Picking the Right Search Engine Optimization Company

Wed, Mar 19, 2008

Search Engine Optimization

These days more and more web site owners are turning to Search Engine Optimization to increase their traffic by boosting their search ranking position, and rightly so. The overwhelming majority of web users find what they’re looking for on the web through the major search engines. Search engine marketing allows you to rank higher in search results, and thus boost your visibility, traffic and overall effectiveness at converting traffic into revenue.

This has led to an increase in the amount of companies out there offering SEO services to site owners such as BrasilSEO.com.br, what offers services of SEO in Brazil. These services can be very useful, because they are run by experts who generally have the most current methods and effective approaches for SEO. But some are better than others, and choosing the right one can be difficult, so here are some tips to help you find the best available.

1. Search for Them

It may be simple, but what better indicator of the effectiveness of the methods used by an SEO service than their own ranking in the search engines? Search for “SEO services“, or “search engine optimization“, and look at the top results. These sites obviously found a way to get to the top of the list, so they can probably get you there too! Choose a few of the most popular and narrow them down from there.

2. Look for Guarantees

Find sites that offer guarantees, such as to improve your ranking by a certain amount, or to land you in the top 10 results for a certain amount of keywords. Some sites even offer payment schedules for their services that won’t require you to pay the full fee until you see results. Take advantage of deals you find. Other sites will offer refunds if they can’t live up to their guarantee. Just keep in mind that SEO takes time, often a couple months, since the search engines won’t update their results immediately.

3. Reputation and Credibility in the Industry

When you find a service you’re considering, investigate how long they’ve been in business and find out about some of the projects they’ve worked on. Many services will offer a list of clients with whom they’ve worked which act as references for their services. The more successful projects and pleased clients, the better.

4. SEO Techniques and Methods

Inquire about the specific search engine optimization techniques different services use. Some will have better ideas for search engine marketing than others.

Almost all services will employ some kind of doorway page system to establish placement. Some may use “cloaking“, which keeps SEO text hidden from users but still exists to improve ranking. Some services are better at cloaking than others, and if you’re going to pursue this, you have to make sure the SEO services company you choose is good at it. Cloaking is considered by some to be a “black hat“, or negative technique, since many search engines will penalize your site if they find out cloaking is being used.

Another good question to ask is whether the company uses software to optimize or if they actually go through themselves and manually install SEO. Stay away from companies who use software, because their programs and systems can often lead to sloppy optimization, and therefore less effective results.

Ideally, SEO strategies and search engine marketing should be customized, because the true experts will know their techniques inside and out, and then appropriately apply certain aspects of them to your specific site to get you the best results.

5. Effective Strategies for Directories

Linking in directories is a big part of search engine marketing, and since submissions of links to them are reviewed by actual people looking for quality links, they have to be done carefully. Ask about company procedures for submitting to directories, and make sure they plan to get you into the best and most effective directories, like Yahoo and Open Link.

6. Researching Keywords

Search engine optimization hinges on choosing the best and most applicable keywords for what your site offers, so make sure your company uses tools that can help find the best ones for your site. The best companies will help you choose keywords, instead of simply using ones that you provide them.

7. Establish Ownership of Optimized Pages

Some companies may try to establish ownership of your optimized pages by creating new domains for them, hosting them themselves and then linking traffic back to your site. Essentially, they act as the middle man for your traffic. Avoid this, because if you ever decide to stop using their services, they will delete your pages and you will lose all the traffic you gained through them.

The best companies will help you overhaul or employ SEO on your pages instead of creating new ones, or if they are doing your SEO site structure foundation and building from the ground up, they will transfer ownership of any new domains to you.

8. Updates and Ranking Reports

Choose a search engine optimization company that provides updates on your traffic and keyword effectiveness. Many companies offer monthly ranking reports which chart the progress of the effect SEO has on your site.

9. Costs and Payment Plans

Here, you really just have to be a savvy shopper. Evaluate how different companies charge you for SEO services. Some will offer flat rates or monthly maintenance rates, while others may require payment on a cost per click basis, meaning that the more traffic you receive, the more you pay. The CPC method offers huge incentive for the company to boost your ranking as high as it can go, but it also means there is no limit to how much you may spend a month on SEO. Evaluate the best deals based on the payment plan and the quality you think you’ll get from the service. If you can afford it, CPC plans can be very effective. But try to find the best mix of quality and price. There are plenty of companies out there that can get your site in the top results for a great value. Again, guarantees from companies are nice when evaluating the plans you choose.

SEO Marketing World can offer all you want. Contact us and find out what you are looking for.

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This post was written by:

Cassiano Travareli - who has written 90 posts on SEO Blog | SEO Marketing World.

SEO Specialist! Loves everything about Search Engine Marketing.