Jesse James
Woods

VP, SEO & Localization at KAYAK. The authority on travel SEO.

I write Travel SEO Pulse — the newsletter for people who care about search in travel. No hot takes, no recycled tips. Just what I'd tell a travel SEO team to pay attention to this week.

From scaling classifieds at Yalwa, to launching new markets at HolidayCheck, to running international SEO for one of the world's biggest travel metasearch engines.

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Jesse James Woods headshot

Where I've Built My Career

KAYAK HolidayCheck Shopgate Yalwa
15+
Years in Travel SEO
60+
Markets
25+
Languages
7
Brands at KAYAK

About

VP, SEO & Localization at KAYAK

Jesse James Woods is an enterprise SEO leader with 15+ years of experience specializing in international search across 30+ countries — spanning Google, Baidu, Naver, and Yandex. Currently VP of SEO & Localization at KAYAK, leading organic growth across 7 brands, 60+ markets, and 25+ languages.

Based in Berlin, Germany. Girl dad. Founded expatjobseeker.de to help expats find work in Germany.

Education: William & Mary — Bachelor of Arts, Government.

What Colleagues Say

Trusted by People I've Worked With

"A real pro in big-scale SEO — Jesse is a very talented person who I really enjoy working together with. His skills are really remarkable."

Rene Lavrijsen

Startup Owner

"Will always find a solution very fast — Jesse is the colleague everyone wants to have. As a good team player he's always ready to help."

Perrine Labaune

Web Consultant, Swisscom

"Strong expertise on SEO — I am very pleased to work with Jesse at HolidayCheck. He has a strong expertise on SEO and in online Marketing."

Carlos Ferrer Fernandez

Intl Marketing Manager, Evaneos

Experience

Career Timeline

VP, SEO & Localization
KAYAK
Aug 2022 – Present
Leading SEO and localization strategy for one of the world's biggest travel metasearch engines. Overseeing organic growth across 7 brands, 60+ markets, and 25+ languages.
Senior Director, SEO & Localization / Managing Director, KAYAK Germany GmbH
KAYAK
Feb 2022 – Aug 2022
Scaled international SEO strategy across global markets while managing the Germany entity.
Senior Director, KAYAK Product SEO / Managing Director, KAYAK Germany GmbH
KAYAK
Sep 2021 – Feb 2022
Led product SEO strategy and managed the German subsidiary.
Director, KAYAK Product SEO & Managing Director, KAYAK Germany GmbH
KAYAK
Feb 2019 – Sep 2021
Directed product SEO strategy and managed the German subsidiary. Scaled organic search across 40+ domains in 50+ markets.
SEO Analyst
KAYAK
Jul 2015 – Feb 2019
Built and grew the SEO function from analyst to management, establishing processes and tooling for enterprise-scale optimization.
Head of SEO, New Markets
HolidayCheck
Feb 2014 – Jun 2015
Launched SEO for new markets at one of Europe's largest hotel review platforms.
Head of SEO
Shopgate
Jul 2013 – Jan 2014
Directed SEO for a SaaS mobile commerce company, building organic acquisition from the ground up.
International SEO
Yalwa
2010 – 2013
Built international SEO across 40+ countries for a global classifieds network. First role in enterprise SEO.
Founder
expatjobseeker.de
Founded a job board to help expats find work in Germany.

Newsletter

Travel SEO Pulse

The newsletter for people who care about search in travel. No hot takes, no recycled tips. Just what I'd tell a travel SEO team to pay attention to this week.

Subscribe on Substack

Who this is for

  • In-house SEOs at travel brands
  • Marketing leads responsible for organic growth
  • Agency folks working with travel clients
  • Founders building travel products

What I won't send you

  • Recycled tips from other newsletters
  • Hot takes with no substance
  • Generic AI hype with no travel context
  • Affiliate spam or paid promotions

Speaking & Consulting

Speaking & Consulting

I occasionally work with travel brands and conferences that want deep, practical sessions on AI search, international SEO, and organic growth.

Travel SEO International Search Strategy AI in Search Localization at Scale

Past Speaking

How to Reach a Global Audience Through International SEO
SMX Munich
How to Boost SEO Through Internal Linking
Emerce eTravel
Invite Me To Speak

Contact

Get in Touch

Whether it's a speaking engagement, consulting project, or just to say hello — I'd love to hear from you.

Find me on LinkedIn →

What I'm open to

  • Speaking engagements & keynotes
  • SEO consulting for travel brands
  • Podcast & media appearances
  • Conference workshops