Freelance digital marketer in the Netherlands

Freelance support for brands and agencies

Looking for a freelance digital Marketer in the Netherlands who connects strategy with execution? I'm Pieter Hogenbirk, based in Huizen. I help brands and agencies improve campaigns, content and data together. You can bring me in for a defined challenge or interim support within your team. I work remotely and on site; before starting, we discuss what presence suits the assignment, the collaboration and the people involved.

I don't start with a list of channels, but with your question. Do you need more relevant enquiries, clearer insights or better agency oversight? I map priorities and responsibilities and turn them into practical work. That way, you know what I'm working on and which decisions still need discussion.

From marketing strategy to everyday execution

My starting point is a coherent strategy. I review the audience, customer journey, available data and existing campaign setup. Together, we then decide which steps make sense. Sometimes that means new campaigns; sometimes improving measurement or refining existing ads first produces more useful insight.

Search engines, content and advertising

With SEA, I work on paid visibility; with SEO, I work on organic discoverability. I assess keywords, ads, landing pages and budget allocation together. Through social media marketing, I can complement campaigns with audience-focused communication and reach. I don't automatically recommend every channel: its contribution to your objective needs to be clear.

Data as a basis for discussion

Reliable analytics makes performance conversations more concrete. I look at tagging, conversions and dashboards so that reporting helps answer questions rather than simply displaying numbers. Which campaign deserves further investigation? Where is reliable information missing? I distinguish between what the data demonstrates and what remains a hypothesis.

Experience with Dutch brands

At ALDI Nederland, I was responsible for SEA, SEO and GEO in a coordinating and partly hands-on role. I worked with Springbok and Wavemaker, established search marketing strategies and contributed to automation. I also onboarded Publicis Groupe and trained that agency's internal SEA team for the handover. I bring that combination of practical expertise and coordination to new assignments.

For Mediahuis Nederland, I optimised search ads, social ads and affiliate marketing to support subscriber acquisition. I worked on brands including De Telegraaf and De Gooi- en Eemlander, within an agile team and alongside external agencies. My responsibilities included budget decisions and campaigns on the website and in the app. That experience encourages me to look beyond the advertising account alone.

“Pieter accomplished a lot in the time he worked with us (ALDI) in the field of search!”

— Matthijs van Bloem, ALDI Nederland

Working within and through agencies

At dentsu international, I analysed and optimised Google Ads accounts for clients including KPN and Karwei. For Valtech, I worked on advertising for ASML, Philips and Fellowmind. At Landal GreenParks, I held a freelance SEA management role through Reprise Digital. Working through an agency is therefore part of my experience, not just a potential arrangement.

I can complement the expertise already present: as a hands-on specialist, a sounding board for campaign decisions or a link between brand and agency. Through project management, I keep agreements and dependencies visible; at Audax, for example, I was interim marketing project manager for all paid digital channels, email and CRM of AKO, Bruna, ReadShop and BookSpot. I discuss who makes decisions, who supplies input and how to hand over my work, so temporary support remains useful after the assignment ends.

Nationwide collaboration with clear agreements

From Huizen, I discuss assignments throughout the Netherlands. For remote work, I agree on availability, meetings and documentation. I can join on site when a workshop, introduction or planning discussion calls for it. I don't promise a fixed schedule without understanding yours: we agree on the scope and working arrangements in advance.

I also consider where specialist support is needed. Not every problem calls for more advertising spend. Sometimes better landing pages, clearer responsibilities or a more reliable measurement plan are the sensible next step. I explain why I'm recommending something so you can follow the reasoning and retain oversight of the collaboration.

Experience by sector

Every sector has its own search behaviour, conversion definition and seasonal pattern. Below you can see the sectors I have worked in, with links to the corresponding assignments in my digital CV. End clients served through an agency are labelled as such.

Education and student recruitment

For NCOI Groep, I worked on SEA, SEO and social advertising for training labels. Through Zuiver Media, I ran student recruitment campaigns for several large vocational colleges and an international private school. The recurring challenge in this sector is reliable conversion tracking of enrolments and open day registrations.

Recruitment SEA and employer branding

Recruitment search is a discipline of its own: the product is a job and success depends on qualified applications, not clicks. Through Zuiver Media, I set up recruitment campaigns for a large technical services provider and a labour market platform for a port region; through Clever Strategy for Compagnon and Deen Recruitment; through Valtech, I worked on the global Google Ads activity with which ASML recruits engineers. For Gemeente Stichtse Vecht, I wrote the corporate story as a basis for employer branding.

Energy

At Vattenfall, I was Digital Media Manager within the Brand Media Team for eight European markets. For TotalEnergies, I provided SEO and SEA advice around the rebranding of Lampiris in Belgium, and for a large technical services provider I developed a recruitment strategy in Google Ads through Zuiver Media.

Media and publishing

For DPG Media, I worked on login initiatives, APIs, feeds and widgets. At Mediahuis Nederland, I optimised search, social and affiliate for subscriber acquisition of titles such as De Telegraaf. And at Audax, I was responsible for paid channels, email and CRM for AKO, Bruna, ReadShop and BookSpot.

Leisure

For Landal GreenParks, through Reprise Digital, I managed the Google Ads campaigns for six European markets on a daily basis for seven months. Through Zuiver Media, I ran visitor acquisition campaigns for a Dutch zoo and an ice rink and events venue, where season, weather and holidays drive demand.

Government and public sector

For the Kamer van Koophandel (Dutch Chamber of Commerce), I worked for two years as a freelance digital marketer on the nlgroeit project. Through Zuiver Media, I ran a P+R mobility campaign for a large municipality, for Gemeente Stichtse Vecht I was communications advisor, and for Stichting Parkinson.nl I am developing a joint search strategy for several collaborating platforms.

Luxury and writing instruments

At Montblanc, as SEA Manager, I coordinated all Google Ads and Bing accounts for all global markets. Through Zuiver Media, I worked for an international writing instruments brand, at the other end of the same product category, and through Clever Strategy for the luxury jewellery brand Otazu. At dentsu, I also optimised accounts for beauty brands such as Estée Lauder, Clinique and Jo Malone.

Retail and e-commerce

At ALDI Nederland, I was responsible for SEA, SEO and GEO for a year. For webshops such as Schaduwdoekplaza and Spullen voor Krullen, I managed Google Ads, Shopping and Channable feeds for marketplaces such as Bol.com and Amazon, and at ChannelEngine I was performance marketer for a marketplace integration platform.

Discuss your marketing challenge

Need temporary support or a freelance digital Marketer for a specific challenge? Get in touch. I'd like to discuss what's needed, how I could fit in and which next step makes sense.