I have always done my own SEO work, and am not sure what an SEO company would do different. I ignore reciprocating link programs and work to get inbound links by producing content on other sites. Inbound links without the reciprocating link is better anyway. I try to make sure all of my pages are index. No hidden links. What else would and SEO do for you?
Just keep building relevant and high quality back links for your site and you will not need any SEO company help at all Also, I assume that you have done On page SEO.
It all depends on the company. The better ones provide keyword research analysis. Trend forecasting and keyword strategies. On page SEO. As for off page SEO, the better ones focus on RELATIONSHIP building based on high quality content. Beware of SEO "experts" that don't offer content services. IMHO, the backbone of an effective SEO campaign is context-specific, highly relevant, and highly useful CONTENT. Best of luck!
I have to 100% disagree with you on this based on what i have seen for many years. My seo friend get his clients into googles top 10 without any writing expertise. He has been saying all along (and i now totally agree with him) that the backbone of any seo campaign is link building and hes been proving it to me for 3 years lol, so i have to say that i believe him on that one. He always says that if google were a girl, that great links would be the romance that you give to google to get her to go on a date with you. lol (please dont ask me to elaborate more on that one)
I would think those SEO companies know what they are doing, get the good ones. It is quite easy, whoever near the top for SEO keyword should be a good SEO company A friend of mine tried, it is expensive, but they do deliver the results amazingly.
There are some good seo companies out there but I do not think they are necessary because if you have enough high quality backlinks you will rank well.
It depends, if we have the time of course building the back links overseas would be far cheaper. But established SEO have already their arsenal of back links, so for them to push up a web site is far easier and faster for those who cant afford the traditional organic method.
Companies like Big Mouth Media are really good. If you check their client list, you'll be mesmerized.
Errm, well they come with a HEFTY PRICE TAG!! I guess you should ask for a quote before pulling out the companies that rank #1 on SE's!!! The same jobs that can be done by smaller firms, overseas for cheaper...but then again there are many "wannabe SEO guru's"...so ALWAYS check their portfolio for track performance and results... Everyone can talk the talk, but can they put their money where their mouth is...?!! Personally, you can learn SEO yourself...it's a matter of putting in the hours on a daily basis to get the results.. Link Building is in fact the backbone!!
A rather major SEO company (who will remain anonymous in this thread) - originally did SEO work on the site I run about 2.5 years ago. It cost £2500 and the work done was minimal. It was all 'offsite SEO' - when I took over, the site only had around 200 backlinks. All from the company's suppliers and the original site designers own link building work when it first launched. The site up until I took over had an average monthly hit rate of 140k...now, it's around 1.1million, with sales increased around 700%. Not that I'm one for boasting, but a company that charges a fortune and apparently 'know it all' - frankly, really don't. And if they do, they should be considered as thieves. Oh, and I only started doing 'SEO' work in July 2007. Within 6 months, I had - single handedly - increased traffic by over 1000%. Do it yourself, you'll save a lot of money, and learn a lot of knowledge at the same time.
SEO company's are just fine... but remember they can't do anything that YOU can't do yourself If you have the time, read a lot and build your success.
You don't always have to hire a company to do the work for you, sometimes it pays off to hire a consultant for a few hours and then implement his suggestions.
SEO Companies are good if you have the money, and you are a beginner. (Or you lack the SEO knowledge)
Hmm, I do wonder what typical rates for "SEO Consultants" are...? Though, one would have to prove their SEO experience with hard facts/portfolio before they get a consulting session for me...!! Say, $15 an hour?
Be careful here as a few of the mid sized seo companies have probably subcontracted their seo work to freelance seo companies. I know a few seo companies that subcontracted their own seo site to my seo friend lol. The key is in the portfolio, it never lies. Ask for a portfolio and call and email their clients, and i mean all of them.
There are a lot of good seo companies out there now. People actually have offices and employees to knock sites off of the first page.... Hmm, that just got me thinking.... if any of you fuckers knock my sites down you can lick my ballz, lick them real good!<-Lick
Most SEO agencies I've spoken to offer an initial consultancy for free, usually where they vaguely discuss how they will reach the goals set. "Build links to increase popularity" - build links, but where? "CPM and PPC advertising" - will this work? "Offline advertising" - where, and why are we paying you to pay those displaying the adverts? Cut out the middle man, do it yourself. The rewards are much more beneficial. Remember, you could pay £XXXX for SEO services, then once you start growing, and add new pages, products, etc, you need to pay even more to get those pages ranking. If you do it all, learn it all - you'll save £XXXX and have the satisfaction of knowing you can succeed with your one man army
Study Black Hat methods and then use your brain to implement your knowledge into going up in the ranks...
What is the definition of an SEO expert? Well frankly speaking any SEO who has a good knowledge and can rank for the toughest keywords is an expert. Finding an seo company isn't easy. You need to try your hand out and check about the people and company itself. There are both kinds of people out there. Good and evil! SEO isn't hard but it's an art, which you learn by experience and failure. For me, if you are an SEO then you must know everything about search engines and their technologies. And people who have the knowledge, spend whole their day and night finding ways to utilize the search technologies will charge high! Isn't it? My 2cents!