Well done search engine optimisation, often called SEO for short, is designed to allow web pages to show up in search results when folks look for products and services rather than simply company names. The idea is that people searching for things online are able to discover a business website with virtually no prior familiarity with the business or its name. You'll find all manner of tricks and also techniques which fall under SEO, however the good sustainable methods (also sometimes called "white hat SEO") are based around the notion of making your site easier for search engine to read and understand, meaning they rank you higher in searches for appropriately relevant terms.
It is not uncommon to decide to outsource SEO professional to external marketing agencies and other companies, but you will find far too many dodgy types out there who like to take companies seeking SEO - especially local and smaller companies - for a very expensive ride. How then does one actually go about finding a good, honest and legitimate search engine marketer?
It's actually incredibly easy to locate a quality SEO agency online. Go to a search engine like Google or Bing and type in "SEO agency." Ignoring the paid advertisements at the top, whichever firm has landed at the top of the search results are what you want - they has to be pretty good at SEO or their own website wouldn't be so high in the natural listings!
To narrow things down a bit, you could try extending your search. Say you reside in Essex and want a local agency - just type in "SEO agency Essex." Or if perhaps your web page is specialised and also you want particular help with it you can add your industry or site type - "SEO tourism" or "SEO eCommerce" for example. This may be a great way to discover niche SEO agencies who have specialist knowledge in your field.
Sometimes SEO agencies (or at least people claiming to be SEO agencies) attempt to solicit companies by sending them emails or submitting contact forms with various enticements and offers. However if you see something like this come in then it's best to ignore it - if a business which supposedly specialises in search engine optimisation is reduced to spamming inboxes to get business rather than, say, doing SEO so their own website ranks highly and people can find them anyway, chances are they aren't excellent. The exact same is true of SEO services advertised on paid ads at the top of internet search engines or on banner ads on other websites. If their search marketing is any good, why are they having to pay for their placements?
Another thing to bear in mind is to steer well clear of any SEO agency that promises you "top position for x keywords" or something similar. Virtually all modern internet search engines used personalised searching, meaning that everyone sees web pages in slightly different ranking positions based on their personal search history. Absolute rankings are a thing of the past, any anyone claiming to deliver this kind of service is lying through their teeth. Modern SEO will use sustainable "white hat" techniques to be able to bring useful traffic to your web site, not use exploits and dodgy tricks, that will constantly get them slapped by search engine updates like Google's infamous Panda and Penguin algorithm changes.
Once you've found an SEO company that looks mostly all right you definitely will need to ask them some questions before you leap into their services. As well as the normal checks like existing client list and testimonials, it is a great idea to speak to someone directly on the telephone or even in person.
It is not uncommon to decide to outsource SEO professional to external marketing agencies and other companies, but you will find far too many dodgy types out there who like to take companies seeking SEO - especially local and smaller companies - for a very expensive ride. How then does one actually go about finding a good, honest and legitimate search engine marketer?
It's actually incredibly easy to locate a quality SEO agency online. Go to a search engine like Google or Bing and type in "SEO agency." Ignoring the paid advertisements at the top, whichever firm has landed at the top of the search results are what you want - they has to be pretty good at SEO or their own website wouldn't be so high in the natural listings!
To narrow things down a bit, you could try extending your search. Say you reside in Essex and want a local agency - just type in "SEO agency Essex." Or if perhaps your web page is specialised and also you want particular help with it you can add your industry or site type - "SEO tourism" or "SEO eCommerce" for example. This may be a great way to discover niche SEO agencies who have specialist knowledge in your field.Sometimes SEO agencies (or at least people claiming to be SEO agencies) attempt to solicit companies by sending them emails or submitting contact forms with various enticements and offers. However if you see something like this come in then it's best to ignore it - if a business which supposedly specialises in search engine optimisation is reduced to spamming inboxes to get business rather than, say, doing SEO so their own website ranks highly and people can find them anyway, chances are they aren't excellent. The exact same is true of SEO services advertised on paid ads at the top of internet search engines or on banner ads on other websites. If their search marketing is any good, why are they having to pay for their placements?
Another thing to bear in mind is to steer well clear of any SEO agency that promises you "top position for x keywords" or something similar. Virtually all modern internet search engines used personalised searching, meaning that everyone sees web pages in slightly different ranking positions based on their personal search history. Absolute rankings are a thing of the past, any anyone claiming to deliver this kind of service is lying through their teeth. Modern SEO will use sustainable "white hat" techniques to be able to bring useful traffic to your web site, not use exploits and dodgy tricks, that will constantly get them slapped by search engine updates like Google's infamous Panda and Penguin algorithm changes.
Once you've found an SEO company that looks mostly all right you definitely will need to ask them some questions before you leap into their services. As well as the normal checks like existing client list and testimonials, it is a great idea to speak to someone directly on the telephone or even in person.