More and more people are hanging out their shingles as SEO (search engine optimization), SEM (search engine marketing) and PA (persuasive architecture) experts. Some people pick up a book at their favorite store, read it and declare themselves experts.
They all sound great. Many firms promise a high placement in the search engine results for your site. You’re not interested in the intricacies of how they achieve the result. You want the result! However, you need to separate the hype from reality before you part with your money.
Before signing that contract, remember:
First, no one can guarantee your site’s placement in the search results. If they do, run!
Second, ask these questions of the firms you are considering:
- May I have three references for your work? The proof is in the pudding.
- By how much does your clients’ placement in the search results improve?
- By how much does your clients’ sales conversion rate improve?
- Most importantly, what was their return on investment (ROI)? Without getting into the complexities of ROI, very simply, how much did revenues increase and expenses to create the sale decrease as a result of the strategy you implemented?
If they can’t answer these three questions – RUN!
Third, interview their references. Get their perspective on the success of the vendor’s efforts.
- Did they get more visits to their site or higher quality visitors? You want more people who are part of your target market visiting your site, not just a high number of visits.
- Did their sales conversion rate improve? Were more visitors making a purchase?
- What was their ROI?
- How long did it take before they noticed results? The strategies are usually not overnight success stories. They take time, monitoring and adjustment to ultimately be successful.
- How did they feel about working with the vendor? Was it a pleasant experience? Did they meet deadlines? Would you recommend them to someone? Why or Why not?
You can probably come up with more questions you would like to ask, but these should get to the heart of the matter: Is this person really an expert? Or did they read a book and open their business? Doing your homework may take time, but it will also save you money.
Wishing you safe passage through the I.T. Minefield!
___________________________________________
Leslie Knight is a small business advisor with over 20 years of experience in Information Technology management in Fortune 500 companies. She applies her experience in Corporate America saving them millions to smaller entrepreneurial enterprises. She is also the author of Navigating the I.T. Minefield.
For more information on Picking an SEO Provider, purchase your copy of Navigating the I.T. Minefield @ http://bit.ly/SNL4W.
