As an SEO provider, we at Capstone Digital Marketing understand that the language and services we provide can be a bit of a mystery to those who work with us. While we do our best to explain things, there are some items that continue to create some confusion. In this article, I want to help you get the best use of your money by working with your SEO service provider to help, rather than hurt, their efforts in ranking your website and sending more traffic your way.
Do’s
Communicate with your SEO provider.
Unlike most people who handle SEO, here at Capstone, we want to talk to you. We want to hear your ideas, your questions, and how things are going. This can usually happen by way of email, but we do make ourselves available for phone calls as well. This is to serve as a way for us to stay in touch and make sure we are all on the same page and can give you the best service for the money you pay.
Have patience with SEO progress.
We know that we can do everything right, and yet, Google is the tool that must respond to the changes we make. We often get asked, “How long will this take?” and we really don’t know. We have seen sites make major progress in one month, while other sites are still struggling after a year. There are so many variables – the health of your website, your content, your keywords, your location, your competitors, and even your website host and domain. If you’re frustrated, ask for more information, and work with your SEO provider to come up with a plan so you will know what is being completed.
Trust your SEO provider.
SEO is such a mystery that it can be difficult to know what is happening – if anything at all. The fact that you have hired someone means that you recognize the need for SEO help, and you know that someone else knows more than you do. Keeping that in mind, trust your SEO provider to do the right thing. This is a service that is fluid, flexible, and sometimes, outside of the box. Learning more about SEO can be a good thing as well, but don’t use your new-found knowledge to start poking at your digital marketing provider. Instead, ask questions as needed, and trust the process.
Don’ts
Don’t keep asking for updates.
At Capstone, we understand that you’re paying money for a service and that you deserve the occasional update (which you receive monthly from us!). However, don’t expect your SEO provider to work on your website every day. SEO doesn’t work that way – it’s a slow process that must be implemented and then evaluated over time.
A small change in a keyword or a new page of content creates new challenges. As SEO providers, we spend time putting these things into place and then we have to give Google time to index new content (it’s not always good to force indexing, in case you’re wondering). What will Google do with the new keywords? What new keywords are your competitors now using? What kind of traffic are we seeing after adding new content to your website? All of these things work within our intuitive marketing plan! We want to create the best plan for you, knowing that it will take trial and errors to find the perfect solution that will help you gain traffic on your website.
If you feel the services are not meeting your expectations, it may be time to sit down and talk with your SEO provider to clarify goals and expectations to see if it’s something possible.
The most important thing to remember when working with us: We’re on your side! Because of this, we are doing everything we can to help bring traffic to your website.
Don’t change content on your website.
This is a touchy topic with both website owners and SEO providers. As a business owner, you know that your website is “yours,” so you should be able to do whatever you want, right? If you aren’t working with an SEO service, then yes, that is right. But, if you are working with an SEO service provider, the answer is, unfortunately, no. Sorry! But let’s explain why.
There are aspects of SEO that include putting specific content, keywords, coding, and more on your website. Too often, clients have some spare time, and they decide to change things. Unfortunately, most people don’t bother to ask or tell their SEO provider, so the error isn’t seen until a few weeks or months down the road. By now, the rankings and traffic have fallen, and the client may even complain that the SEO service isn’t working. Even if your SEO provider doesn’t know, Google does and it’ll start to make changes that hurt your website ranking.
It’s always better to ask, so if you want to make a couple changes, just send a quick email asking if it’s a good idea and we’ll give you the best answer back for your website and business goals.
Don’t make changes to the backend of your website.
SEO providers typically rely upon some tools to help their work go smoother. This might mean plugins or programs that run on the backend of your site. It also includes backup or restore tools in case something goes wrong with your website. Those tools should only be changed by someone who knows about SEO and/or website design and development.
Unfortunately, we have lost every single bit of work due to a client restoring an old copy of their website. This means it’s a waste of your money and our time (not to mention that it’s frustrating – for both us and the client!). If you want to make a change or wonder about something, please ask. Your SEO provider will be more than happy to explain and help answer your questions.
SEO Can Be a Mystery – But Life-Changing!
We hope that this has helped you a bit more with understanding working with an SEO provider. Our goal is for YOU and your business to succeed and we do whatever we can, and sometimes that means setting some ground rules so that things don’t get messed up, even if you have the best intentions!
