This article is a rare occasion for me, I don’t often write about unethical or “black hat” search engine marketing tactics, because I think they get too much attention already. However, with that being said, in the past month we had three prospective clients reach out to us to assist with their search engine marketing. Each client handed me a report their “previous” search engine marketing companies had provided them. The reports were gibberish! They showed no results and the keywords that had been selected to optimize were not only NOT getting results, but they were not keywords that people search on.
Do you really care if you rank on “blue widget” if no one searches for “blue widget?”
My heart went out to these companies, each of them having been in their search marketing engagements for over a year and paying a decent monthly fee, for nothing!
In one case, not only did the search engine marketing company not get the client the results they desired (and thought they were paying for), they also got penalized by Google. Can you imagine that? You trust someone to do everything right to help you in marketing your company and not only do they fail, they cause you damage in the process.
Search engine marketing is not quackery, I promise. With that being said I also realize that most people don’t get excited about keyword research, optimizing content and studying the science of search marketing like we do at EAG.
How do you know if the company you have hired is legit? It’s not as hard as you think. An ethical company that understands search engine marketing will be able to:
- Show they have achieved search engine results for their own company.
- Provide you with names of clients who they have worked with that have seen results over time, and been confident and comfortable in using them as their search engine marketing company.
- Provide you a plan that gives you an understanding of what to expect. If they are promising you results tomorrow, don’t walk – run away!
- Provide you on a monthly basis and walk you through that report so you understand it and are clear on the progress of your search engine results.
- Make you feel comfortable and confident in their knowledge and capabilities. If they talk over your head and can’t answer or explain their strategy, it’s probably best to walk away.
There isn’t a “quick-fix” to getting search engine results. It takes time, effort and a clear strategy to get most clients the results they desire. Long gone are the days of building a website, strategically placing a few keywords, thorough metadata and walking away to reap the results. Effective search engine marketing that gets results takes an ongoing effort of optimization, content writing and frequent social media signals that get search engines to pay attention to you.
Are you wondering if the search engine marketing company that you’ve hired is ethical and doing more good than harm? Good, I’ve accomplished my goal. We can help you get started with a search engine marketing strategy or assist you in evaluating your current search engine marketing efforts. We are just a call or click away!