

  • Produced and co-edited written content for AFC website, including all blog content, product pages, and landing pages

  • Performed keyword research using BrightEdge tool to determine strategic direction for content as a whole, as well as tactical direction for individual content pieces.

Results

  • 296% increase in total ranked keywords from February to June 2023

  • 54.28% increase in keywords ranked on page 1 from February to July 2023

  • 54.36% increase in keywords ranked on the top three pages from February to July 2023

Content Marketing Manager, Genesys — April 2022–October 2022

Role and Responsibilities

  • Wrote and edited SEO web content, including top-of-the-funnel web articles and blogs as well as lower-funnel web pages like product capabilities

  • Managed collaboration across departments on SEO content projects to gain expert input on product capabilities, guarantee sound keyword strategy, and gain buy-in from relevant executives to ensure all content was thorough, accurate, and well-written, while driving traffic to the Genesys website

  • Built a new multichannel internal communications strategy to get content into the hands of go-to-customer teams, helping to put the right content in front of buyers at the right times

  • Worked across teams, including marketing leadership, to implement changes in internal content strategy and facilitate the sharing of content from all parts of the content marketing ecosystem

  • Helped to manage a time of great change within content marketing team, successfully filling a number of different roles over a six-month period

Content Marketing Specialist, Element Three — March 2020–February 2022

Role and Responsibilities

  • Managed, produced, and edited all written content on behalf of Element Three marketing and sales teams across platforms, including blogs, social media, landing pages, and digital ads

  • Engaged in original research, interviews with subject-matter experts, and translating existing video content to written form to generate new content ideas

  • Co-managed content calendar, including building future content plan within overarching marketing strategy and managing repository of existing content

  • Co-managed Element Three social media, including LinkedIn, Twitter, and Instagram

  • Assisted in creation of sales collateral for use in prospecting, including RFPs

  • Worked with PR professional to place content in publications to build brand awareness in target industries, including manufacturing and outdoor retail

  • Managed and wrote weekly newsletter for prospect lists and brand ambassadors

Results

  • In first year as content marketing specialist, Element Three website traffic increased by 24.9%

  • 1,026,456 total pageviews across elementthree.com over a two-year span from 2020–2021, a 52.07% increase over 2018–2019

  • Wrote or ghostwrote ten of top 25 blogs by traffic since beginning of 2020, including the top overall traffic driver and five of the top ten posts

  • Top 16 traffic months of all time (by pageviews) occurred since start of 2020 (and 23 of the top 27)

  • Newsletter open rate: 38% average from March 2020–February 2022, compared to 35.6% previously (January 2019–February 2020)

  • Newsletter click-through rate: 5.92% average; unsubscribe rate: 0.36% average

 

  • February 2013–March 2020

  • – Managed and executed regular writing tasks for a variety of clients, including concepting and writing blogs and messaging, website copywriting, and authoring of white papers and e-books

    – Worked with creative and account team members to create concepts for a wide variety of marketing campaigns, from digital advertising to websites and more

    – Created and implemented new brand identities for clients in a variety of industries

    – Planned project execution, including helping to set timelines and budgets as well as coordinating between internal and client teams

    – Comprehensively proofreading and copyediting written copy in both digital and print deliverables for all Element Three clients

Other Selected Experience

  • June 2018–present

  • – Provides support to head boys cross country and track coaches in all phases of team operations

    – Manages and leads 1–2 training groups per season

    – Responsible for creating race plans for athletes in training groups and coaching through execution during races

    – Assists with athlete management, race lineups, and discipline

 

  • August 2011–November 2016

  • – Writing news, analysis, and opinion content for team-centric sports blogs

    – Managing a team of editorial and news writers tasked with majority of content creation

    – Assisting with management of social media for the blogs, including Twitter and Facebook

    – Covering special events live on blog and Twitter, including matches and major personnel transfers

 

  • October 2011–October 2012

  • – Planned and managed USATF’s major events, including US Olympic Trials, Penn Relays, US Indoor National Championships, and annual conference

    – Worked in television and in-stadium production teams for elite, nationally-televised track meets, including assisting in management of talent before and during events, and work as researcher in production truck during live and recorded-as-live broadcasts

    – Managed all room, audio/visual, and food scheduling for USATF annual conference

Education

 

Indiana University–Bloomington

Major in Journalism and Political Science

Graduate with highest distinction, 3.935 GPA

Awards and Recognition

 

HubSpot certification in Content Marketing, June 2021

HubSpot certification in HubSpot Marketing Software, March 2021

2016 Winner, Gold ADDY in Category 10D—Direct Mail 3D Campaign with Element Three

2016 Winner, Silver ADDY in Category 10C—Direct Mail 3D/Mixed—Single with Element Three

Graduated top of class of 2010, Indiana University School of Journalism

Herman B Wells Scholarship, class of 2010

Wendell L. Willkie Scholarship

Member of Hutton Honors College

Member of inaugural class of Ernie Pyle Scholars