High Rankings Advisor: More SEO Ramblings - Issue No. 146

August 17, 2005

~~~IN TODAY'S ADVISOR~~~

*Introductory Comments:
---->   Back from San Jose

*Search Engine Marketing:
---->   More SEO Ramblings from Jill

*This Week's Sponsor:
---->   SEO Copywriting Combo

*Stuff You Might Like:
---->   Call to Action Seminar

*High Rankings Forum Thread of the Week:
---->   Useless Content

*Advisor Wrap-up:
---->   Where Have the Years Gone?
________________________________________________________

~~~Introductory Comments~~~

Got a bit of a short issue for you today.  Still playing catch-up from
last week's conference (which was great, by the way).  It seems that
now that August is starting to wind down, people are returning from
their summer vacations with search marketing on their minds.
Suddenly, everyone and their brother want to discuss services and get
proposals.  Not a bad thing, but why does everyone have to do it all
at the same time?

Let's get straight to today's ramblings.  - Jill


~~~Search Engine Marketing Issues~~~

++More SEO Ramblings from Jill++

I'm not a big phone person.  People who know me can attest to that.
In fact, it's been great having a business partner this past year who
IS a phone person, as she fields all the calls for me and actually
*likes* it!  Today, however, I had 3 scheduled phone calls (and on a
newsletter day to boot!).  Two were with potential clients to discuss
the SEO needs of their sites and to figure out which of my services
would be a good fit.  The other was pretty cool as it was with someone
from Time Magazine who was researching a story on search marketing.
(Look for it to be out on stands in a couple of weeks.)

As much as I dislike the phone, I have to admit that it's a great way
to get a feel for people -- especially potential clients. Email is
great for obtaining the facts, but to really get a feel for someone's
vision of where they want their company and website to be, it helps to
speak with them on the phone.

So why am I telling you this and what does it have to do with search
marketing?  Well, after speaking with these particular clients, I have
to say that I was really proud of them!  Both of them understand the
value of search marketing, and they also have great long-term goals in
mind when it comes to growing their businesses.

Unfortunately, more often than not, when I speak with potential
clients the conversation goes something like this:

Jill: So tell me about your company and the goals you have for your
business and website.

Caller: I want to rank #1 in Google for [insert one-word keyword
here].

Jill: Let me stop you right there as I don't think we're the right
company for you.

Caller: Don't you do SEO?

Jill: Yes, but...

Caller: I'm willing to pay you whatever your fees are, but we just
need to be #1.

Jill: Perhaps you should try PPC ads?  That's really the only way to
ensure that you always show up for the keywords of your choice.

Caller: We already do PPC and it's killing us.  We can't afford it
anymore, which is why we are looking at natural SEO.  We want free
search engine visitors.

Jill: Well, that's all fine and dandy, but it's just really not what
we do. We optimize your entire site so that it's the best it can be
for the search engines as well as your users. We help it to be found
in the engines for tons of phrases that relate to it, but we can't
simply *place* your site in the engines for a specific keyword, in a
certain position.

Caller: But the last company we talked to said they would do that for
us.  We just thought we'd check with you to see if you might charge
less than they do.

Jill: I think you should go with the other company. Good luck! {click}

You can see why I generally avoid the phone!  But like I said, today's
calls were different.  Today I spoke with people who *got it*.  Even
the reporter from Time seemed to get it, and that's really rare. It's
always great to speak with people who understand the long-term value
of search marketing, as well as the notion of doing things the right
way and making sure that you get expert help along the way as
necessary.

It warmed my heart because it showed me that the stuff I've been
telling you for years is starting to sink in.  These potential clients
didn't discuss having us create junk content just for the sake of
building content. One of them talked about spending the next few years
building up an area of his site that would establish it as an
authority on the types of products they sold.  The other guy had a
small marketing firm with values very much like my own. They wanted to
start offering SEO to their clients, but wanted to be sure to do it
the right way from the start.  They didn't want to just jump in
without really knowing what they were doing.  One thing that really
impressed me was that this small marketing firm talked about having
their clients involved in any training sessions that we might provide.
Like me, he is not afraid of educating his clients.

I learned long ago how important education is when working with
clients. Sometimes it can make or break the relationship and/or the
SEO campaign. Unfortunately, SEO companies that are willing to educate
their clients are rare.

How often do we hear about "proprietary technology" when it comes to
SEO?  And how many use scare tactics in order to keep those monthly
checks rolling in?  Those are not smart, long-term client relationship
techniques!  If your client eventually gets enough SEO knowledge to
take it in-house, so what?  Be happy for them, and be available if
they still want you to consult with them every now and then.  It's a
*good* thing because you've helped another company to be successful.
Besides, there are always new clients out there that need your help.

It's really no different from raising your kids and letting them leave
the nest when it's time.  You can certainly hold on to them and beg
them not to leave, or you can lay some kind of guilt trip on them, but
what's the point?  Just think of all the great new things you can
start to do and learn when you eventually have that empty nest.
Besides, as independent as your kids get, surely they're never too old
for a little advice and perhaps a hug or two from Mom and Dad!  (My
oldest is off to college next week, which made me think of this
analogy!)

Jill


(P.S. If you'd like to republish the above ramblings, please email me
your request and where it will reside, and I'll send you a short bio
you can use with it for your site.)



_________Powerful SEO Copywriting Combo______________

Your site's only as good as its writing. You need the "write" skills.
__________________________________________________

If your site is poorly written, your sales will be slow.  You *must*
speak to your target audience with each and every word you write.
At the same time, keeping your keywords featured prominently is
a bit of a juggling act.

Save $10 on the most powerful copywriting combo available today!

Karon Thackston's Step-By-Step Copywriting Course & Jill Whalen's
Nitty-gritty of Writing for the Search Engines.
</combo.htm>
__________________________________________________


~~~Stuff You Might Like~~~

++Call to Action Seminar++

Bryan and Jeffrey Eisenberg are putting on a 2-day "Call to Action"
seminar in Austin, Texas on September 8th and 9th based on their book
of the same name.  You can learn more or register here:
<http://wizardacademy.com/academydescription.asp?ID=40>

Bryan has a free pass available for one lucky High Rankings Advisor
subscriber.  If you're interested in attending, please email Bryan
directly at bryan.eisenberg@gmail.com and let him know why you deserve
the pass.

Good luck!


~~~High Rankings Forum Thread of the Week~~~

++Useless Content++

Forum Admin Scottie is somewhat annoyed at the content people have
been creating lately in the name of SEO.  She remarks, "It continues
to amaze me that people will put useless content on their sites for
the spiders; well-written, maybe. But do their clients care? Does it
help anything? No."

Read more and share your own comments here:
</forum/index.php?showtopic=16091>.


~~~Advisor Wrap-up~~~

That's all for today.

Next week I'm off for a few days in Maine, and towards the end of the
week we'll be bringing Corie to Staten Island to get her settled at
college.  Seems like yesterday when I was in college myself seeking a
suitable husband.  (Corie has bigger plans!)  As my grandmother always
says, "Where have the years gone?"

Catch you in two! - Jill