Q. How do I know half of SEO companies can’t be trusted?
A. Because the other half tell me so. . .
In fact I get told quite a lot by SEO companies so I thought I would attend Salford University’s SSMM course to help me make an informed decision when it comes to choosing a future SEO partner. Previous to joining the course finding an SEO specialist wasn’t too difficult as there are not too many days go by when I don’t receive an email or a sales call from an SEO company. They generally all start the same:
“Just been looking at your website, it’s really good but I couldn’t help noticing. . .”
At this point the pitch takes one of two approaches – either the use of vanity or fear to get my attention and the sale.
From here I’m told there are a lot of SEO companies that can’t deliver what they promise so I should be careful who I trust my business with.
I should explain . . .
Let me clear up one point I don’t work for large blue-chip organisation whose company logo would appear on an SEO companies website as sign of kudos and respectability. The company I work for, Wray Bros www.wraybros.co.uk is good at what it does and I believe has an enviable reputation in the B2B janitorial sector.
Nevertheless, it isn’t a household name nor is it a company with a huge marketing budget. So for all the courting I don’t kid myself we are a marquee signing. As an aside, I’ve often wondered – As we have a limited budget does that mean I’ll always be fishing from a poorer quality pool of SEO specialists?
Or could the same observations be made with companies blessed with much larger marketing budgets and recognised brands? Perhaps someone from a blue chip company could shed some light whether all things are relative?
As mentioned the intention is to use the information gained from the SSMM course to build my knowledge to become more effective in my search for the right SEO partner and to become a more productive and contributing client.
The original plan
The plan was to review potential supplier websites to determine if they follow the best practices as highlighted on the course. Some of the tools I was keen to use to compare SEO companies
A change of direction
However, the more I learned from the course and listening to guest experts talk in-depth about best practices for on-site optimisation and use of social media etc it dawned on me whatever quirks the SEO companies I have come into contact with may have a fair amount of the problems of unmet expectations have come from myself. There you go, I’ve said it – I’m a customer who isn’t always right!
I have since come to realise whereas I thought when I employed an SEO specialist I was paying for knowledge and results, in-fact in now understand I am paying for knowledge and their time. As I have a limited budget what can I realistically expect of someone to achieve with limited time.
Perhaps, if I think and act differently I can use that limited budget more effectively?
The new plan of action
Over the following months the intention is to differentiate the Wray Bros website from the many competitors within the janitorial supplies market. The plan and the starting point is to get back to basics and ensure the redeveloped website foundations are sound before considering new activities such as proactive link building or using social media.
The first phase of the plan is not to get fixated by traffic volume but concentrate on the conversion rate. This is to be achieved by becoming an authority in our field by developing unique and helpful content.
One aspect of the janitorial market is that the majority of distributors use the same images and copy supplied to them by the manufacturers without thought of its suitability for the web or the fact their own competitors are using exact same material.
First phase for redeveloped website is to improve the on-site optimisation
Second phase activities include
Finally, what is my view on SEO companies and my limited budget?
The Salford University course has definitely provided me with some useful skills to be more self-reliant yet it has also made me realise the value of a good SEO specialist. I believe I can use that limited budget more effectively with especially with specific targeted activities? So the next step is to find an SEO specialist and now I know that easily more than half of SEO companies CAN be trusted.
Comments are closed.
Cracking post Steve, Congrats on winning best blog post and presentation for SSMM this time! Sounds like the course has been effective in raising your awareness to do some things and equipping you with the skills to appoint a reliable and effective SEO expert. Let us know how it goes. You might consider adding a link from Panda and Penguin, but more importantly, tweak the Wray Bros link to anchor text that describes what you do.
A well deserved award last night Steve! I am glad that you now know that we are not all cowboys (although unfortunately there are still some out there!).
You are now in a far better position than most webmasters out there – you know what should and shouldn’t be done!
All the best with improving your site over the next few months.