Expertise & Experience:
Quick overview
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Content Strategist / Online Marketing Consultant
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Founder & CEO dekohero.com, Webshop
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Founder of austermedia® Marketing Agency
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Corporate Communications, PR & Marketing Freelancer
15 years Freelancer
12 years Agency projects
12 years Digital Marketing
10 years Corporate Communications
9 years SEO
8 years Corporate Publishing
8 years Freelance PR / Marketing Author online/print
8 years Journalist online/print
7 years Head of Content - Led several multilingual Content Team
6 years iGaming
6 years Affiliate marketing
3 years e-commerce
Profound experience in data analysis and making recommendations on SEO- or marketing performance reports
Study:
Sociology
(Social Psychology, Communications, Economy)
University of Wuppertal, Germany
I work for:
companies of all sizes | agencies | corporations | startups | individual entrepreneurs | freelancers | online shops | coaches | artists | cultural institutions | associations
Content:
Content Strategy Development | Content Marketing | Content Leadership (multilingual) | Content Freelancer & Agency coordination | Editorial Management | Content KPI-Management | Content Organization | Content Production Coordination | Corporate Communications | Stakeholder Management | Content Planning | Content Coordination | Content Project Management | Internal Communications | Content Calendar creation | Content HR & Recruiting | Corporate Publishing | Magazine production (online/print) | Content audit | Content workflow & process installment | Audience-Centric Content | Content Governance
Digital Marketing & SEO:
Conversion- Funnel- & Landing Page Optimization | e-Commerce | Lead generation & -nurturing | E-Mail Marketing | Ads/PPC | SEM (Search Engine Marketing) | SMM (Social Media Marketing) | Buyer Persona development | Customer Journey | Data analysis | Marketing audit | on-page/off-page SEO | Keyword analysis | Performance analysis | Marketing- & SEO KPI Management | Digital Strategy | Affiliate Marketing
Tools:
Mac | Microsoft Office | shopify | wordpress | wix | CoreMedia | Joomla | Basecamp | JIRA | Astana | MeisterTask | Evernote | Photoshop | MailChimp | Klaviyo | Omnisend | Canva | Loom | Trello | Slack | Grammarly | zoom | SEMrush | ahrefs | Moz | Screaming Frog | authoritas | Ubersuggest | Google Analytics | Google Adwords | Google Search Console | Google Keyword Planner | Google Merchant Center | AI-Tools (Chat GPT, Jasper, WriteSonic etc)
What others say:
Direct project connections, customers, and work relationships
Thomas Marotzke
CEO SIDESTEP (Foot Locker)
I worked with Kay Auster over a time span of 5 years - and we extended our project with him 4 times. He always adapted to new requirements and brought in a mindset and attitude that a company like ours expects from an external service provider. He always had a keen eye on details and he and his team cooperated absolutely flawless with all our employees and all the involved very sensitive international big brand stakeholders. Highly recommended
Markus Christmann
Owner, Agency Goldene Generation
Kay implemented his excellent specialist knowledge adequately, independently and in a result-oriented manner. He has a quick mind, showed himself to be confident and flexible even under time pressure. He always showed a high degree of initiative and completed his tasks with precision. He found optimal solutions, always planned all projects carefully and guaranteed consistent implementation. As an agency, you can also let Kay without hesitation talk to customers - so I can definitely recommend Kay Auster.
Hiro Kishi
Vice President, Deutsche Telekom AG
Kay worked as Freelancer in Corporate Communications of Deutsche Telekom over a period of 5 years. He always solved the tasks assigned to him with maximum creativity and skill to our complete satisfaction. His way of working as an external service provider and communicating with various Telekom executives and employees in all projects was exemplary. I have no hesitation in recommending Kay Auster
Erik Gjerde
CEO Highlightmedia Ltd.
During our almost 2 years in the project I have always found Kay to be an honest and dependable individual. I highly recommend, without reservation that you seriously consider Kay Auster for projects within your organization. I am confident that he will be able to quickly provide value to your team.
Julian Pesek
Owner, Agency Adtracktive
Kay Auster is a very experienced marketing all-rounder who makes every project better, both professionally and personally. My GoTo expert for strategic content, eCommerce, and other projects.
Highly recommended.
Bente Matthes
Social Media Expert
I know Kay for over 15 years now. Working with him is and was always a pleasure. He knows his stuff, is a quick thinker and goes straight to the point. If you consider to add any versatile, additional horsepower to your agency project I really recommend you should definitely consider to talk to Kay
Dylan Grech
CEO nsjet.com & Lifeboat e-Commerce
I enjoy working with Kay and he helped growing my business through various ideas and concepts. He also has a great attention to detail, understands certain potential issues very quickly and always came up with several useful solutions. So if you should consider Kay Auster for any of your eCommerce projects I can definitely recommend him. You would appreciate to have him in any of your projects.
Prof. Dr. Sebastian Gehlert
Sporthochschule Köln
In my capacity as a doctor of sports medicine, I've never worked directly with Kay on projects, but was in lively exchange with him for some of his projects or in the past as part of his research as a sports journalist, often with my expertise. Kay has in-depth sports knowledge. For any sports-related projects, I would unreservedly recommend Kay Auster.
Alexandre Grella
Senior SEO
Kay Auster is one of the best professionals I was given the opportunity to work with in my career. He has an extensive knowledge in his field and also understands the interconnections with areas as diverse as technical SEO, project management or strategy. Kay was always clear, organized and absolutely straight forward. If you need anybody for your project(s) with good leadership skills, and knowing what he is doing, I highly recommend to take Kay Auster in your considerations.
Working with Content Strategists
Collaborating with a freelance content strategist offers businesses a range of advantages, leveraging the unique attributes and independence that freelancers bring to the table without being influenced by internal sensitivities or pre-existing dynamics
Content Strategists just point out things you might not have considered yet.
You are still wondering why your online business is not gaining the results you like - even while you have all those "experts", daily working intensively on your SEO, paid Ads, Social Media, Email Marketing, and all those other single marketing tactics?
My job is to make you think about what your business needs to prosper, grow, and develop - enabling you and supporting you to gain results in your online marketing efforts. As we are all aware, as a Business Owner, it's crucial sometimes to take a little moment to reflect on your strategies. Especially if it comes to online marketing. Especially when despite your earnest efforts and a team of dedicated "experts," the desired results remain elusive. It's akin to steering a ship with all hands on deck, but somehow, you find yourself drifting farther away from your destination. Consider this: you have specialists meticulously handling your SEO, Email Marketing, paid Ads, Social Media, you name it – each a piece of the intricate puzzle that is online marketing. Yet, the irony persists – the more time, money, or people you invest in these areas, the more your anticipated outcomes seem to slip through your fingers. Now, let's address the amusing paradox that you find yourself entangled in – the perpetual focus on SEO and various online marketing tactics, despite the underwhelming results. It's like trying to bake a perfect cake by adding more of the same ingredients that have failed to deliver the desired flavor. So, why persist with a strategy that's not yielding the results you envision? Maybe it's time to acknowledge the elephant in the room and consider the transformative impact of collaborating with a Content Strategist. Your online marketing performance demands a shift in perspective. It's time to break free from the illusion that more of the same will lead to different outcomes. Shift your focus a tiny bit further to impactful, audience-centric content. Your audience isn't just a statistic – they are your future customers.
It's time you take care of them now.
Projects:
Content Strategist
Freelancer, 2015 - today
kayauster.com
Freelancer & Remote
SERVICES:
* Content Strategy
* Content Lead
* Digital Marketing & eCommerce
* Professional Agency Support
Since 2015 I work from Malta for several German and international agencies, startups, companies and publishers as a contractor and/or remote freelancer.
Founder & CEO | e-commerce
2021 - today
dekohero.com
Onlineshop for interior & decoration
Besides my work as a Content Strategist, end of 2021 I started to build my e-commerce business dekohero.com on the side and built it myself from scratch. Round 1.500 products got implemented and after a couple of hundred sales, it is time to slowly scale dekohero further to another level.
Platform: Shopify, 2.0 template "Warehouse"
Ads: Facebook/Instagram, Pinterest, Google Shopping
Installments: Google Analytics, Google Search Console, Google Merchant Center, Klaviyo Email Marketing Setup.
Apps: Lucky Orange Heatmap, Rewind Backups, Simprosys Google Shopping Feed, Return Prime, Assortion Upsell, Wishlist Hero, Rapid Search, Shopvote, EasyBy product editor, Power Tool Bulk Tag editor
Marketplace integrations: kaufland, ebay
Supplier Integration: via API fully automized fulfillment
Payment Provider integration: PayPal, Apple Pay, stripe
Besides consulting several agency clients as a Content Strategist & Online Marketing Consultant in Germany, please find a few samples of projects/jobs in different areas/industries I did in the past.
Actual projects:
Content Strategy & Online Consulting
Cultural Association, Vienna, Austria
e-Commerce Consulting & Content Strategy
Webshop, Berlin, Germany, Agency project (NDA)
German market
AI Consulting & Online Marketing Consulting
Real Estate Company, Vienna, Austria
Website & Content Strategy, Online Marketing
CRM Tool Company, Germany
More Project samples:
Content Strategy & Startup communication
Agricultural Investment Project, Sicily, Italy (NDA)
German market
Content Localization Project, Affiliate Marketing, Malta/Seychelles
German market
Content Lead & Project management, Affiliate Marketing
Sweden/Malta, German market
Content Strategy & e-Commerce Consulting,
e-Commerce project, Malta
Omnichannel Content Strategy, Bank
Agency Project, Malta (NDA)
Business Development, Content Marketing Department, Design/Marketing Agency, Malta
Content Lead, iGaming Operator, Malta, (6 languages/markets)
Content Lead, German Affiliate Marketing, Malta
German market (NDA)
Founder austermedia® Marketing Agency
2009 - 2015
Cologne, Germany
12 employees & freelancers
Corporate Communications, Corporate Publishing, PR, Marketing & Brand Communications
Client & Project Stakeholder samples:
Foot Locker/Runners Point, WEKA Publishing, Siegwerk, Lacoste Footwear, Adidas, NIKE, Onitsuka Tiger, Asics, New Balance, Tommy Hilfiger, Fred Perry, Timberland, Puma and many more
Sample project austermedia® :
2009 - 2014
Corporate Publishing
Client: Foot Locker/Runners Point
Customer Magazine
In 2009 Foot Locker / Runners Point asked me to realize their customer magazine SIDESTEPmag. I realized the full production with austermedia® and created a whole new concept for the magazine. It was handed out in all of their 80 stores in Germany plus in Switzerland. As well we created a slightly reduced digital version which was presented via Digital Signage on screens in each store.
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80 pages, 200,000 copies per issue, quarterly
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Created and installed full project management
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Full content planning & production Print & Digital Signage
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Layout
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Re-design by project takeover
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Improved sub-brand awareness from 8% to 20%
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Contract extended 4 times
Worked directly with and coordinated approx. 40 international big-brand stakeholders like: Adidas, NIKE, Onitsuka Tiger, Asics, New Balance, Tommy Hilfiger, Fred Perry, Timberland, Puma and many more.
FootLocker / RunnersPoint is the world’s biggest Sneaker retailer
Corporate Communications, PR- & Marketing
Freelancer, 2003 - 2010
Cologne, Germany
I worked for several marketing agencies as contractor and for direct clients in Corporate Publishing, Brand Communication, Internal Communications, Crisis Communication, PR and Marketing
+300 publications print/online in Magazines & Corporate websites
Client samples: Deutsche Telekom AG, McFit, Lufthansa, Allianz, Sport1, hombrero.de
I worked for approx. 50 agencies
Sample project Corporate Communications:
2004 - 2009
Corporate Comunications
Client: Deutsche Telekom AG / T-Mobile
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Head of Corporate Intranet
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Senior Editor, multi-award winning magazine "you & me"
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Content Management System Training (CMS CoreMedia)
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Editorial Lead "FIFA WORLD CUP 2006"
Awards:
2008/2009: Best of Corporate Publishing BCP Award (Silver) 2008+2009, Mercury Award 2009, Inkom Grand Prix Gold 2008+2009, Astrid Award 2009, German PR Price 2008.
Journalist
Freelancer 2002 - 2009
Cologne, Germany
+500 publications print/online in +100 newspapers, magazines and online portals. Specialized in international football & NBA Basketball
Publication List (Extract): spiegel.de, zdf.de, 11FREUNDE, stern.de, TAZ - Die Tageszeitung, Der Tagesspiegel, sport1.de, FAZ - Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Passauer Neue Presse, Kölnische Rundschau, Augsburger Allgemeine, EXPRESS, NRZ - Neue Ruhr Zeitung, Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung and many more