Vraag het aan de SEO Guru

Before I give you the list that can actually help you find the help you need with little risk of being disappointed, I first need to ask you to do two things for me and for yourself. If you can’t do it, then the value this list offers will be greatly diminished. BUT, if you can do these two very simple things, then I can do a lot to remove the stress, worry and risk involved in finding a qualified online promotion specialist. AHHHHH, sounds nice doesn’t it?

The things I’m going to ask you to do are simple but that is not to say they’re easy. In fact, they are two of the most difficult things for human beings to do in life. That’s a shame but that is the way it is.

The first thing I’m going to ask you to do is to stop letting someone else do your thinking for you. Stop just repeating something you read on a blog somewhere that sounded good and start THINKING for your self. Read it, think about it, and decide for yourself if the statement provides value to you. I encourage you to argue BUT, use your own arguments for or against and not just something someone else said. If you agree with something because it “sounds” logical, stop and decide if it IS logical or just sounds that way,

This is YOUR business we’re talking about here and it is far too important to let someone else make your decisions. Keep this in mind, if you succeed it is to your credit. Success came to you by you making the right choices, but by the same token, failure is yours to claim also. You can blame something or someone else all you want but it is still you that lost your money and must taste the bitterness of failure. That is a law of nature and can not be changed.

Secondly, and this is the really hard one, be honest with yourself. When you see something pointed out that strikes a little close to home, admit it and deal with it. Of course it is easy to blame your mistakes on others but the bottom line is it is still your problem and the smart marketer will be able to look at their mistakes and learn from them. When you refuse to own up to your mistakes you are likely to repeat them BUT, if you take your whipping and accept that you made a mistake, you learn from that experience and are less likely to make the same mistake again. Makes sense huh?

All rightee then, here we go.

#10

Never respond to an email offer you did not specifically ask for.

There are many reputable companies who use email marketing but there is also no question spamming 10 million email addresses is much easier and faster than building a reputable company by servicing clients and providing value.

So I’m not saying all unsolicited email you get is from a scam artist but I am saying that if you think you need a product or service, it is far too easy to find an established company by you contacting them instead of them contacting you.

When you get an unsolicited email offer and think to yourself, “that sounds pretty good”, remember that of course it sounds good. Sounding good is the foundation of every scam that has ever come down the pike.

#9.

Look for a physical address listed on the website.

Finding an address listed on a website is no guarantee that you won’t be disappointed but it is a good indication that the intent of this person was not to cheat people but rather to establish and build a reputable business. You can be confident that when an address is listed publicly that the owner of the business fully intends to provide a value driven service or product to his customers. Con men do not want you coming to their office and will go to great lengths to stay hidden.

No physical address or just a PO Box is a definite red flag.

#8.

Check for a local phone number listed on their site and verify it.

Again, finding a phone number listed on a website is no guarantee of you finding the right match but it is an indication that the intent of putting the number on the site is to offer clients a way to contact you easily. That is something someone does when they intend to build a business.

Of course anyone can get a cell number and put it on the website. If someone is trying to grab your money and run even they need a way for you to call them BUT, anyone who lists their number in the phone book, who invests in things like multiple lines or a toll free number, those people are not trying to grab your money and run. Those people are trying to build a business.

Once you have found the address and phone numbers on the site of the business you’re considering, it is too easy to verify the information. Just go to yellowpages.com or pick up the phone and call information for that city. That information being in those places is as it should be. If something doesn’t match it is possible the company has recently relocated or something but it does raise those red flags.

#7.

Having a phone number listed is good but having someone answer it is even better. 

Getting a phone put in, even a business phone, is relatively inexpensive and does not represent a huge investment. However, making the investment to actually have an employee responsible for handling phone calls is a good indication that this business fully intends to provide at least a basic level of customer service.

Now, call the number and see if someone either answers or you actually get a call back before the end of the next business day. If you don’t there is always the chance that something went wrong and the message didn’t get received but again, it is a red flag that should make you stop and look a little harder.

#6.

Send an email and see if you get a timely response.

Of course anyone can have an email address but what you are looking for here is an indication that they take their business seriously. If you don’t get a response within one business day, put this one at the bottom of the list.

#5.

Search for their name and/or their company name

In this day and age, privacy is an illusion. True there is still lying and cheating and hiding behind a veil of technology, but anyone that has actually started and operated any business with even a minimum online presence for any length of time has left a highly visible and easy to find, digital trail. One search at your favorite engine will reveal the good, the bad and the ugly.

#4.

Spend more than 5 minutes on their website.

What you’re looking for here is a look and “feel” of professionalism and an indication that this site represents a going concern. You want to know that this company has built and is adding to, a site they intend to be a resource for potential clients for the long term.

#3.

Check out the guarantee

We’ve all read hundreds of times how no one can guarantee SEO results. Well, the fact is that any professional should be able to offer a guarantee of minimum levels of performance. And as a consumer, you have a right to expect that guarantee to be lived up to and honored.

So, the trick is to read the guarantee on the site and if it sounds too good to be true or it doesn’t make sense to you, scratch this one from the list and move on.

What you are looking for is something that makes sense and that you are confident you can track and verify. Something with set time frames and specific results.

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 {pack you bags kids, we're going on a little side trip}

Ok, remember back at the first of the post I asked you to do two things for me? One was think for yourself and the other was to be honest with yourself. Well, we’ve come to the two most important steps for finding a competent online promotion specialist and it has much more to do with you than it does to do with them.

So far the tips I’ve given you on finding an SEO would be pretty much the same exact tips I would suggest to finding a plumber or a lawyer or a mechanic. In every profession there are those who specialize in specific aspects of their industry. Some are better at transmission repair and some are better at corporate law. Not being disappointed with your choice has a lot to do with knowing what you need and finding the person best qualified for that task. SEO is not that different from other professions in that respect.

Also, in any industry there are those who can not be trusted because they are either incompetent or they are simply liars and con men. These people are not as big a threat as some would like you to believe for the simple fact that those types of people tend to not be in that  business for long. There is something to be said for a multiple year track record in lieu of word of mouth recommendations.

But all in all, the vast majority of people in business are in business because they actually perform a service that has value to their clients and contrary to most link bait, SEO is not that different. If you follow the simple tips outlined in #10 through #3 you could very likely find a competent plumber, lawyer or yes, even an SEO and avoid the small percentage of those who would simply cheat you out of your money through theft or incompetence.

But one issue that is unique to the online promotion industry is the misconception that anyone needs to “SEO” their site. That term is far too broad and far too vague to not expect to be disappointed with whatever results you get.

Every commercial website needs to generate qualified traffic. Every site needs to optimize navigation and usability. Every site needs to always strive to increase conversions and every site needs effective copywriting but which of those things are you referring to when you say you need someone to “SEO” your site?

Most people that would make the comment, “I need someone to SEO my site”, are referring to wanting to be in the top of Google for their primary target term, (usually the broadest possible single word term that even remotely represents the product they are wanting to offer), and these people are destined to be disappointed with any online promotion specialist they hire as soon as the words leave their lips.

You see, first page search engine placement does not make you any money. Search engine placement is an expense, and not a small one at that. I think this bears repeating.

First page search engine placement does not make you any money

Sales generate income not search engine placements. Even so, sales do not generate profits and without profits, you certainly don’t need SEO. Profits come from running an effective business that generates more income than expenses.

Being #1 for any keyword does not make sales and does not make profits. All it does is create an expense that is intended to get someone to your page so you can make the sale but being on the first page of a search engine is a long way from actually getting money from a customer.

Some would say that this is elementary and everyone knows what profits are and how you get them BUT, if you have ever said you need someone to SEO your site, then no, you don’t understand this most basic of concepts and the faster you accept that, the faster you can start actually making money from your online business or quit wasting everyone’s times, (especially yours), and get a job.

Let me ask you a question. Have you ever done a cash flow study for your online business? If you answered no, then you don’t need SEO you need a business plan.

Have you ever set a short term and long term objective and strategy for your online business? If you answered no then you don’t need SEO you need a business plan.

If you don’t have a business plan but are saying you need someone to “SEO” your site then you are not wanting a professional service to help you improve your business, you are wanting to pay someone a little bit of money to make you a lot of money without you having to do the real work that everyone else has to do to reap the rewards of a successful business and guess what? You are very likely going to be disappointed.

If you do have a business plan and no traffic, then you need someone to help you build the site. You need a graphic designer, a copywriter and someone who can understand your business objectives and provide you with any custom scripting you need to make your website perform properly to be able to actually deliver the product or service your business plan calls for. You can find a lot of people fully competent to perform these tasks and for not a lot of money, (that should have been budgeted for in your initial cash flow studies).

Once you have a decent site with good navigation, properly working scripts and secure ordering, now you actually have an online business and now you need to get qualified traffic to the site. Again, whether organic or PPC, there are a lot of people who can perform this task at a wide range of prices that you can be confident of performance.

The point is that you would never call a plumber and ask them what it would cost to WO, (water optimize), your house. It’s your house and you would know you needed a plumber to fix the leak in the pipes. You would perform due diligence, (after all it is your money), and expect the plumber you chose to fix the leak. Why would online promotion services be different?

You would not contact a well known attorney and ask her what it would cost to CO, (court optimize), your drunk driving charge. It was your screw up and you know you need someone to keep your butt out of jail.

It should not be any different with hiring an online business optimization specialist. It’s your business, (assuming that is what you have), and you should already know if your primary obstacle is traffic generation, design, copy, scripting or low conversions. Once you know and can articulate what you need, finding the right person to do the job without much risk is no more difficult than finding a plumber to fix the leak.

So, these last two tips are about you and if you can be honest and see that you may be lacking in some areas of business, all you have to do is fix that first THEN look for someone to do any kind of SEO and you won’t have to worry even if you pick a bad one at first and are disappointed, the business model is still solid and it is no greater loss than hiring a plumber you wouldn’t hire again.

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#2.

Ask people you respect of their opinion

We all have blogs and forums we like to hang out at and in each of those communities we have people we tend to agree with. We find ourselves developing a level of respect for their opinions because they always seem to us to make more sense than some of the others. Ask those people who they think are competent BUT, the trick is don’t ask for an opinion on who is a good SEO. Instead ask specifics such as who would you recommend for traffic generation or for keyword research or usability etc.

Once you identify the specific area of your online business that you feel needs help, this eliminates the majority of people you may have to consider if you were telling yourself you needed an SEO. If you need higher conversions, then ask in your favorite hang outs if anyone is familiar with someone who can help with increasing conversions. You are likely to get back answers from people who have first or at least second hand experience with someone they saw those kind of results from. This approach makes so much more sense than posting another silly post asking someone to recommend another SEO and then having to listen to all the whines and complaints and end up being more confused than before you asked the question. Ask for specifics and you’ll not see this problem at all.

#1.  >drum roll please<

Have a real business plan, never ask for someone to SEO your site and know what you want an SEO to do and be able to verify when it’s done

If you ever catch yourself saying you need someone to SEO your site, STOP! If you are saying that, you have a problem and SEO isn’t going to solve it.

Let me give you a simple two question test that can help you determine if you need any kind of professional online promotional help. This is oversimplified and there is a lot more to actually building and running any business. My intention is not to belittle the significance of developing solid business planning but rather my objective is to point out that if you do not have these two answers as an absolute bare minimum then I’m hoping it will force you to realize that YOU have a problem that SEO can not fix.

#1. What is your short term financial objective and strategy? How much money do you plan to generate in the next 6 months and how?

If you can not answer that question, YOU DO NOT NEED SEO. You need a business plan.

#2. Why would I buy your product or service from your website instead of a website that is already there? What is your unique value proposition? 

Again, if you can not answer this question with a logical, realistic response, then please, don’t waste my time or your money. An SEO is not a magician and can not magically make you rich with your great idea for a few hundred bucks if you don’t have a real business plan that you are prepared to make a substantial investment of time, work and money of your own.

Now, if you do have a business plan or an online business that is generating some traffic and/or sales now, then you should already have an idea of what you need. If you are getting over 50 unique visits a day but no sales, then your primary problem is conversions and you don’t need someone to SEO your site, you need someone who can look at your site and see what needs to happen to get a minimum of about 4% conversions, (I use the 4% number because in my 11 years in online promotion that has proven time and again to be fairly consistent over a wide range of products and services. Believe me, 20% is much, much better). You need someone who is experienced and can apply resources to your situation as a conversion specialist. 

Once you get a minimum of about 4% conversions, (assuming that generates a profit of course), THEN you need someone that can increase traffic. There are a LOT of ways to do that and maybe the person that helps with the conversions is the right person for that job and maybe not, but the point is to look for someone that can increase traffic instead of looking for someone to SEO your site. Specifics that fit with your business plan and the results can be verified and tracked.

The bottom line ---- either you have an online business or you are hoping to get rich quick. If it is the former, there are a LOT of really good resources available to you at very reasonable prices if you know what you want. If it is the latter, you will be disappointed and you can blame the SEO industry all you want but you still need a business plan or a job.   

 PEACE Y’all

You kids quit throwin dirt on that neighbor boy and get washed up for supper.