- I already have a website. Will I have to change anything to rank higher with search engines?
Yes. You will have to change a few things and be prepared to make extensive changes. That's part of the process of search engine optimization. The best time to begin search engine optimization is long before the first page is coded.
- I've seen some websites that I consider to be absolutely horrible rank at the top of search results. How do you explain that?
I don't...and welcome to search engine optimization. I have actually seen websites listed as "Coming Soon" show up at the top of search results...for awhile anyway. Other websites violate all the rules and show up in the top ranks. My advice is to ignore it because your customers will. Immediately go to the Mens or Ladies Room and splash cold water on your face. Then go back to your desk and implement the tools I'll teach you to use and you will do well.
Most bad pages will disappear over time. But I have seen some that don't. Some quite knowledgeable people think that some websites get a little "manual help" to achieve their position. It is what it is...don't be distracted. And don't let these isolated cases make you believe that search engine optimization is a waste of time because it isn't.
- Some SEO services guarantee I will get the top position in search engine results. Why don't you do that?
No one can guarantee you will always be able to get the top position for a given keyword phrase. If someone tells you they can ask them to leave because a competent Search Engine Optimization Consultant knows that it is impossible to guarantee the top position for any given keyword.
- I have had problems with certain pages and my entire website disappearing from a search engine for a period of time only reappear after a few weeks. Can you assure me that won't happen if I follow your techniques?
No...I can't...no one can. I have never personally had the problem with Google or Yahoo, but I have seen it happen to my websites with MSN Live after they publish a revision to their algorithm. What I can tell you is that the techniques I use will not cause you to disappear from any search engine. And, if you disappear, my techniques will help get you back sooner.
- I've seen SEO services offered for as low as $99 to optimize my website while others can charge thousands of dollars. Why is there such a large difference in cost?
The process of researching keywords and keyword phrases, keywords that both generate traffic and sales, can take several hours alone...tens of hours for a large website...and that's just the first step. What quality of work would you expect for $9 an hour assuming that the work is done at all? Maybe the work is being outsourced to a country where you are paying a few dollars an hour. Even assuming those people have advanced degrees, the probability of getting meaningful results is very low because you must know the language intimately in order to perform search engine optimization. Knowing the language does not mean having simply studied it in school. You have to know the words people actually use when they speak to one another and you know you don't get that from a book. Remember the conversation you had the last time you needed tech support for your computer?
Another consideration is this. If you really can do search engine optimization and do know how to market on the Internet, which can be worth millions, why would you be doing it for someone else? Why would you do it for $9 and hour? In my case, why would you do it for a professional rate? I asked myself this question and the answer is that I would be crazy not to build my own businesses. So I did. The reason that still do search engine optimization at all is to help finance the growth of my stores.
Lastly, search engine optimization is just one peace of the puzzle. Once they get there you have to convey your message...quickly. You have to write copy that ethically convinces them to buy your product or service.
Think about it. Cheap search engine optimization services are the most expensive search engine optimization services you can buy. "You get what you pay for..."
- Should I be looking for a search engine optimization firm that specializes in my industry?
Yes and no. If your Internet market is local or even regional the answer may be yes. They should know about good keyword phrases and about the market and it's a good head start. But if your market is national or international...if they have clients who compete...there's an automatic conflict of interest.
You're paying someone who is working for and against you. What if they try something new with your website and you achieve top position in Google? Do they not incorporate that same tweak in other clients' websites who are also paying them to win that same top position? Conversely, what if it's your competitor that received that tweak and they have the top position. How are you going to feel about writing that next check if that secret is not employed on your website?
No matter what they do it's a guaranteed conflict of interest. It's an important question to ask any search engine optimization firm before you hire them. I will not take on competing clients because there's usually no ethical way to do it.
- The .com boom is over. Is it really worth investing a lot in marketing on the Internet?
There is incredible opportunity marketing on the Internet. The only difference now than in the so-called .com boom is that now you have to earn it. No other medium offers the opportunity to target your product or service to people specifically looking for that product or service. No other product is as cost effective.
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