SEO consultant
Hiring an SEO Consultant
There are a few things to look out
for when hiring an SEO
consultant. A little care
before committing yourself will help you
avoid wasting time and money. A
competent SEO consultant is invaluable
in expanding your online business or
organizational presence.
Qualifications and
Certification
Your SEO
consultant obviously should have ample
experience at search engine
optimization. Ask to see a portfolio of
previous SEO work. Also, your consultant
will ideally possess industry specific
SEO certification. These credentials
verify that the consultant meets certain
standards established in the search
engine optimization industry.
Beware of Guarantees
Some SEO consultants will make grand
claims of guaranteed rankings in major
search engines. Such claims are bogus
since no one knows the exact ranking
algorithms used by search companies. SEO
is based on only partial knowledge of
the ranking system. There are techniques
that are proven to work, but they do not
allow anyone to guarantee specific
placement for any keywords.
Consulting method
Does the SEO consultant work with you in
person, by phone, or only via online
platforms? The best consultants will be
flexible as to the methods with which
they communicate with their clients.
Find out whether your consultant charges
by the hour or whether they charge a set
fee for a particular project.
Marketing approaches
You should stay away from SEO
consultants who use “black hat”
techniques that are frowned on by the
search engines. Avoid link farms and
“free-for-all” linking sites. Some
search engines may penalize web pages
that have inbound links from these types
of sites. You should also be cautious
when using paid text links. According to
some SEO specialists, paid text links
should always be listed as
advertisements and contain the
“no-follow” attribute. Enquire as to
what types of online marketing the
consultant specializes in. Here are some
examples of marketing methods:
- Social networking. Using services
like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn,
Myspace and YouTube.
-
Social bookmarking. Similar to social
networking. Your site is rated or
recommended by your online peers.
-
Link baiting. Your SEO consultant
can devise a strategy of persuading
people to link to your web site.
-
Viral marketing. A video, email or
other form of communication that
advertises your site is passed on to
your friends, who pass it on to
their friends, and so on.
References and Successful
Search Rankings
A good SEO
consultant will be more than willing to
provide references of previous clients
along with contact information. Follow
up on these references and also ask for
examples of web pages that have been
optimized for specific keyword searches.
Competent SEO specialists will have at
least a few pages with listings on the
first page of targeted keyword searches
on Google. IT Chair is a search engine
optimization company in Los Angeles with
experienced and certified SEO
consultants. President and CEO Ashkan
Sobhe is an expert certified SEO
consultant, and the author of a
book on online marketing. Call or email
IT Chair for more information on their
consulting services.
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