Content Development and Consulting for Local Search Marketing Brands
Located in the San Francisco Bay Area - Serving North American Clients

When Local SEO and content dev experts mention "Miriam", they usually mean me.
That's the kind of instant, friendly recognition I'll bring to your brand. With 20 years of experience in content development and local SEO consulting, I'll help you speak one-on-one to each client so that your offering becomes the clearest and best choice for their needs. If your organization knows you can't shortcut building trust-based relationships with your audience, then you and I are already on the same page!
The Experience I Bring To Your Org
I was the Local SEO Subject Matter Expert and Local Search Scientist for Moz for over a decade. During that time, I
wrote the majority of local search marketing content for their enterprise, including a most-read column on their blog, the Moz Top 10 newsletter, and centerpiece guides like The Essential Local SEO Guide and The Local Business Content Marketing Guide, as well as case studies, surveys, reports, white papers, social content, PR outreach content, email marketing content, video scripts, and paid certification educational materials. I also contributed to The Beginners Guide to SEO, The Professionals Guide to SEO, and wrote or edited a significant portion of the articles in Moz's SEO Learning Hub. I was also honored with a seat on their DEI Council, where I spearheaded core internal initiatives.
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Before Moz became my biggest client, I founded my own agency, Solas Web Design, in 2004, providing website design, SEO, Local SEO, content development, and consulting to small-to-medium businesses throughout North America. I've written for or been cited in a number of digital and traditional publications, including Wix, Search Engine Land, Search Engine Roundtable, Search Engine Guide, Website Magazine, Whitespark, Marketing Profs, PR Daily, Local Search Association, fSquared, Compliant IA, Search Engine Watch, Small Business Daily, Marketing Toolbox, Retail Touchpoints, NearMedia, Talented Ladies, Pitch Matrix, ZipSprout, Nifty Marketing, Search Influence, Grade.us, GatherUp and many more. I've also used my communications skills as a forum Mod at the Moz Q&A Forum, The Local Search Forum, and Cre8asite Forum over the years.
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When I'm not writing and consulting on Local SEO, I'm an award-winning fine artist and a published illustrator.
"You're the most prolific writer in the second-most specialized topic across the board.
You're also one of the biggest
female content producers in the industry and in the top 3 for most traffic generated
per year."​
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- Lidia Infante, Author: Gender Gap in SEO Publishing Report

Services Menu
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Regular columns
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Blog posts
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Articles
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On-page content
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Email marketing content
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PR Outreach content
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Video scripts
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Centerpiece guides
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Surveys
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Reports
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Whitepapers
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Educational course materials
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Newsletters
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Internal manuals
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Editing
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Strategic consulting
How I work with you
I work on a monthly retainer basis with a limited number of excellent agencies, SaaS brands, and publications that need to engage a local business audience. If you need a columnist, a blogger, a newsletter editor, or an authoritative author of longform content, centerpiece guides, educational materials, paid training course scripts, or other key textual assets, let's create a custom package that works for you. Or, perhaps your needs are strategic and you want an experienced local SEO consultant to help you improve an existing solution or ideate a better offering. Let's talk about how my services can be tailored to your company's unique needs.
My retainer packages start at $3500.00 a month and I prioritize opportunities for long-lasting relationships. ​
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Respected Industry Leaders Say:

Mike Blumenthal
Co-founder, NearMedia
"The queen of not just local content but of great local content. You can’t go wrong with Miriam Ellis."

Darren Shaw
Founder, Whitespark
"One of the greatest local search minds and content creators of all-time...if you have the ability to hire her, and she chooses to work with your company, then congratulations, you just won the lottery."

Greg Sterling
Co-founder, NearMedia
"Miriam Ellis would be a tremendous asset for any marketing company operating in the local space."

Why I'm loyal to local search marketing
When Google rolled out Maps, I was caught! Here was a chance to build the online mirror of real-world communities, helping real people connect with all the resources in their towns and cities. We're doing meaningful work when we help local business clients get found and chosen. Local economics have been proven better for the environment and for human well-being. ​​
But here's the thing: local business owners are usually too busy being awesome at what they do to have the time to also become expert local SEOs. When a brand like yours is trusted to partner up and deliver results for these hard-working folks, it's a great honor. Technically, you're providing software, or services, or education. Philosophically, though, you're engaging in time-tested civics whenever you improve a place on the map by helping a local business succeed. That's satisfying! And that's why I love writing about local search and will be bringing genuine enthusiasm to our work together.
I'd like know what you enjoy about local search marketing, and I'd be glad to hear from you.