Searching for the right SEO company can seem daunting.
So how do you eliminate risk? I speak to lots of businesses each week, some find us through this blog, our organic rankings and our paid search. Around 50% of the businesses I speak to have fallen victim to other shady firms, or have been hurt in some way by another agency dropping the ball.
The reason I’m writing this blog? I’ve noticed a few ‘Top SEO Company’ evaluation websites pop up over time. Websites that claim to offer in depth knowledge of SEO firms across the nation and indeed the Globe, through legitimate evaluations. You may have even come across them. I was approached by one of these firms about a year ago. They called offering a space on their list. I was intrigued as to how the metric system worked. Would they analyze our efforts, our marketing techniques and perhaps look at our own backlink structure and popularity? I received a contract claiming all of this would be done. At the bottom of the contract? The cost – $5,000 per month to be exact. A sizeable chunk from my monthly marketing budget and not to be sniffed at. I would be exposed to quite a few thousand specific searches every month too, so the exposure was worthwhile.
A week after signature, SEOhaus was ranked no. 9 of all the SEO companies out there. Interesting as I consider our company higher. I inquired as to how they came to this position and if they could send me the research.
It never arrived. It never actually happened. A month later, I received a call from my sales exec, who was also one of the owners. I was let in on the business model a little more. The more you pay, the higher you score. Position 1 held a handsome sum of $10,000 per month. I asked the question ‘So, there isn’t a score factor you put into place, it’s simply, the more I pay, the higher I can get?’
‘Yep’ – he replied.
I put my notice in and our ranking was removed.
I’m all for a great business model that makes a good living, but these websites simply contradict their own merit based system. You might very well be evaluated and given a certain ‘position’. But the reason you were given that position, is because the company who had it before you just ended their contract. A month later you’ll be approached to spend more, kicking the company above you down a notch. This ends up in an intense bidding war and a constant up-sell. The next day, I saw a new company in position 9 when I canceled my contract.
You’ll notice a few of these on page 1 if you search for ‘Best SEO company’, ‘Top SEO Company’, or ‘Which SEO company is best?’ etc.
One piece of advice when eliminating an SEO risk? Take these websites with a pinch of salt.
The post Which is the Best SEO Company? appeared first on SEOhaus - Search Marketing Blog.