Going Local with SEO

Search engine optimization has really hit the spotlight in the last 4 years with an explosion of people getting involved and now offering SEO services. From web design firms to ad agencies to corporations, business managers realize how vital SEO is to their company's future and financial well being.

In House SEO

Some large companies have chosen or have been encouraged to bring SEO in-house and hire a person to carry out optimization activities. They've done this to try to integrate SEO activities into other marketing activities and there is a belief that the SEO person must be on staff. Other managers have chosen this simply as a cost savings effort. The belief here is that the in-house marketing person can create the same results as a professional SEO consultant. They are hiring novices at a reduced rate but the opportunity cost is very high. What happens in so many of these cases is Web site rankings and traffic fall. Occasionally, a web site redesign destroys rankings severely and a panic results.

Whenever search engine marketing is this critical to the company's bottom line, the professional SEO consultant should be brought in to work more closely with the company's staff, if necessary. If SEO isn't broken, it's best to stay the course and not try to cut out the cost of a professional provider.

The same rule applies to hiring a local SEO company. It may seem prudent to hire a local company so they'll be close at hand and you can see them face to face. The face to face threat is seemingly to ensure they complete the work. It's not uncommon to receive inquiries from web site owners who weren't satisfied with their SEO service provider, but all too often after checking them out, they weren't really a professional SEO provider. They're usually independent web designers or fly by night firms that make a fast buck.

The error is in assuming a novice can create the same results as an SEO professional.

Professional SEO Services

A long time professional is more effective and more creative. If more dedication to an account is needed, then by all means work out a new contract with them and let them know you need a greater effort and more profitable results. No SEO provider will turn down the challenge of creating more profit for you, as long as they're being paid appropriately. If they generated profit before, they will be able to generate more with greater resources. Bringing SEO inhouse ensures you won't have the expertise and experience working in your favor. This isn't the right time to experiment with novices and trainees.

Do all you can to develop a closer and more productive relationship with your SEO consultant and you won't have to suffer the pitfalls and reduced ROI of an in-house person. Look for an optimizer who can develop new content, engage in social media, acquire the right links to your site, and implement a powerful optimization strategy. A pro knows how to create extra value from analytics to all important original optimized content.

Call Bay Street SEO at 416-605-7026 to discuss your business and get answers to all your questions about search engine marketing.

Bay Street SEO delivers high performance San Diego SEO, Denver SEO, Seattle SEO, San Francisco SEO, San Francisco SEO, Los Angeles SEO, Chicago SEO and Toronto SEO services.

Choosing Keywords

The process of choosing keywords begins with an examination of your business, what it sells, which products you need to sell more of, which produce the most profit, and how competitive rankings are. Initially, some keyword phrases are too competitive yet if you work at it, you'll be surprised at what you can achieve. The key issue is whether that particular keyword phrases will convert to sales for you. We often start our clients off with the free Google adwords campaign. This gives us a fresh view of real search volume, how desirable the keyword is to other advertisers and mostly importantly whether it actually generates sales. Running this free PPC campaign before committing to a keyword strategy can really help make SEO more effective.

There are plenty of reasons why a particular set of keywords won't produce for your company, however it's better to know which won't convert ahead of time. We use a variety of keyword tools, yet keyword suggestion tools don't indicate which phrases will convert best. It takes skill and judgement to place your Pay per click bets. The truth about keywords is that they are diverse. Ranking on a few phrases won't be enough to sustain your business. Always insist on maximizing traffic.