The market the tools do not cover
I've spent 8+ years helping startups and growing businesses build and scale their digital presence through marketing and SEO.
Throughout my career, I've worked across startups in EdTech, SaaS, healthcare, travel, and professional services, leading marketing initiatives from early-stage growth to international expansion. I've also founded several ventures, giving me a founder's perspective on building products, finding product-market fit, and creating sustainable growth.
Today, I work with Toptal as an SEO strategist, helping companies improve their technical SEO, organic visibility, and long-term search performance.
I'm particularly passionate about the future of search, AI, and making African businesses more discoverable online through world-class SEO.
What I work on
- SEO
- semantic SEO
- technical SEO
- local SEO
- GEO
Where I have worked
May 2026 – Present
Founder · Yet.et
Building a platform to make Ethiopia's startup ecosystem more visible and connected — founder stories, startup profiles, ecosystem resources and opportunities in one place.
January 2026 – Present
Founder · SEO Ethiopia
Publishing research, education and actionable SEO strategy for founders, marketers and exporters in a market the global resources do not cover.
July 2024 – Present
Marketing Specialist · Toptal
Working with Toptal clients on complex SEO and growth problems: data-driven organic growth strategy, technical and on-page SEO, and translating insight into measurable outcomes.
January 2023 – Present
SEO Manager, freelance · Independent
Technical SEO, local SEO, GEO and go-to-market for US startups and SMBs across home services, healthcare, arts, education and e-commerce.
October 2020 – March 2024
Founder · Alter Digital Solutions
Helped startups build brand awareness, co-create their MVPs and reach their first users.
Companies I founded
- Alter Digital Solutionsalterdigitalsolutions.com
A digital marketing agency in Ethiopia.
- rank.etrank.et
Ethiopia's only SEO-only agency.
- SEO Ethiopiaseoethiopia.com
A publication covering Amharic search, technical SEO and visibility in the Ethiopian market.
- Yet.etyet.et
A platform where you find Ethiopian startups, founders, and the ecosystem behind them. In Ethiopia, across Africa, and the diaspora.
Companies I have worked with
Written about elsewhere
Studies and credentials
October 2022 – February 2023
Quantic School of Business and Technology
MBA
November 2021 – October 2024
BiTS College
MSc, Information Technology Management
September 2015 – February 2021
Addis Ababa University
BSc, Computer Software Engineering
What people ask
Who is Michael Ashebir?
Michael Ashebir is an SEO consultant for the Ethiopian market, working on semantic, technical and local SEO, and the founder of rank.et and SEO Ethiopia.
What does he work on?
SEO, semantic SEO, technical SEO, local SEO, GEO — mainly for the Ethiopian market, where the global tooling returns little or nothing.
What has he founded?
Alter Digital Solutions, rank.et, SEO Ethiopia, Yet.et.
Why does this page exist?
It is the canonical home of the Michael Ashebir entity: one address that search engines and AI answer engines can resolve the name to, with every other profile linked from it.