As SEO frustration reaches an all time high, many companies who came to the table late are merely left with scraps compared to the market share of early adopters who embraced search engine optimization from the onset.
The trend in search engine optimization as a viable traffic source has eclipsed more traditional formats for marketing and promotion such as Television, Radio and Print due to the accessibility of keyword research, a vast array of traffic sources and the benefits of long-term ROI if the investment matures.
Like anything of value, you have to plant the seeds and be patient to see the full effect of an optimization campaign. However, as profits are devoured by companies with larger budgets that can wield more authoritative positions in a marketplace, position their brands, products and services through advertising and methods such as pay per click marketing, it becomes even more difficult for smaller companies to "keep up" with the 800 pound gorillas that are dominating the space.
Combine this with the trend for any web design or development company to tack the word SEO to their service offering and other firms competing purely on price and you have an all out free-for-all with very little consideration for valuation (aside from search engine results).
SEO can be measured by (a) how effective the keyword selection is (b) if the selected keywords make it to the top 10, top 5 or top 3 results in search engines, and once that traffic arrives (c) if those visitors take action and convert.
While the concept of sliding scale SEO pricing is a conundrum to most, consider the adage "you get what you pay for" as a general rule of thumb. Typical organic optimization campaigns for effective SEO companies usually start in the $3-$5000 per month range.
While the variables required to produce a top ranking differ in most markets, the fact is, there are layers of action items to execute, track and synthesize. Anyone touting to do this for a few hundred dollars per month is either providing a cookie-cutter approach or providing a minimalist time to execution ratio, as you can rest assured your competitors in the top 3 positions paid dearly to capture and maintain those positions.
Just as the saying, to the victor goes the spoils, the top 3 results garner the lions' share of traffic and funnel those click-throughs to eager landing pages designed to facilitate an emotional response and encourage the visitor to take action and convert into a customer.
In most instances with cheap SEO services and promises of top 10 placements rarely work out as anticipated. The metrics that search engines utilize in order to assess relevance are constantly in a state of flux and change.
What works today, may not work next week or next month (aside from the fundamental SEO best practices) such as a semantically structured site architecture, title tag, meta data and on page content and internal link coherence.
If you are late to the game, there are alternatives such as using an in-house SEO vs. outsourcing your search engine optimization to an outside SEO company. Yet, there are pros and cons associated with each.
While the solution of using an in-house SEO may be appealing, the downside applies to the question of man or woman power, since they are limited in scope and are in fact (just one person).
The upside to using an outsourced solution is (1) they have a team (2) in most instances SEO companies have a project manager (3) a system for implementing and executing deliverables and reporting and (4) can utilize the collective expertise and human resource that simply would not be available to an individual for spot-checking progress, or other pertinent details.
If your company is faced with the decision on which way to go (in house or outsourcing their SEO), keep in mind that
SEO can be measured by its effectiveness and how your selected keywords rise in search engines.
If you have an eager team who is willing and able to learn, then consider SEO consulting services to get your action-items from a specialist, who can then review the work periodically remotely.
Curbing the need to put your eggs in one basket or on one in-house SEO alone vs. using a team is not only viable from a budgetary perspective, but makes perfect sense as the more individuals that are aware of the process, the more you can utilize the collective momentum to work cohesively as a unit.
There are always additional traffic sources, but for the long-term ROI and benefit of capturing a competitive keyword or group of key phrases, the upside is well worth the wait despite the bouts of impatience and SEO frustration of watching others race for the top 10 results in a battle of meddle, skill, budget and resolve.
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