SEO or Search Engine Optimization, does it matter to me?

SEO or Search Engine Optimization is another one of those things that promise miracles and in some cases actually delivers them. As someone who delivered their first commercial website in 1998 and has helped many businesses with there success through selling their products, training salespeople, automating business processes and management consulting, I will present my view of SEO and related services.

First, ask why. Why are you interested in SEO?

It is generally best in almost all endeavours to “begin with the end in mind” or have a clear picture in your mind of the result you want to achieve. In other words, what do you want your reality to look like at some future date?

While social media platforms are highly relevant today, your website is still the cornerstone of almost any marketing strategy today. In almost all cases your penultimate aim will be to drive people to your website with of course your ultimate aim, from the marketing perspective, is to make a sale. From the business perspective, it is (hopefully) to provide a product and service that creates a customer that is delighted with your product and/or services and is also profitable for you.

$500 / month. Companies in this range are typically engaging in some automated solution such as submitting your site to directories. They may even put some keywords into your meta tags (hopefully the right ones), but you’d be better off investing that money in a PPC campaign since it won’t buy any decent SEO.

$1,000 – $2,500 / month. Companies in this range tend to be able to talk convincingly about their abilities but can rarely deliver results that justify the cost. Here’s why: SEO today requires excellent content to be produced, high-quality links to be obtained, and, if you’re doing it right, expertise in conversion.

$2,500 – $5,000 / month. We’re beginning to get into a range where you can do quality SEO. If a company’s fees are smack in the middle of this range, they can probably afford to pay reasonably for content, and maybe a little bit for someone to help pitch news organizations for links. Analytics expert to keep a laser focus on ROI.

$5,000 – $15,000 / month. It may seem like the range has broadened out a lot here, but that’s on purpose. Only slightly more established companies can bring on a vendor in this range, and these companies are seeking a campaign that makes a real impact on their business. If you are investing in SEO at this level, you should expect that your investment, if handled by the right firm, will show impressive results – perhaps even results that transform your business over time. Therefore, where you are in this range should not make a big difference. ROI is ROI, no matter the investment size. Another important point about this fee range is that, especially on the upper end, it allows all of the above positions – writing, editing, outreach, conversion, account management, and analytics – to be filled with people who are incented to do a great job. If the SEO company’s leadership and management structure are sound, the sky is the limit.