March 20, 2014

What You Pay Your SEO Specialist For

March 20, 2014

What You Pay Your SEO Specialist For

What You Pay Your SEO Specialist For

As we know, SEO is one of the key areas of modern online marketing. It generally delivers higher click through rates than Google AdWords, and at a fraction of the cost. It also provides long term sustainability, as you are not having to pay for each click like you do with Google AdWords. Moreover searchers perceive that a website that ranks well in Google Search often has more brand power and credibility. Now we all know this might not be the case but it is the 'perceived value' that a good SEO strategy can deliver.SEO LandscapeIn saying this, we need to be realistic about how increasingly hard it is to get results. The SEO landscape has dramatically changed over the past 24 months, with a big focus on link building. Even during this time, the link building strategies have needed to change. One minute directories, as long as unpaid, were a big focus. Then they weren't. Then guest blog links were, and also aspects of social media. And then these reduced in direct value. We use around 10 or so link building techniques to ensure that the link building strategy is varied enough that we don't put all our "eggs into one basket", while Google dramatically changes the algorithm. Essentially a good link building strategy needs to focus around 'diversity' and that is what Bang Online's search team has at the centre of our strategy development.There is no written warning of changes, only ever speculation, so its often a trial and error process, and everyone in the industry is in a level playing field when it comes to information available. The only difference between your site and your competitors are how many hours you are willing to invest in to gain SEO ranked positions, and how long you have had a solid SEO strategy in place. And when I mean solid, it needs to err on the side of caution with Google.So what are you paying for when you pay for an SEO specialist?You are paying for the following:- Someone to constantly monitor your ranked positions, and apply on-page tweaks to increase the rankings.- Someone to hand select a range of appropriate links to create a diverse link strategy, which is like a "tick" of approval on the authenticity of your website. The more "ticks" of approval you have, the more Google considers you a legitimate business, and leverages your site. Now some links have more value than others, so its not about volume. It's about relevancy and the site for which the link has been created from's authenticity too.- Someone to shift the strategy based on Google's updates. For example, prior to the past 24 months, you could gain first page rankings by outsourcing cheaply to overseas companies who added your site to link farms. Over the past 24 months, Google has blacklisted sites that have done this, meaning you literally drop off the face of Google. By paying for an SEO expert, they can investigate if you, at some point, may have used techniques unknown to you to gain ranked positions. We can then work with Google to remove the bad links, and get you back in Google's good books.If you have any questions regarding your own SEO Strategy or in developing a new SEO strategy, then get in touch with the team today here at Bang!