Six common sense (but oft ignored) truths about the SEO industry

1) Your First Website - a black hole for your money

The most common mistake we see when we take over a companys web marketing campaign is that they skimped on their website. Often the thought with smaller businesses or start-ups is, "We'll get it for cheaper now, and then throw some money into getting traffic as the business builds, then the revenues will come.."

We rarely see this happen.

The fallacy of going "cheap" on your website is that since it will need to be redesigned (often totally redone) the money is actually better spent in Las Vegas - your chances of ROI are better.

Don't:
Buy templates
Go cheap on the logo
Re-use content
Use stock model imagery
Rent templated industry websites
Look like your competing websites

Do:
Spend the time and money to have a unique look, logo, and brand.
Trademark and (if applicable) patent. Done correctly, it offers various protections.
Create unique, useful content. Yes, this will be a pain, but it needs to be done.
Hire a photographer and model(s) if needed. Imprint your brand in the images.
Flush out customer testimonials (real ones).

2) SEO is Not Easy - It's hyper-competitive

There are any number of good, honest and competent SEO's out there. All of who will tell you that they will not be able to rank you #1 for "car insurance." In fact, it may take 9 - 12 months and well over $10,000 to rank for a half dozen terms that are 3 phrase permutations (called "long-tail keywords") such as "car insurance Stockton."

You'll then ask yourself, "do surfers type in localized key terms when looking for car insurance?" as they would looking for, say a plumber? And quickly realize that there are some verticals on the Web where there are few niche opportunities left.

Businesses fight for their lives or revenue streams on the organic SERPs (search engine results pages) - imagine a pile of cash that spurts steadily like a fountain. Then imagine how rabid the desire to access that with superior pole positioning.

3) It's Not Just SEO - it's paid ads too

In fact, when we look at the average marketing campaign, organic listings in search engines may account for anywhere from about 5% to 35% of all traffic or leads. The rest may come from Pay per Click, affiliate programs, online PR, referring links, video, RSS, or email.

4) Managing a Pay per Click Console - hiring help will save you money

Often, when we audit a client's PPC (Pay per Click) campaign, they waste anywhere from 15% (skilled) to 70% (novice) of their advertising spend. Proper management of the console and maximizing dollars requires experience. If inclined to manage yourself or in-house, then get some training from someone that has spent a good deal of money ($500k+) and had to be accountable for it. This way you not only save money, but garner better traffic from the start.

5) Ad Copy Matters - and is an opportunity to stand out

National Public Radio once did a segment on copywriters from the Golden Age of newspapers, specifically ones who wrote personals for customers. Reportedly, one of the most effective was also the shortest:

Looking for love.
Will wine, dine, all the time.

More interesting ad copy in online advertisements gets more clicks, has a higher CTR (click through average) and thus enjoys better ad positions and increased visibility.

6) There's No Such Thing as Free Advertising

Organic SEO is not free. The consultants plus the links & content plus the Webmaster work all make for a well-defined marketing budget. But since that's is where many customers are today, that's where businesses need to be.

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