Bad SEO company

I was not sure were to put this but I felt motivated so I will drop it here since it the most popular location.

After posting some reply's to questions about top ten guarentee. I noticed several postings of people that have been "screwed by this company" Obivously this is a problem since the ratio of quality SEO companies vs scumbags must be 20 to 1.

The reason for this post is I see several complaints about SEO companies ripping people off. Yet I also see several posts about not ever giving any type of guarentee. In my opinion these go hand in hand.

Why on Earth would a reputable company offer to pay me if I cannot back up my performance with some sort of promise.

Could you imagine dropping your car off for a repair
mechanic says:
I'm sorry these cars keep changing all the time it is hard to guarentee that I can get this fixed.

The next day your repair is not done :
They did take the time to look over your car and give you suggestions on keeping it tuned up. Then he charges you $500 for services.

Why would I let an SEO comapny do the same thing. you need to provide a win / win for both sides.

The customer needs to understand that you cannot promise the world but you can offer results based on good pricing.

Also SEO companies need to educate their client and inform them the good results take time (not 30-60 days).

The goal of the SEO/Advertising/marketing company is to provide value not expense. If you provide value the customer (if it is a quality client) will not run towards the next lowest bidder.

I wish there was some way we could isolate these
ad agencies/seo wanna be's/ and keyword providers
Maybe like an e-pinions or a SEO seal of approval type of company. Were Good SEO company monitor one and another. Sort of like the BBB for SEO.

Any thoughts to my rantings?

I interviewed several seo companies for my web site and while the prices ranged from $1,000 to $35,000 one thing remained constant throughout - no guarantees. If a company isn't willing to make some sort of guarantee whether it be at least one top ten keyword ranking out of twenty or 15/20 or whatever, they won't get any business from me - especially if they want upwards of $10,000 up front.

Strange and Yet the Price range was that wide.
you would figure it for a company that offers 1000 bucks or so but not 35,000.
I goes to show you that some people can really get wacked.

$35,000? Unless they have a person working 40 hours a week, 5 days a week for 6 months, then this price is outrageous.

I charged a client $3500 per month. But there are a lot of promises that go with it. His old budget was $10,000 I saved him 65% and he is getting better results. He is approached by SEO companies from his PPC ads still and they offer him top ten for $500 per month he doesn't flinch.

I spend 20% of my time on SEO... just think how much that would cost if I was payin for it. And I don't think that the typical SEO would do as good of a job - I have a lot of subject-specific knowledge that helps with the research - and the research can lead to new product ideas. And doing the research lets me know what my competitors are up to. All of this has multiple cross-benefits. I know the SERPs and sites in my field better than anyone.

I do advocate that you get occasional consultation from top notch SEOs and other site owners from time to time because just one idea or one tweak can make a nice difference.

That makes sense for those who are looking for "consultation".
Of course you should alawys be paid for sharing knowledge to help improve a company. That's what consultants do. Their are several companies that know their competitiors and know their business the just want more of it. That's when you are providing a service with results as opposed to consultation.
Don't get me wrong I charge for a 1-2 hour sit down with a company on its marketing methods and options.

Right... I think that there is a market for "consultant" SEOs as much as there is for the complete take-it-over-for-you SEO service. Lots of companies run their own websites and would benefit from periodic consultation - especially when they are in low to mid-level competition.

These folks would probably get very high ROI from having a pro help them by honing and tweaking the few pages on their sites with the highest profit margin and conversion rates.... or getting some consultation on off-page SEO strategies.

I resemble that remark. I do the same.

I worked for a bad SEO company for a while, selling their services. Thankfully I was able to get out of there after only 6 months and onto greener pastures. Occassionally I'll get e-mails from former co-workers, telling me how much business they've taken away from the orginal firm...as one of them would say, karma is a motherf*er...nice to see that bad SEO firm circling the drain.

Cygnus

You would rather go to a mechanic with your 1987 Tercel and have a mechanic tell you that you can win the Indy 500 with it once he is through? All for only $500? Promises, from any industry, have to pass a test of logic. If the promise is too good to be true, it likely is.

SEO_am -

In some industries for SEM, I'd say that a gaurantee just isn't possible...in some cases it can be. 'Payday loan' = no gaurantee. 'free fried fish fedexed fortright' = gaurantee.

The best contracts I've seen for the no gaurantee case are contingency based -- flat fee for top page, variable rate on sale/volume/action/etc for non-top page. I'd love to hear of better models though...one never knows when a need will arise.

Cygnus

Cygnus, I agree. Every situation is different. I advise presidents and boards of multi-billion dollar companies. In no case do I give identical advice or promises. The situation has to be assessed, plan made, then results projected. Performance based compensation is my game. If I do this... you give me that. If I exceed what I promised... you give me that plus X%. Up front promises with set compensation, to be believable, must also be logical and based upon prior performance. Any SEO making promises should be able to provide references that will confirm the claim, or, have such a reputation in the industry for results that he/she will likely be believed.

It's very simple really. People are paid for their TIME, as in a service. If the client isn't pleased with those results, they can find somebody else for future work. But they still have to pay you.

Entering into business with anyone is a matter of TRUST.

Guarantees don't work in this industry. Period.

Regards,

Agalychnis