Do I Need An SEO Pro?

Note from Donna… As I continue to work on my Profit First Certification, I’d like you to enjoy another newsletter written by Larissa Summers. She has some interesting updates for you on Google and SEO work for your website. As always, we would love to hear your response.

You don’t need to hire someone to optimize your SEO.

According to Search Engine Journal in 2021, SEO services on average costs $6000 annually. It’s not unreasonable to think that some business owners wouldn’t be able to afford this cost. Thankfully, due to a change in Google’s algorithm, old SEO practices have lost some importance in modern marketing strategies. This isn’t to say that SEO is worthless, companies can create a lot of business through proper SEO. However, it’s fair to say that SEO is no longer the cornerstone of marketing strategies. If you cannot afford SEO consultants, you are in luck: there are plenty of other marketing options and SEO DIY tricks that you can use. Allow me to clear up the confusion around SEO services and recommend some options you can try that won’t hurt your pocketbook.

First, it’s time to graduate from SquareSpace and website builders and time to hire a website designer. These website building services are great, but they take a 3% cut of your profits on top of a monthly fee. Hiring a designer allows you to simplify your expenses and create a website that looks gorgeous. Additionally, many website designers also offer SEO services while emphasizing your website’s aesthetic. They may not be experts, but SEO isn’t a particularly difficult skill. To show you an example, I ask that you read a website designer’s blog. Oftentimes blogs will give the game away and teach you the formulas that work for SEO.

I am going to prove how easy SEO can be to do yourself by analyzing Sooter Consulting’s website. Starting from the beginning, Sooter Consulting’s introductory text reads “Many business owners don’t fully understand what their financial reports mean.” An SEO expert would translate that sentence into the formula: BUSINESS OWNERS + FINANCIAL REPORTS. This exact formula is repeated in the following line of text however Donna adds SOOTER CONSULTING into the formula. When a prospective client searches for the words “how do I understand my financial reports?” Google may provide Sooter Consulting as an answer to that question. The same formula is used repeatedly throughout Sooter Consulting’s website, from the “How it Works” section to the employee bios. Repetition is the key when it comes to SEO, and every part of your website should repeat your core formula.

However, that’s not the only thing you should be doing. Recall that earlier in this article I asserted that Google has changed its algorithm. The new algorithm doesn’t exactly emphasize SEO anymore, according to Steve Fitz of Digital Domination, the new marketing strategy is content creation. Blog posts, white papers, and newsletters are more important to getting a high Google search result ranking. Let’s study how you can market without relying on SEO strategies. Coca Cola purchases, Facebook, and Google advertisement, which are quite cheap, costing around .50c to $2 per click. That’s a fairly affordable price and garners a larger boost to google rankings than SEO does. Additionally, you can simply purchase the top spot-on Google’s ranking for your industry and location. Because of the way Google’s algorithm works these ideas might be a better idea than paying for an SEO service.

Business owners may want to consider working with a marketing consultant to combine elements of each strategy into something that works for your business. With these strategies, SEO can help create a lot of clients, but remember that SEO can’t be the backbone of your marketing strategy.

Below are some more examples of common SEO formulas for your convenience.

For Restaurants: LOCATION + CUISINE TYPE + SPEED OF SERVICE/GOURMET

For B2Cs (Business to Customers) with physical locations: LOCATION + BUSINESS TYPE. LOCATION + BUSINESS TYPE + YEARS OF OPERATION.

For B2Bs (Business to Business) without a physical location: TARGET AUDIENCE + INDUSTRY + YOUR NICHE…... Or the simpler INDUSTRY + YOUR NICHE.

For B2Bs with a physical location: TARGET AUDIENCE + LOCATION + INDUSTRY. INDUSTRY + LOCATION + NICHE.

Remember to implement these formulas using complete sentences and aesthetically pleasing formats. I would suggest no capitalization of the components of the formula, nor would I differentiate those components with other formatting options.

Written by Larissa Summers