A company that manages to properly outsource SEO into capable hands will see a massive and permanent spike in online traffic & sales. On the other hand, if it is not done correctly, the whole thing will turn into a spectacular disaster. This is a double-edged sword, highly effective and capable of reducing costs – but it has to be done right.
The important thing is that the company should know what kind of questions to ask, when hiring someone to do search optimization. But most of the time, nobody in the company has any idea what it is all about. So nobody has any idea of how to hire s search optimization services provider.
For starters, don’t take a risk. Don’t even consider providers who don’t have a track record and cannot provide glowing and verifiable references. Don’t agree to a lengthy contract period. Don’t hire someone who can do optimization, but doesn’t have experience with SEM and PPC, because these will sooner or later be a part of the company’s overall search strategy.
It is also best for the one in charge of overseeing the efforts to do a little bit of research on best practices. The company has to know what things are usually done in search optimization, not to mention some things which ‘may’ be done and a few things which should never be done. This is what is better known as whitehat & blackhat SEO, with a big, fat grey zone in between.
The point here is to weed out the black sheep who will sooner or later get a client website banned from the listings. Focus on short listing the good guys. To be noted that aforementioned good guy should nevertheless know how to get things done, like working on three-way link partnerships and paying or bartering to ‘acquire’ organic links.
Speaking of free, the main reason a company wants to outsource SEO (or anything, for that matter) is usually to save money. To be noted that going straight for the lowest bidder isn’t always the right choice. The company could end up with someone very unprofessional, who isn’t keen on making an effort because the returns are just not good enough.
The trick, then, is to find a place in the middle where the provider may cost more than the lowest bidder but has rock solid credentials and a long track record of delivering results. The contract should still not be for over one quarter, and there has to be a one month probation period. If the provider doesn’t measure up to commitments, terminate the arrangement as soon as possible.
The best way – if the budget permits – is to talk to a very reputed search optimization company, and ask them about how much ROI they can promise. This means that even if it costs an arm and a leg, it’s worth while if it results in the company getting back dozens of arms and legs in increased sales and new customers. Bottomline is that when a company wants to outsource SEO, it’s more important to look at the high results instead of the low cost.
Alex Stein manages several successful e-commerce websites and eBay stores. For more information on SEO outsourcing, visit www.roguemediaonline.com.
