You are here: Home / Archives for seo consulting

PICKING KEYWORDS

April 1, 2009 by · Comments 

 Picking keywords used to attract search engines can be an eye opening experience.  Often times the most popular words or the words having the most searches are misspelled forcing you to use a misspelled word in your content writing.  For most content writers this is very frustrating but a necessary component to SEO.  The next time you see a misspelled word used all over a particular website don’t be too quick to tell them their mistake.  Chances are they did it on purpose

Another problem I recently came across was a lack of keywords.  The topic I was marketing had some searches but nothing substantial to build a business on.  Had it not been for some trend research I did I probably would have advised the client to tailor their business just a bit to include a more searchable term.  So how did I choose their keyword to best describe their business yet also has enough searches to make it worthwhile?  First I looked for keywords/phrases that were characteristic of someone looking for something new or looking for ideas relating to that field.  Since it is a new concept it is the responsibility of the business to get people interested.  Someone searching with a general phrase of “new investments” might be interested in someone selling a unique investment opportunity not yet well known for example.  Sometimes the more general the keyword the more competitive it is, however not always.  Usually just by changing the general phrase a little you can find a keyword with less competition and a decent amount of searches.  For example instead of “new investments” you could try “new invest” or “invest new” or maybe “new opportunity invest”  You would be surprised at the many different ways people phrase their searches and giving the content writer a difficult challenge when trying to use it in the text.  Sometimes the keyword phrase is incorrect grammar and even more frustrating for the writer who most likely cringes at the idea of writing text with improper English.  I know I do!  So as you peruse various sites and notice misspellings or incorrectly phrased sentences, keep in mind that may have been on purpose or at least let’s hope so!  

Filed under CONTENT WRITING, KEYWORDS · Tagged with , , ,

SMALL BUSINESS SEO PROPOSALS

March 22, 2009 by · Comments 

iStock_000007833569XSmall Presenting proposals to clients for SEO projects can be a hectic and stressful process especially for the small business client whose expenditures are almost always on a tight budget. Some feel like they might be throwing money at a losing battle…their business, and at this point are unsure it being worthy of success at all. After having done an initial analysis on their competition and current web presence you conclude that with a strong back linking campaign and onsite seo/copywriting they could turn their business around and take a strong position in the search results for their keyword. Naturally you have already shared this exciting news with them but somehow at the moment when you present the proposal, it seems forgotten; the excitement lost in dollar signs. What can be done to make this proposal process less stressful for both the client and the SEO professional? Here are a few things I have come up with for a win win proposal:
Upon introduction discuss:
A) What is their budget? Or, how much do they want to spend on a marketing campaign and SEO for their website
B) Ask them questions that quantify the value they place on ranking well in search results or driving traffic to their website. Let’s face it. Getting noticed online can bring endless value to the customer in hard revenue. It is important however to help them make that connection when you are selling something intangible like services.
C) Ask them if they have ever paid for SEO services/copywriting before, and if they haven’t, get them familiar with cost immediately. That way they can do their own math along the way and thus no surprises. Many people are unfamiliar with the process, therefore unfamiliar with its cost.
D) When presenting the proposal, include the estimated final result of the services being recommended i.e, what this will do for the customer, is it better ranking in search results, driving traffic through a pay per click campaign, increase conversions, etc. That way the cost and value can offset each other yet again for the customer.
E) Make sure your pricing is clear cut and if you offer an hourly rate only, try to estimate how long each process will take or give maximums (not to exceed x amount of hours). Small business owners are much more comfortable knowing in advance how much they are spending.
F) And as always deliver what you promise in the time frames outlined. It is always better to under promise and over deliver and because SEO and online marketing are not exact sciences, don’t promise the number one spot in google’s search results, instead promise the top 3 but only if your totally confident it can be done!

Filed under MISCELLANEOUS, PRICING, SEO · Tagged with , , , , , , , ,