SEO efforts in my firm are still currently managed in-house and the reason why I have not decided on outsourcing this piece of work is because I have yet to meet any company who really understands what's important in SEO and how it truly works. But that's in Singapore, perhaps it's different if you from another part of the world. Regardless of where you come from, you will benefit from my search insights.
Another reason why SEO is still not outsourced in my firm is simply because, I have in my team someone who is well-trained in search engine optimization. It's not just some theories one can pick up from an ebook or from a short 1-2 day workshop. Unless this person has implemented and maintained SEO especially on big websites and has probably survived a few rounds of search engine algorithm changes in the last few years, he/she is still relatively untested. And since we are generating a very high amount of online sales through our website, we just cannot afford to take this risk.
But if you are a small business owner and even if you do not sell online, you should outsource your SEO efforts because your time is worth it and because your potential customers deserve to find you online. I cannot tell you how much frustrations I had trying to locate a local service via all the major search engines in Singapore. They just can't be found! And I do believe it's the same else where and thousands of businesses have not awaken to the reality that more and more people are going online each day and they are "dying" to buy their products/services online.
So the answer to the proverbial outsourcing question is this? Unless you are prepared and have the budget to invest in training and grooming someone within your team on SEO, you should outsource. Because whether you like it or not, Search Engines are here to stay and as they evolve, you cannot afford not to be found on them.
So then, what should you look out for when you do outsource to a local SEO company? These are the key points to note and I am assuming you understand the ills of unethical SEO practice.
Are they already working for your competition? A good and ethical SEO company should only work exclusively with one company from a particular industry. While you cannot deny the firms their rights, but you should defend your own. Common sense will tell you the issue of conflict of interest will arise when a firm take on another assignment with your competitor. Who is he going to help more? Until you are able to secure an agreement in black and white on their exclusivity option, my advice is to stay away.
Who is managing your SEO campaign? Your SEO campaign is only as good as the person who has been assigned by the firm to execute it, find out what are some of the previous SEO projects this same search marketing person NOT the company has managed. Staff turnover in search firms are extremely high and the risk in going with someone with untested track record is more than just your money, it's your website's reputation! I have seen how poorly executed SEO resulting in sites getting permanently banned from the search engines.
Can they "guarantee" your success? I am expecting a No for an answer in case you are assuming otherwise. If the search engines cannot assure you of a good ranking, what makes you think the SEO firms can? Because the rules of ranking (algorithm) are constantly changing, you ought to work with a search firm who can offer you a sound long term road map on their approach to help you achieve your business objectives. Ongoing work is often needed to maintain one's position in SERP (search engine results page), and like most successes in life, success in SEO is a journey not an incident.
Finally, getting your website ranked through SEO is good but still incomplete in the grand scheme of things, a well-rounded and effective search marketing plan should also include PPC efforts along with a mechanism to track outcomes or conversions. In fact, starting your Search Engine Marketing Campaign with PPC first is a much smarter way than with SEO. Most firms today are either good at one or the other rarely both, you know you found a good catch if they are able to demonstrate to you very clearly in their proposal the overall solution (ppc, seo and conversion tracking) to search.
No comments:
Post a Comment