SEO case study: How SoftUni BUDITEL doubled its organic visibility

Client –

SoftUni BUDITEL

Category –

The Brand

SoftUni is a leading Bulgarian educational organization focused on practical training in technology, digital marketing, and creative professions. The academy offers courses and comprehensive training programs developed in collaboration with business experts. Through its practical approach, SoftUni helps students acquire real-world skills and prepare for successful professional careers.

The Task

The goal of the SEO strategy was to support the high school’s sustainable growth through a strong organic presence in search engines. This involved reaching parents at an early stage of their selection process, building trust and expertise on topics related to education and admissions, and simultaneously supporting application campaigns for students after the 7th grade through targeted work on high-intent searches.

The focus was on attracting high-quality, relevant traffic with real potential for interest and action, rather than simply increasing the number of visits.

The Challenge

High competition
The educational niche is highly competitive, especially for searches such as “private high school in Sofia” and “application after 7th grade,” where established institutions with a long-standing online presence are already dominant.

2

New brand
The rebranding of “Svetlina” private school to SoftUni BUDITEL created a need to establish a distinct organic identity within the context of the highly recognizable SoftUni brand. This made it challenging to position the new brand as an independent educational choice.

3

Inconsistent search behavior
A large portion of the audience’s queries are inconsistent and emotionally charged. This required a strategy that covers the entire user journey—from initial information gathering and trust-building to actual action.

Our Approach

Analysis of search intent and audience behavior

At the core of the SEO strategy, we placed a detailed analysis of the searches parents conduct and an understanding of the different stages in the decision-making process. Key queries were grouped in a logical sequence—from topics related to education, future skills, and alternative learning models, through searches assisting in high school selection and orientation in the application process, to clearly expressed transactional queries related to document submission. This approach allowed for the construction of a comprehensive SEO funnel instead of isolated pages without a strategic connection between them.
Content-first SEO approach

Based on the analysis, we developed and optimized content that addresses real parental questions and concerns, uses a clear, supportive, and expert tone, and is structured to be easily understood by both users and search engines.
The focus was on creating and developing a smaller number of strategically important pages with long-term value, rather than mass-publishing content without a clear SEO and business purpose.
On-page optimization and internal linking

In parallel with the content, systematic on-page optimization was performed, including improving the structure of key pages, optimizing title and meta descriptions, and building a logical internal linking structure between informational materials and admission-related pages. These changes aimed to better match search intent and more clearly position the content in SERPs, improving the user experience and making it easier for search engines to read the site’s hierarchy and priorities.
Data-driven optimization

All SEO decisions were supported by continuous data analysis in Google Search Console, Google Analytics 4, and Ahrefs. This allowed us to identify searches with the greatest potential, direct our efforts toward key pages, and apply focused optimizations to high-intent keywords.
Backlink strategy during rebranding

As part of the strategy, a targeted audit of referring domains and the backlink profile associated with the rebranding process was conducted. We analyzed legacy links and brand mentions to ensure the transfer of link equity between the old “Svetlina” identity and the new SoftUni BUDITEL brand.
This process helped achieve more consistent brand signals, a better understanding of the site by search engines, and a stable foundation for independent organic positioning.