Head of Search

Career Guide

A Head of Search leads an organization’s search growth across paid search and organic search. The role sets strategy, manages budgets, builds the team, and ensures search programs drive measurable revenue and customer growth while adapting to platform changes and privacy constraints.

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Key Responsibilities

Set search strategy and goals aligned to company growth targets
Own paid search budget planning and forecasting
Lead organic search roadmap in partnership with content and engineering teams
Define measurement approach for conversions, revenue, and customer acquisition cost
Oversee campaign structure, keyword strategy, and landing page alignment
Build reporting and executive updates with clear performance insights
Run ongoing testing to improve ad performance and site conversion rates
Manage agencies and external partners when needed
Establish brand safety and compliance standards for ads and tracking
Hire, coach, and develop a high performing search team
Coordinate with product, analytics, and sales to align on priorities
Monitor platform updates and adjust tactics to protect performance

Top Skills for Success

Search Strategy

Paid Search Management

Search Engine Optimization

Budget Management

Forecasting

Performance Measurement

Attribution Modeling

Experiment Design

Conversion Rate Optimization

Landing Page Optimization

Audience Targeting

Creative Testing

Marketing Analytics

Stakeholder Management

People Leadership

Vendor Management

Career Progression

Can Lead To

Director of Growth

Head of Performance Marketing

VP of Growth

VP of Marketing

Transition Opportunities

Product Marketing Leader

Revenue Operations Leader

General Manager

Common Skill Gaps

Often Missing Skills

Incrementality TestingMarketing Mix ModelingFirst Party Data StrategyPrivacy ComplianceAdvanced ForecastingExecutive CommunicationTeam HiringCross Channel Planning

Development SuggestionsBuild a simple measurement framework that separates correlation from impact, strengthen first party data foundations with analytics and engineering partners, and practice executive updates that connect search performance to revenue outcomes and tradeoffs.

Market Intelligence Report

Head of Search is part of the Technical Product Management category.Explore our market intelligence report to see how AI and hiring demand are shifting for these roles.

See the market intelligence report

Salary & Demand

Median Salary Range

Entry Level$90,000 to $130,000

Mid Level$130,000 to $190,000

Senior Level$190,000 to $270,000

Growth Trend

Steady demand, with stronger hiring in ecommerce, marketplaces, and subscription businesses. Companies are prioritizing leaders who can improve efficiency as tracking becomes more limited and costs increase.

Companies Hiring

Major Employers

AmazonWalmartBooking.comExpediaAirbnbUberDoorDashShopifyWayfairHubSpotSalesforceAdobe

Industry Sectors

EcommerceMarketplacesTravelFinancial ServicesSoftware as a ServiceConsumer AppsRetailDigital Marketing Agencies

Recommended Next Steps

Create a 90 day plan template covering audit, quick wins, testing roadmap, and reporting

Build a case study portfolio with before and after results, budgets, and key decisions

Strengthen measurement skills with incrementality testing and attribution fundamentals

Partner with analytics to standardize key metrics and dashboard definitions

Review landing page and conversion flow to align search intent with on site experience

Develop an org and hiring plan that matches growth targets and channel complexity

Benchmark costs and performance against industry norms to identify efficiency gaps

Stay current on platform changes and tracking limitations, then adjust strategy accordingly