They all make promises but none deliver. They manage to get you good rankings for keywords phrases very few people search, which is easy to do.
I would advice you to not to go with the companies that guarantee rankings as nobody can guarantee rankings while using white hat techniques. Always ask for the services they will be providing under SEO.
Well... bad SEO firms promise you top #10 .... good SEO firms don't promise you anything... may i known why?!
Because it's impossible to guarantee rankings, especially in Google. When I was just getting started, I did SEO work on a performance basis. Now I mostly work on my own sites, as it's quite profitable and I don't have to deal with clients. I only occasionally do freelance work, and only if they pay is good. Back to the OP's question - there are a fair number of good firms out there, but be prepared to pay for the expertise. SEOInc is one of the most well known. I assume SEO Guy is still doing his thing, but haven't heard of him in a while. Jim Westergren, a member here, seems to know his stuff.
Good SEO firms do not guarantee because they use only white hat techniques to get rankings. While bad SEO firms use black hat techiniques to get guaranteed listing and thus helps to get the site banned. It is advisable to see the services a company is guaranting to offer for your website. What is important is the ethical ways to promote the site, and if you are using such ways, the rankings will come even if it takes time.
coz no one can predict good rankings! btw anyone heard about this company i just saw it yesterday.. and they said that "Guaranteed listed in the Top 3 Listings + Guaranteed Listed in 48 Hours" and " they can Get your web site in the top 3 listings of 80% of the internet"
Right, you can't promise anything you have no control over. I can't control how Google will change their algo so I can't promise a site will be in the top 3 or even on page one. I can promise I will not use any black hat SEO.
You can try out with "www.covient.com"..No Black Hat Techniques....Good Ranking in minimum of 3 months.
Or you can do it yourself by being involved in forums, learning from others and applying what you learn. 3 months sounds to good to be true.
read thru the threads in here and hire someone you feel comfortable with. I have seen far better results from freelancers than seo firms.
The whole idea of "SEO firms" is suspect. Good SEO starts at the begining of a website project and every part of the site from content to structure is created to be SE friendly. The idea that a SEO firm can apply some kind of band aid to a site that struggles in the SERPs is pretty silly.
I personally wouldn't hire any seo. I would go with a web developer who understands seo. And then read thru the forums. That will get you a lot more results.
That is why I have tried to encorporate SEO as a "bonus package" for those who hire me as a freelance designer. I also tend to get better results if I have an "SEO" plan in mind right at the beginning design stages.
SEO firms are better for some businesses, particularly larger ones who wish to have more of a traditional, agency-style relationship. It's a shame that the legit SEO firms get a black-eye because of all the crappy ones. In the end, do a lot of research and choose the firm or free-lancer that's honest and upfront with you.
I disagree. Most sites can be made SEO friendly fairly easily (unless they're flash-oriented). If a site has a decent structure in place, simple keyword analysis, on-page changes + tag optimization, and link building can do wonders. Especially if the site has some age to it. The real challenge is starting with a brand spanking new site with little to no existing link pop. In that case, it will take a while to rank in Google for competetive phrases, MSN and Yahoo results can be realized much more quickly.
If you "seo" a site and don't use it as an opportunity to make changes that benefit you in other ways than just "seo", IMO you should not be hired. Web development in general (search engine friendly web development) and image/sales consulting go a lot further. SEO seems to be a very nearsighted approach. I think that 80% of the firms out there put a lot more effort into customer service (BSing) than actually working which is a shame. Overall SEO is really a pathetic industry. There is a lot that can be done to get a site out there, but when someone tries to tell you that their service is the key to it, be very careful.
i read many threads before in other forums says SEO's cnnt make guarantee that they cannot put the website on top in a short time...how come some of SEO's can make a guarantee?
Because overall the increase of sales due to that statement tops the amount of refunds they are giving out for non performance.