I'm not always a fan of Guy Kawasaki's work, but really enjoyed his post on the OPEN Forum - A Dozen Don'ts for Entrepreneurs. I thought I'd take a stab at replicating it with some of my biggest warnings for those in our field.
For the list below, the word "clients" is interchangeable with "marketing manager" or "executive team" for in-house SEOs.
- Don't Create False Expectations
Clients are just like everyone else - when you exceed their expectations, they love you. When you disappoint, they're angry. Make it easy for yourself and don't oversell. If anything, undersell your abilities to do great things and let them be surprised. It's a hard thing to do, particularly in a competitive bidding environment, but humility and hard work often shine through in presentations and good clients will see that and honor it.
_ - Don't Ignore Analytics
Website analytics, both visitor traffic and third party metrics, are important parts of SEO. When things are going well, even if best practices aren't being followed, it can be wise to match up data and trends to see what's made a real difference. Don't undertake an SEO project unless you have at least the essential data points (this also comes in handy once changes have been implemented and your work starts to have an impact).
_ - Don't Always Take Your Client at Their Word
If you talk to lots of clients, you'll find that none of them have ever spammed the engines, bought a link, accidentally cloaked for Googlebot or hidden text, yet the statististics tell another story. Never assume your clients are being dishonest, but always watch out for activities they might not be aware of (or might not have realized were problematic). This goes beyond just white and black hat - we had a client who thought they had a couple dozen active domains; turns out they had nearly a hundred - canonicalization alone has been a big project and a big return.
_ - Don't Get Into Projects with People You Don't Like
If ever you get a "funny feeling" about a client, move on if you can possibly afford it. Some people just don't click together, and when interpersonal relationships aren't working, projects have a way of not working out, either. It's always better to get out before something's signed than after.
_ - Don't Give an Unqualified Answer Unless You're Extremely Certain You're Right
If you've been reading SEOmoz lately or hearing me speak at conferences, you'll notice that my advice comes with a lot more caveats than it used to. It's been a tough lesson, but there's very rarely a "this is ALWAYS better than that" in the field of SEO. Exceptions abound, so cage your language accordingly.
_ - Don't Confuse SEO & Sales
If your client comes to you wanting to drive sales with SEO, make sure they're keenly aware of the multiple responsiblities inherent in such a request. Yes - SEO can drive lots of high quality, targeted traffic at the perfect moment for capturing the sale. But NO - SEO cannot convert that visit into dollars. If the website sucks at turning visitors into leads, do the right thing and recommend CRO (Conversion Rate Optimization) before they dive into SEO.
_ - Don't Rest on Your Laurels
If you're not paying attention in the SEO world, even for just a few weeks, you can miss massive changes. Look at June! We've had a reversal of position on nofollow and Javascript links from Google, a new engine/algorithm/brand from Microsoft, adoption of rich text formatting in the SERPs, evidence that header tags may not be as valuable as we thought and data suggesting that alt attributes are highly correlated with good rankings. Stay ahead of the curve and devote some resources to industry news - you owe it to your clients and yourselves.
_ - Don't Undervalue Your Work
SEO is hard work. For every consulting hour, there's days of research, testing, reading, surfing and experimenting. Don't undersell your services or accept that what you do doesn't provide tremendous value. If you're being undervalued now, consider how terrificly trackable SEO really is and show them the data. It's almost always on your side.
_ - Don't Believe Everything You Read
Yes, even here at SEOmoz! We certainly try our best to provide high quality, accurate information, as do many other great sites on SEO, but no one is right 100% of the time, and, more importantly, not every piece of advice is applicable for every business or every situation.
_ - Don't Underestimate Dev Contributions
I was recently asked "what's the biggest roadblock to SEO," and didn't need to think for 10 seconds before quoting Mr. Ballmer's infamous adage "Developers! Developers! Developers!" If you get bandwidth cycles for SEO projects, use them wisely. If the developers have made critical SEO errors, don't be quick to criticize - you'll make enemies, and, oftentimes, be guilty of hypocrisy. Stay humble, prioritize the big pieces and make sure you have the resources before you commit to improving traffic.
_ - Don't Overstate Your Influence or Abilities
Just because you have the ear of some important minds at Google/Yahoo!/Facebook/etc. doesn't mean you can influence change within these large organizations. I've heard a lot of stories from companies that worked with SEOs of how they promised to get their penalty lifted or special treatment from an engine because they got a response to an email they sent to a search engineer. Perhaps an even better rule is - don't promise something you can't personally control and deliver.
_ - Don't Get Overconfident and Dismiss Other Marketing Channels
OK, yes - SEO rocks. But don't forget how valuable other marketing activities like email, PPC, CRO, affiliate programs, even display advertising can be for the right scenario. Once you've found the SEO hammer, it's easy to see every problem as a nail - I've certainly been guilty of it. If you can resist, think holistically and provide the best answer from a strategic (rather than tactical) level, you'll become even better and more valuable to your clients.
Your turn - any "don'ts" you'd recommend to fellow SEOs?
p.s. If you haven't read the whole Malcolm Gladwell vs. Chris Anderson with Seth Godin weighing in thing, it's pretty worthwhile :-)
This may fall between #4 and #8 but I think it is worth explaining. Don't chase after anyone who is not really "client" material. Just because you have looked at their online presence and know they need help, it doesn't mean they understand that.
Just because you know that without a doubt you could change their bottom line income in a big way by increasing qualified traffic and converting shoppers to buyers, doesn't mean they will get it.
If they have never spent a dime on advertising or PPC, even if you grossly under price your work, they'll think it is way too much. They just aren't client material until they realize they need help.
Yes, it's sad to see someone flopping around in SERP hell when you know you could pull them out. But some businesses fail for a reason and you don't have time to help those that don't understand they need it.
Good News. There are plenty of businesses out there that DO understand they need you. Go find them.
Great add-on sly-grrr. It's one of my major weak points and it's advice that I need to internalize.
I keep finding businesses that are doing *nothing* right on their websites, and I just gravitate towards trying to get them to fix things.
I'm not even talking about billing them. Just free advice that would help their website tremendously.
Like you say, I need to find people that know they need help and are reaching out for it.
Now if only I could change my DNA to only respond to these types...
Don't forget to bill! It's all too easy to get caught up in the process of delivering great SEO services...and then not get around to billing...schedule a time in your diary and stick to it religiously.
Don't allow "scope creep" where clients keep adding to the project and expecting these additional items to be included in the original fee proposal.
Don't underestimate your fee value...as a general guide, if you are a sole operator figure out your annual income goal, triple it and then divide it by the 30 or so billable hours you have to sell per week (it's hard to sell much more than 75% of your available time and still allow for research, RFP preparation and yes, billing :))
Don't Get Overconfident and Dismiss Other Marketing Channels
I think this is probably one of the best items on your list. The web is great, and SEO is amazing, but there are other ways to gain traffic/visitors (hopefully customers) to your company. Sending a postcard or email to show attendees after the show is done, can be a great way to get the attention of people who may not have heard of you before.
Completely agree.
After speaking to many SEO's, its evident that many of us get so caught up in this exciting world of SEO and begin to dismiss some of the more traditional ways of web marketing that have been proven to work great, if not better than some industries.
There is such a stigma nowadays on banner ads and sending emails that I think many marketers don't utilize these great channels as they are afraid of being labeled as "spammers".
Sometimes a customer doesn't come from Google or Bing, they come from a convincing email you send them or simply by clicking ona banner!
Good point regarding the stigma of other online advertising channels, although in some cases the stigma is appropriate, as with email marketing.
I totally agree with your point saying that SEO is hard work. This is generally true for the whole of Internet Marketing in which a lot of time is invested learning and keeping up to date with the developments in the industry.
I think because of the fact that many of us enjoy what we do so much much, then it becomes okay to undervalue. Truth is that if us Search Engine Optimizers do not value (in monetary terms) our work properly, then we cannot really expect to be considered so valuableby other businessmen. We must not lose sight of the fact that when dealing with clients, SEO is business not just a hobby.
Nice thought I agree with you and I am very pleased with it and did not like to add anything to it. It's a perfect answer from my side.
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Karen Walter
(link removed by SEOmoz staff)
if your going to spam, at least take 40 seconds to READ and respond with something that doesnt just SHOUT OUT "SPAM SPAM SPAM"...
It always amuses me though that there are "seo's" in the world so blinkered that they choose to spam seo boards instead of reading them and learning something.
I read your comment and would like to subscribe to your newsletter
;0)>
How is it that spammers haven't figured out that links in blog comments are no-follow?
Undervalueing oneself is something that I am sure many, if not most SEO's have experienced. When I first began to look into SEOing, I wasn't even sure what the market for this kind of service was like. The fact that still many companies do not utilize SEO as a means of marketing, it is often hard to set a value for yourself as a lot of first time clients cannot even set a value for this kind of service as well.
While looking for a job awhile ago, I began to realize that many companies I was interviewing with had absolutely no idea what kind of effect SEO can have on their business. While not dismissing the potential gains, they seemed to completely undervalue what SEO can really do.
Also for the sake of all SEO's around the world, let's not cheapen ourselves. I won't be too excited to lose my job for some cheapo who will do my work for half my salary ;]
Regarding not taking clients (or anyone) directly at their word, this applies to things they say they've done, too. I was confused as to why one client's "301 redirects" hadn't been acknowledged properly, having taken them at their word that these had been properly implemented. Thankfully, I checked the actual headers and they were meta refreshes, set to 0. In fact, my contact had also believed his dev who told him it was a 301. Certainly relate to the idea of always double-checking what everyone tells you they've done!
I hear you! I think a lot of the time, they don't even intentionally mislead us. Half the time, clients have been lied to by previous snake oil salesmen and they believe what they've been told. It's sad and frustrating to deal with.
Hi, i think in every business, even SEO.
Why just clients? Even your own team does this at times. And when something doesn't go as expected, you decide to check and hey...
Dont under charge for your services. If you are cheap people will not rate your services as much even if you do a good.
I asked a friend once, "how do you get those huge contracts?". His response: "charge a lot".
Regarding charging more and getting the business, I have a family story (please don't stone me for this) from about 75 years ago that still has application today.
My grandfather was trying to sell his piano and didn't get a single nibble. His friend told him it was too cheaply priced, so my grandfather jacked the price way up, and it sold right away.
No I'm not comparing SEO to pianos (though that might make a great youmoz post...hmm)but the concept of being in the upper echelon of pricing being beneficial is applicable across the board.
Don't assume you already know it all.
You semi-touched on this point. I was conversing with an SEO "expert" the other day and I asked how much time he spends looking at competitors for a site he's doing SEO work for. And he said he doesn't do any. He just trusts that he knows what he's doing, and he works through his process.
I've been spedning a lot of time evaluating why our competitors outrank us for certain phrases. Sometimes it's obvious. But it's not always. And just when you least expect it, you learn something new.
Don't forget a contract!
As much as we all wish people would follow the Golden Rule "Treat Others the Way You Want to Be Treated" but people can be scandleous.
I got burned 3 years ago and never made that mistake again
Don't give up. Even Rand has bad days (I hope!).
True. True.
Rand, of all your posts, this is the first one that I have agreed wholeheartedly with every statement - from the smallest minutia to the overall concept.
Each of those were very important lessons that Virante, Inc. and myself learned over the last 5-6 years, which has turned our company around and brought it to where it is today - 4x bigger, and infinitely more stable.
If you are an SEO or work for a Search Marketing business, mind what Rand says in this article. They are pure words of wisdom.
PS: Who had the hand-in-head/head-smacking avatar first, me or Jane? :)
I believe that you did Russ. I am not sure, but Jane might have originally wearing sunglasses, a trucker hat or maybe a #1 SEOmoz fan foam finger or something. Thumbs Up for being the original mozzer with an avatar that could possibly be described with a caption "Why did my client do that?" Are you two starting a new MOZvatar club? If so, I might be persuaded to give up my Mary Poppins umbrella;-)
I think this is a trend that could catch on. A year from now you will see all the major celebrities doing it. It will become an international symbol of peace and prosperity. Wars will be brought to an end. Starvation will cease. Or not. You never know with these things.
The Pebble that started the Avalanche...
Don't sweat the little stuff. Especially when there is big stuff to worry about.
do more important thing
Don't Rest on Your Laurels
I won't lie. This is probably one of my biggest flaws and something I struggle with as a SEO on a daily basis.
As a SEO, I find it to be much easier to just follow a simple pattern that I've utilized for years and while I've found success in these steps, I find myself from time to time realizing that I am one step behind some of my competitors. I'm always playing the catch-up game.
Reading up on even the smallest news worthy chances and discussing with other SEO's is something that all SEO's should routinely do.
Rand, I particularly liked this one:
"Don't Get Into Projects with People You Don't Like"
You are true- there are a thousand reasons that such a project never goes well.
In fact I have started to say no and my success rates have increased. I am lucky that I have a boss who respects my decisions.
I wanted to add another point (unless someone added this already in the comments; I didn't go through them all).
Never compromise yourself or profession for a client. If you feel uncomfortable doing something because you know it is wrong, black/grey hat, or may cause problems then DON'T DO IT.
Not only are you putting your client in jeopardy, but much more importantly yourself, the SEO profession, and your future in SEO.
Clients come and go and it's not worth putting yourself in a situation that may damage your reputation. Just explain why you're not comfortable with the task/job and mooooove along to the next.
Some really good points. I especially liked #6, about how SEO's can drive traffic to a site, but we cannot convert that lead into a sale (specifically for off-line conversions). I think a lot of clients are under the impression that if they pay you, it will bring traffic and sales. It really is a mutual relationship where both parties need to work at driving traffic and then figuring out the best way to convert those users once they get to your site.
I wrote a post today that talks about a similar topic but from a clients perspective. What a client can expect from a reputable SEO firm.
To expand on #8 'Don't Undervalue Your Work':
Whether working for a flat or hourly rate on clients' projects, I strongly recommend making it clear that as a consultant, your time has a price tag attached to it.
Once you've passed the initial site evaluation and often times free quote stage, extra time spent answering questions or explaining new strategic avenues should be considered just that - extra time.
Resist the temptation of courtesy phone/email question periods or "little extras" thrown in for free. Your good nature, passion for your work, and desire to see your client succeed can shoot you in the foot in several ways if you don't consider these important business angles:
Be courteous, professional, and strive to do the best for your clients, but don't lose site of your worth in the process!
Don't allow your SEO strategies to drift away from your business goals.There are too many things that we can do therefore it is important that we must keep in mind what is our business goals and formulate our SEO strategies accordingly, otherwise we might just end up doing tons of stuffs that doesn't bring any business value.
I second that!
In my words is don't end up in the neverending testing phase :]
Don't Create False Expectations - by far the most important. Simetimes it means to be a little bit harsh, but better now, than later.
Awesome post! I wish I could've read this three years ago...this would've saved me a lot of heart ache and drama!
Better late than never.
Great article and all great points. Number four especially rang true for me. In building my business, I've taken on a couple projects where my gut has told me there is something odd. Sometimes cashflow is important, right? I've learned to listen to my gut more now.
A related point would be to cut problem clients loose if the problem just can't be solved any other way. I cut a couple of those "funny feeling" clients loose and my stress levels have dropped like a rock. Fortunately I've added back some great clients. I'm far pickier now about the projects I work on. It just has to be the right fit.
All great, and some I couldn't help but feel a connection with more than others... but just to pull one out that I think can be easily overlooked, and generally overlooked for the wrong reasons:
This is one that a lot of people will read and agree with, but not recognize that it applies to them as well as the next guy. It's easy to think this applies to the newbies, but surely someone who has been in the biz for a few years is beyond this.
The reality is... information is rarely complete, experience is rarely universal, and the web doesn't operate in a vacuum.
In all but the most basic of situations, I've learned to look at everything with this kind of dialog:
Wow, I really like this post, and the comments are nice insights as well. I'm still very new to SEO, and this list, though simple and probably common-sense, is great! I'm tempted to print it and post it above my screen for when I get my next seo project in!
@ Luci-Creare Welcome to the Moz.
If you find this post good (and I agree) take advantage of the large amount of information available here. If you're still new check out the posts from Danny Dover.
Hi Randfish! I usually don't read SEO Don'ts but I am glad I did read this one.
I like your 12th point and I agree with it fully.
I have a question though. Could you show a concrete/explicit example of what would be some answers from a tactical level and strategic level?
I think that would help the community a lot to understand strategy vs tactics!
Some very good comments. Make sure your SEO does not promise results you never see, and then they fob you off with excuses!
The whole "free" debate (bottom of the blog post) is interesting. A participants are all highly intelligent people, and they're arguing over the impact of prices trending down to zero in the online content arena - reminds me of Nero fiddling while Rome burned. The only thing that's still going to have monetary value in a few year's time is human labour. Doesn't effect SEO/SEM people too much (as long as all our clients don't go broke), but a great many industries are in for a major shaking up over the next few decades.
Dont oversell the benefit of SEO. Managing cleints expectations with SEO is critical. Clients are excited at the commencement of the camapign and are deflated when they are not seeing the results. The seo time line and process needs to be understood by the client, so this is avoided.
Don't think that just because its urgent its most important.
Excellent article! #6 is such an important point. If your website can't convert, than it doesn't matter how much traffic you push. Thanks for writing this. :)
Excellent post Rand! I completely stand by your very #1 point. But I feel that sometimes clients don’t have the patience to wait for their rankings to go higher. They want immediate results as they implement. For this, some of the optimizers end up doing Black Hat SEO which is completely against the ethics. Instead, the client can be made aware or be educated of the facts, their rankings, issues, etc. A little different from mediacontour, our page of search engine optimization only reads the basics of our SEO process. We then discuss the details with prospects in-person/over telephone to make them aware about our detailed process and what should they expect from our services. This helps generate a better understanding between service provider and the client, which in turn helps setup realistic expectations.
Your post is spot on, Rand, in so many ways. What really resonated with me were "clicking" with potential clients, being humble, and SEO is not the conversion tool.
It's so darn easy - and appealing in today's economy - to say "yes" to any warm body willing to part with its money. But, like you, I've learned to hard way that when I ignore my little voice, I live to regret it.
I've found much success in being "real" - having quite confidence in my abilities and if I don't know the answer to a question, being willing to say, "Hey, let me find out." Folks are holding onto whatever cash they have and will only spend it with a vendor they feel they can trust.
Lastly, SEO gets the traffic to the site. It's up to the creative team to make them stick with good copy, appealing design and compelling reasons to buy.
Thanks for an important post!
Great article, #4 I learned the hard way. I am fortunate that I can now pick and choose who I want to work with.
Hi,
4. Don't Get Into Projects with People You Don't Like
I started working at a new SEO company several months ago and they asked me to work on some existing SEO work. I can see that the keywords are not good ones and not much relevant. for example for hotel websites they have ' cultural heritage/ cultural experience. ' When I checked on google analytics, those keywords don't get any visits at all. I told my boss these but he doesn't want to inform the client and change or get new keywords.
what should I do ?
Talk to your boss again. Pick the right time, prepare your case, list the alternative keywords for an easy read and show how the existing keywords can still be used but in a less prominant position.
My advice: try and get them shortly after they've had lunch i.e. never when they are hungry!
Nice article Rand,
I personally experienced a various issues discussed here in this article. I would like to add one here: When ever you stuck with big problem, initially it will look like a big mountain and imposible to solve but to get better solution; we must devide it into small part and start solving each part to get solution of whole issue.
As someone who's still green behind the ears by most measures, I appreciate these types of SEO posts. Like this and the post where you spoke to your younger self, they show a lot of wisdom and lessons learned. Thanks for these tips, Rand.
I like Point 8. Don't Undervalue Your Work
All work that demands kind of creativness, experience and knowledge should be paid better.
And if you see the benefits that costumers can have from SEO-Work then it is more than legitimate to sell your time propertly.
I noticed that costumers respect and value your work more when they pay a decent price.
And I think that I do a better job for a costumer if he pays a good bug. And in the most cases the custumer can increase the amount of their clients when the seo work comes into effect. This is the most voluable thing which demand a good exchange. Otherwise the costumer might have a bad conscience that he have paid you too little which desturbs then the relationship.
Don't speak in SEO language so your clients do not understand what you are talking about. (sometimes it depends on the level of knowledge they have)
Plain, clean ideas lead to work!
Just because someone is "Director or Manager of [IT/Marketing/Communications/Other]" doesn't mean they understand the web at more than a basic level. Don't assume they're "web smart" until they prove otherwise - it should be immediate within a few minutes of talking to someone.
I love this article. It's really enjoyable to be able to come to SEOmoz and be confident I'll find something I like! (even when I'm maintaining healthy 'don't believe everything you read' skepticism).
The 'don't' that resonates with me most is the "don't rest on your laurels", for two reasons: Firstly, I've been gorging myself on SEO best practice for countless hours and I'm still having mammoth 'ah-ha' moments every day.
Secondly, as a relative newcomer to seo in comparison to some of the more seasoned pros, I get a real kick out of the dynamic nature of the playing field. In a game where the rules are always changing it makes it easier for the little guy to get a foot hold.
Don't assume your clients understand the lingo or concepts.
This relates to Jane's point about assumptions.
Many developers are unaware of impact of what they do or don't do and often the language used can cause big problems when it comes to implementation.
Great insight! The difficult thing about SEO is that there is not necessarily a point where you can say "I'm done." More can always be done to optimize a website for search engines whether it is creating backlinks or updating meta data.
Until your client's website is the #1 result in Google for the desired search terms, there is still work to be done. Because of this, you need to make sure of your client's expectations before you begin working for them and you may have to adjust these expectations if they are unrealistic.
This is how my company offers SEO services so as to not create false hopes and expectations.
Once your client's website is #1 for the desired keyword(s) there is still work to be done ;)
I totally agree...great post, Rand.
Don't guarantee rankings. In fact, pretty soon it will be a lot easier for SEOs since you won't be able to "check rankings" anymore: it's going to be so personalized that a number 1 ranking for you won't be the same for me and will be even different for the client. We're already seeing changes.
You're right about the analytics part. I would, however, keep in mind that Google Analytics isn't always right when it comes to traffic: it's a javascript-based analytics, and it's buried at the bottom of a page in most cases. So it's not showing all the visitors to a site. You have to analyze log files to get accurate data.
Clients do tend to forget stuff, like all the domains that they own and are redirecting to sites... ;)
Always back up your answers with stats if you can.
There still is a lot of hype out there: and don't believe everything that Matt Cutts says. He's not always right.
Don't miss any detail when you optimise, even a slight change
Don't under-estimate the power of tools, they always calculate faster
An insightful reminder on many points. Agreed, that SEO can become undervalued by some quarters because they can't see the behind-the-scenes goings on. How many times have I seen some people look at a report and say question the amount of links acquired in a month and not realise the level of work to find those links in the first place. I always be careful on what I promise and deliver and it can be a pain to tell the client that certain tasks will be difficult but given time (experimenting and what not) the desired goal can be achieved.
Not a huge fan of Guy other, but I did enjoy this list.
Great post Rand!
I couldn't agree more w/ #'s 6&7. It is very important (working as a client side seo) to distringuish between conversion rate optimization / user experience type work and SEO. Search can lead to great increases in sales but it's a secondary efect. The point of industry research was something that I have had to communicate up the chain. Staying abreast of industry news and best practices is essential when it comes to status call and overall vendor management. Additionally, having quotes from respected authors / speakers in the search field makes pitching new strategies and ideas to execs much easier.
Thank you for another great post Rand!
"statististics"? spell check?
This is a really good list. I like your frank, candid talk, mixed with humility and good business wisdom. Much appreciated.
Ah great post, the interesting point is that some of my clients are starting to also read these and my comments which you must always understand that what ever you write or tweet is public and may come back to bite you.
#10 is a great point, if you managed to make a mess with their IT team they can make your life hell, but if they cant do simple tasks like supply you FTP access or reset your password each month and take 2-3 days to resolve this clients need to be made aware if this is affecting the project.
#12 look into other channels, utlise email marketing solutions as they can provide a great monthly uplift in qualified visitors which can help spike your conversions and overall drive more business keeping your clients happy.
Really informative list. keep on posting this typse of important things.
As a developer first and foremost - I agree... be nice to us! We do our best and it takes two to tango! No one likes dancing on their own... unless its to michael jackson in the privacy of your own living room... i've said too much
Really informative points. i need to store all this point in my mind. Thank dude.
Directory listing is an important part of the <a href="https://www.vastvision.com">SEO.</a>A tip regarding the directory listing is whether a directory is found in search results. If it is, especially on Google, take it as a good sign. It's usually worth the money to buy a link from that directory.* Don't submit to too many directories too fast. Space it out over several months. * Avoid free directories.