Managed SEO

Imagine Google to be a friendly giant. Good SEO is like milk & honey to it…

SEO is an abbreviation for Search Engine Optimization.

It is also sometimes referred to as ‘search marketing’, ‘organic search’ or ‘natural search’

SEO describes the process of achieving higher organic rankings for a website, usually by targeting specific key words or key phrases. SEO does not require any payment to Google or any other search engine.

Organic rankings are the listings of website pages that a search engine returns for a specific keyword or phrase and prioritizes those pages according to what it thinks the searcher will most want to be shown. That’s the fundamental objective of any search engine – to return the most relevant web pages and information. In order for it to do that, every search engine has its own algorithm (like a recipe, or formula) to rank websites. These algorithms are extremely complex and are continuously updated. They’re also a closely guarded secret – Google is ultra-secretive about its own algorithms, mainly to prevent smart webmasters from reverse engineering websites to manipulate the algorithm to their own benefit.

SEO firms can agree approximately what factors these algorithms give weight to through trial and error, experience, live testing and by pay attention to the guidelines the search engines do publish.

Simply put, Search Engine Optimization is very important because it is the process of rendering your website more visible and ‘relevant’ to Google and all the other major search engines.

It is a process designed to make your website stand out from the crowd. Good (and ethical) SEO gives your website its very best chance to be identified as being more important than. And therefore ranked/listed higher by search engines (such as Google, Yahoo!, and Bing) than your competitors’ websites.

Higher ranked websites obviously appear in searches first, and it is no surprise they also get the lion’s share of the clicks, visitors and ensuing enquiries.

Bad SEO practices can permanently destroy your Google Rankings

What is considered bad SEO? (often referred to as ‘black hat’ SEO)

Bad SEO tactics that are unethical, outdated or are contravene the boundaries of Google webmaster guidelines are considered as bad. This type of SEO is often associated with ‘quick fix’ short term solutions that try to what is called ‘game’ or ‘spam’ the search engine by manipulating its algorithm.

SEO companies who employ these methods rarely retain their customers for long, because any short term gains are often followed by a hefty penalty imposed by Google when it realises the underhand tactics being employed. These ‘penalties’ can be extremely hard to get rescinded, if at all. The client ends up with a virtually invisible website, totally useless for the purpose of attracting new customers to their business.

There is an old adage… ‘marry in haste, repent at leisure’. Getting involved with SEO companies who practice bad SEO is the same.

So, how do you know who to avoid and who is a genuine SEO company?

A give away is usually found in the extravagant or seemingly over optimistic promises made. At Thisworks for example, we make a point of explaining to all new SEO clients that we can NEVER guarantee any page 1 ranking for ANY keyword. Any SEO company who say they can are almost certainly either outright lying, or at best severely over estimating their capabilities. Good SEO is a process, following correct guidelines, and meticulous attention to detail.

Do your homework and due diligence, just like you would if you were purchasing anything remotely valuable. Ask the SEO company to show you examples of their SEO work, and ask if you might be able to speak directly to some of their SEO clients to obtain a verbal reference.

Thisworks have been in business since 2003, and we have a proven track record in ethical SEO. Many of our clients have been employing us for several years to undertake their SEO work. If you employ us, you can be sure you will be attaining experience, know-how and integrity.