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3 Things to for when Outsourcing SEO
SEO is dead. That was the title of an email solicitation we recently received. Dead, really? The further we read, the more ludicrous it got. They were suggesting outsourcing SEO, but from a cookie cutter approach. They rightly cited content marketing as the fodder for SEO rankings… in convoluted and nearly unintelligible language.
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Sometimes it just makes sense to enlist the help of an expert. Especially when you don’t have the time, inclination or knowledge base to do it. No doubt you’ve received a similar email or submission to your website’s contact form. So, what should you look for in an agency when outsourcing SEO? Glad you asked. Here are our top 3 tips:
1. Up to Date Knowledge
Do they walk their talk? Are their marketing blog posts focused on SEO-related topics? Is it clear that they keep up to date on trends and best practices?
An SEO agency’s blog should demonstrate expertise. If they aren’t willing to give way information in an effort to educate you, then they don’t get it. The purpose of SEO is to fill your business’ sales funnel. The foundation of SEO is content marketing – writing about what your business does and being a thought leader in your industry.
There is a direct correlation to content and sales conversions. Your best prospect may start off as a “Do-It-Yourselfer.” Once they roll up their sleeves and get their hands dirty, they may realize the job is too big, too complicated, or too time consuming. That’s when they return to the source — you, the expert — and make a purchasing decision.
2. White Hat Best Practices
Be suspicious of get quick and guaranteed results when outsourcing SEO. Most of the techniques employed by these type of SEO agencies are Grey Hat. Google targets these practices by updating their algorithm. Why? Because they want to return high-quality sites for searchers. When you try to scam their search system, you can be at the top one day and banned to Search Siberia the next.
If you’re managing your website closely, you’ve probably read about Google Penguin and Google Panda. These are high-profile changes to the search algorithm. Yet Google makes tweaks regularly to foil black and grey hatters to penalize or demote their rankings. So why risk your business reputation on practices that could get you banned? We recommend using White Hat practices that is rewarded by Google over time. It’s just a better bet in the long run. Need quick results? That’s where Google AdWords shines.
3. Content Marketing Focus
Organic SEO rankings are built upon consistent content marketing. At a minimum we recommend blogging twice a week. Choose the same date and time and publish regularly. Why? Because at first you are trying to train search engine bots. Google and Bing send out crawlers to index new content. When they determine you add new pages and posts regularly, their crawling frequency increases.
More indexed content leads to more opportunities to appear in Search Engines Results Pages. When your website demonstrates it’s content authority — frequency and relevancy on searched terms — your organic SEO rankings rise to the top.
To quote our wannabe SEO provider “Long Live the way. We know it.” Huh? We think they actually meant “Long Live White Hat SEO.” Before outsourcing SEO for your website, be sure what you’re actually buying.
How can we help?
Trying to improve your SEO rankings? Not sure what keywords will build SEO and search traffic for your business?
We are the spectrum group online, and we offer strategic and tactical consulting so you can monetize your online presence. Call us for a complimentary 30-minute consultation to discuss your website’s user experience and translate that into sales.
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