Seo

HUDSONVALLEYEXT

I have been searching around for search engine optimization on the forum. I have not seen a lot . Can someone recommend a company to go with?

MattCoops

type seo in google and see thousands of companies

there are also free tools out there you can utilize

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HUDSONVALLEYEXT

I know you can type in SEO in google but some people on a SEO forum told me most off those companies are rip offs. I figure i would ask if any one on here knew a company on here that was legit.

DamionR

That's the main portion of my business - perhaps I can answer some questions to help out?

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HUDSONVALLEYEXT

Looking for someone to recommend a company that can get us good ranking.

wackman

Pardon my ignorance, I've read about this recently on here and really don't know what it is. I mentioned it to someone I know who said "watch out, if the search engines catch you you'll get blacklisted".

What exactly is SEO, in laymens terms how does it work and is what he's saying in the least bit true?

HUDSONVALLEYEXT

SEO is where you pay the pros to fix your site and make it rank higher faster.

Some of these companies might be bogus thats why I was asking if any one knew a legit one that worked out for them....

About 5 years ago I had another company selling stuff online and they did a great job for us getting us good ranking so I know SEO companies can get better results than I can...

I know a lot of people say they do it themselves but we spend thousands on phonebooks ETC why not spend some money to get hooked up good online...

DamionR

This is the main reason I rarely work with outside companies. SEO is not a regulated field. there are no standards... there are no definites.. and htere are no guarantees.

Tie that together with a sales pitch - and you've got the most cut-throat industry today. It's literally disgusting. Most companies sell on the prospect's ignorance.

I've seen almost identical contracts from companies - one was a $1500 flat rate program... the other was $22,000 per month with a 6 month minimum commitment. Completely silly.

If you're looking into a company to get your site ranked (which is not the same thing as "optimizing" - don't get suckered into that).... I have to recommend a LOT of reference checking. Anyone who doesnt want to show you proven results has a reason - they have none. Whenever I talk with someone about work - I literally GLOAT at the results I get - because I know I have the golden goose that they want... and can back it up with results.

Hmm... this hits a nerve with me (in case you couldn't tell). Think I'll put together a quick download for you guys who are interested in marketing online... with what to look for and what to look out for.

Damion

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DamionR

OK - so I put something together for you guys - enjoy!


"How Not To Get Screwed By an SEO Company"

Good nuggets of info in this one.

Damion

Attached Files

seocompanies.pdf (39.9 KB, 48 views)

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Ed the Roofer

Damion,

Thanks for the Free Report. It is well written and usable for a layman without website and SEO training such as myself.

Is there any further information you could personally add after thinking it over for an additional day or so?

Or, would you recommend a particular SEO or Webmaster forum to increase my understanding about what to seek and thereby reduce my learning curve.

Thanks,

Ed

DamionR

There are two great SEO forums I use - www.searchengineforums.com (my personal favorite)... and www.webmasterworld.com/home.htm. This was has catagories on EVERYTHING and much more activity... but I lik the first one better. Every answer you ned is in one of these forums already.

For results... I've personally found 2 guys I'm always comfortable recommending. Aaron Wall at www.seobook.com.... and Jill Whalen at www.highrankings.com. Obviously, both come with a pretty penny for their service... but they deliver results.

Good things don't come cheap, and cheap things don't come good

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HUDSONVALLEYEXT

those companies look like they charge serious $$$

any one use ask sponsored listings ? I like google adwords right?


http://sponsoredlistings.ask.com/learnmore.php

DamionR

I had a great conversation about Sponsored listing with a "marketing major" last night. It's funny trumping everything the "know-it-all, college-degree boy" had to say.

Regardless... PPC ads should be your best form of marketing, as well as your best source of testing and knowledge. It's simply amazing what you are able to do with them. THink about it...


!) It's pinpoint marketing. You select the words that your ad will appear for... it only shows up when someone searches for that word (which shows obvious interest, compared to blasting it out to 10,000 homeowners who may or may not want your service)...

2) You can target the ads for your geographic area.

3) You determine the price you are willing to pay for the advertising - as compared to accepting the ad source's rate card.

4) It's COMPLETELY performance-based. You only pay when someone clicks on your ad. Though I'm not a fan of it at all... the branding effect is completely FREE.

5) You can test it, tweak it, change it 500 times a day if you want. Unlike ANY print media, or the majority of your other marketing options.

6) You can track what people do once they come to your site... where they go to... how long they stay on your site... what pages they leave on, etc.

7) You can track the actualy WORDS that convert best for you. Sure... "basement remodeling" might drive a lot of traffic to your website.. but if it doesn't convert - you can know this for a fact and make adjustments.

All of the testing data you can gather with this can be applied to the rest of your marketing mix. It's simply amazing.

Of course, I recommend Adwords, Overture, and MSN Adcenter. Tehre are a few second-tier PPC engines (such as Miva) that do a good job also.

As long as you know your metrics, you can test any of them out. Rather than "thinking" that one source is good or bad for you... you can let your metrics tell you that it "IS" good or bad for you.

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DamionR

Hudson...

you're right - they do charge serious money. Of course... it's because they're worth it, have a proven track record... and can "pick and choose" who they want to work with.

Positioning is a beautiful thing.

Jill Whalen's (High rankings) SEO service ranges from $3500-10,000 per month. Yup.. that's a big pill to swallow. Then again, it all depends on your metrics and potential revenue/success. For some companies.. that might be one sale to cover the cost. For others... it might take 10.

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