What People Think about SEO

This comic strip sums up most people’s frustrations with Search Engine Optimization.  As a business owner, you probably don’t have time to learn all the hows and whys that affect optimizing web sites.  So, SEO companies talk in broad concepts, which leads to the perception of vague and mysterious actions.  This is also...

This comic strip sums up most people’s frustrations with Search Engine Optimization.  As a business owner, you probably don’t have time to learn all the hows and whys that affect optimizing web sites.  So, SEO companies talk in broad concepts, which leads to the perception of vague and mysterious actions.  This is also where most people usually get on the path to frustration.

I’ve written numerous blogs on how Dog Star Media’s approach to SEO is different.  Although we work with web technologies, I make it clear we are a marketing company first, so everything we choose to do is approached and measured from a marketing point of view.  So, technical achievements, which strict SEO companies might trumpet despite a perceived lack of results, are not our focus here.    Here are three quick ways we are different and why our SEO program is great for small businesses.

1) Clearly defined goals that matter.  The goal of our program: more traffic to the web site.  You can manipulate a lot of things on a web site to optimize it but traffic is one factor in determining relevance that we cannot manufacture with SEO.   Of course we’d like to see you #1 on every term you want but the fact is, that goal for you might be impossible to reach.  You have to ask yourself, what is your motivation to be #1 ranked: prestige or more traffic?  More traffic gets your phone ringing.  Prestige... that is a check you can’t cash.  If you are interested in more contacts, let us get you more traffic.  We choose the best and most efficient path with you and will help you keep your priorities straight.

2) Realism.  The SEO business is full of people selling guarantees and offering free, partially-informed evaluations.  They are selling you based on the fact that the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.  Here is a fact: No one can tell a search engine to rank you #1 organically on a term.  So when someone guarantees you a #1 ranking, they are selling something they cannot assure.  If they offer a guarantee, you are buying the guarantee, not the ranking.  We tell you at the start and at times throughout the year that search engine rankings move up and down constantly.  You may occupy a very substantial position but there will be wavering.  Do you think all of your competitors are doing some sort of SEO?  Of course they are.  So, the situation is liquid.  We continually focus you on the one result that matters: traffic that comes to your site.  You are never going to get the ocean to stop moving.  Better to be concerned with how high the tide is rising on your individual island.  The advantage here: we keep you focused on what is important to you and don’t start the relationship off with promises we can’t keep or shouldn’t make.

3) Better Communication. The key reports in our SEO program are posted to your online account manager monthly around the first of the month.  It is like clockwork and, since all the details of your account are listed chronologically in your account, you don’t have to hunt for any details.  Our reports include Call Tracking Reports, Google Analytics reports and a high level summary of your last month’s results.  For more depth we post the SEO audits we use to track your words and determine changes.  We are fully transparent.  You can be as detailed in following the progress as you want.  However, most people go straight to what matters to them: Visits and Calls.

So, what has your experience been?  Vague like the Dilbert office?  If so, why not try Dog Star Media SEO?  If you want to try our Standard or Pro Level programs, which are priced for small businesses, please email me at donald@dogstarmedia.com.