Kristan Bauer is an Advisor and the Founder of Conifr Media, an SEO consulting agency, which she sold to SEO Collective in 2024 to elevate their success. With over 15 years of experience in search marketing, she has developed SEO strategies for numerous Fortune 500 companies and prominent brands, including Google, National Geographic, and Express. Before Conifr Media, Kristan served as the Director of SEO at Zillow Group, where she managed a channel with over one billion annual visitors, and the Head of SEO at Amazon Web Services. Kristan provides independent consulting, advising, and coaching across various business and marketing disciplines.

While most e-commerce brands recognize the value of SEO, many focus too heavily on optimizing their product pages and neglect resource content. Without a strategic approach, companies waste time creating content that doesn’t generate traffic, links, or conversions. How can brands leverage resource content to improve visibility and drive revenue?

According to SEO consultant Kristan Bauer, product content involves optimizing product, category, and merchandising pages for search engines, while resource content educates, engages, and informs users at various stages of the buying journey. Resource content is sharable and linkable, allowing brands to build domain authority and drive organic traffic. Kristan emphasizes that brands must align resource content with user intent, invest in high-quality editorial strategies, and ensure articles support product sales rather than existing in isolation. By conducting keyword research, leveraging competitive gap analysis, and structuring content to maximize linkability, brands can improve their SEO performance.

In today’s episode of the Up Arrow Podcast, William Harris invites Kristan Bauer, an Advisor and the Founder of Conifr Media, to talk about optimizing resource content for e-commerce SEO. Kristan shares SEO strategies for AI-driven search engines, how to resolve technical SEO issues, and how to leverage competitive gap analysis to identify content opportunities.

Will Nitze is the Founder and CEO of IQBAR, a leading nutrition company offering keto, vegan, and paleo protein bars and supplements. Under his leadership, IQBAR has expanded to over 10,000 retail locations. Will also co-hosts Eating Glass, a podcast that features startup founders.

Building a CPG brand is challenging, especially when navigating product pivots, supply chain disruptions, and transitioning from e-commerce to retail. Many entrepreneurs struggle to maintain their brand vision while evolving to meet market demands. How can founders scale their business while maintaining profitability and operational excellence?

CPG brand builder Will Nitze leveraged customer feedback to shift from a niche product focus to a broader value-driven brand, making strategic pivots to expand his company’s total addressable market. When scaling a CPG brand, entrepreneurs must differentiate their supply chain practices, leverage omnichannel distribution, and transition from DTC-only to retail locations. Developing partnerships with major retailers requires testing and iterating products and selecting partners that align with your target audience.

In this episode of the Up Arrow Podcast, William Harris chats with Will Nitze, Founder and CEO of IQBAR, about creating a $100 million CPG brand. Will discusses the importance of evolving product positioning, optimizing supply chain operations, and scaling through an omnichannel strategy. He also dives into overcoming manufacturing challenges, maintaining a lean team, and controlling your psychology for continuous results.

Tamsen Webster is the Founder and Chief Learning Officer at Message Design Institute, where she helps leaders craft compelling messages to foster large-scale change. With over 25 years of experience in persuasive message design, she is a renowned message strategist and keynote speaker. Tamsen is the author of two best-selling books: Find Your Red Thread and Say What They Can't Unhear. She has collaborated with major organizations, such as Harvard Medical School, Fidelity Investments, and Klaviyo, and serves as an Idea Strategist at TEDxNewEngland.

When strategic planning fails, it’s often because organizations either overlook their core values or struggle to communicate their vision effectively. Many businesses approach strategy with a broad brainstorming phase, leading to unrealistic or misaligned initiatives. How can leaders align decisions with their organization’s internal philosophy to catalyze intentional change?

According to message strategist Tamsen Webster, every decision follows an internal logic based on people’s existing beliefs. To foster lasting change, leaders must communicate in a way that aligns with these existing perspectives. Tamsen explains how identity shapes decision-making and why brand messaging should reflect true values rather than aspirational statements. By recognizing patterns in decision-making and communicating strategically, businesses can create messages that resonate deeply with employees and customers.

In this week’s episode of the Up Arrow Podcast, William Harris hosts Tamsen Webster, the Founder and Chief Learning Officer at Message Design Institute, to explore the nine principles of lasting change and how to gain buy-in for organizational transformation. Tamsen shares examples of strategic messaging in renowned brands, how to balance two opposing beliefs, and how storytelling and intuitive messaging influence effective communication.