The term 'search engine optimisation' and 'search engine marketing' are becoming more familiar to business owners, yet if you asked 100 of them what it means you will most likely get 100 different answers.
Their answers will differ because web designers will inform business owners of their understanding of how the search engines work, based on what they have read online, been taught at TAFE or university, or have heard from other web designers.
BUSINESS OWNERS BEWARE
The information published on the internet about search engine marketing is
largely out-dated or educates based on techniques that trick the search engines, which can cause a website to be penalised by search engines.
...and just because the information is out-dated doesn't mean it will be removed from the internet - it stays online for unsuspecting people to read without knowing good from bad!
We frequently have clients contacting us having just spent thousands on SEO (search engine optimisation) with their web designer, to find that they still don't rank well for the chosen keywords. When we dig a little deeper, we find that many of them are stuffing keywords in their Meta Tags (Google doesn't rank a website based on the Meta Tags), adding a variety of keywords to their Home page but nowhere else, or even hiding text in pages that the business owner never knew existed!
Unfortunately it is not the web designer that has gone out of their way to trick you into spending money, but their lack of education or mis-education means that they can waste a lot of your money with little to show for it.
Fascinating Industry Trend
As search engines have grown in popularity, more clients are asking their web designers what they can do to gain top ranking positions for their keywords. Prior to 2006 or so, these web designers would refer their client to a search engine marketing specialist (such as ourselves) who would perform a service and get the client satisfactory results.
Nowadays, web designers are wanting a bigger slice of the pie and claiming to provide search engine marketing services to supplement their income streams. A common scenario evolves:
- Web design sales team notices more clients asking about search engines.
- General Manager sees an opportunity to provide a search engine marketing service and allocates one of the team members the role of 'search engine specialist'.
- The search engine specialist researches as much information as they can online, reads books, and attends some local events, then devises a Bronze, Silver & Gold search engine marketing package for their clients.
- The sales team sells the package to a client and the work is carried out.
- 6 months later the client is still nowhere to be seen on search engines, or is still generating little business from their website.
- Client gets fed up and looks for another search engine marketing company.
We see this scenario play out regularly as many clients contact us having just been burnt by a web designer who thought they knew what they were doing. Unfortunately their mis-education served them and their client badly.
What Does This Mean?
It means a considerable number of web design companies who have branched into search engine marketing are building a batch of unhappy clients with sub-standard results. Businesses should be careful with who they select.
Here are a few handy tips on choosing a search engine marketing or web design company:
- Ask them how they go about 'optimising' a website - if they can't give you a straight answer, walk away.
- Ask them if meta tags will make a difference - if they say that they will make a major difference, move onto your next potential web designer.
- Ask them to give you a detailed tour of Google Analytics - this is a standard industry tool that any search engine marketing consultant should know backwards. It provides invaluable information for tracking website visitors
- Get them to explain how they go about choosing keywords - if they say the keywords are up to you, forget it! The keywords should be chosen based on research into what people search for - there are databases you can licence that tell you this information.
- If you are interested in pay-per-click advertising like Google AdWords, ask if they have certification by Google - if not, chances are a lot of your budget will be wasted on irrelevant traffic.
Where Does PositionMEonline Fit In?
We have our roots in search engine marketing, and have only started developing websites because our clients demanded it. Having a background in the industry, access to influential people at the major search engines, and regularly keeping updated with the latest techniques and trends, means we can provide a high value service beyond that which is offered by your local web design company.
Should you be considering engaging a company to build your website and/or provide search engine marketing services, we gladly provide a free review of their service offering to ensure that your money is put to best use and will achieve the results you are after.
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