5 December 2008 No Comment

If I ever meet Daryl Mather of ConsultingPulse.com, I’m going to buy him a beer. We just had a nice debate about the legitimacy of SEO, and I was reminded of a lot of concerns people have that I haven’t heard in a long time.

You see, for the last few years I’ve been involved in larger, corporate sites. These are directed by people that have a much greater understanding of marketing overall than your average small business, and they know fully the power of a proper online marketing campaign. They have likely gone through the “pfft..SEO” phase, and understand and agree with the need for optimization and promotion of their site. But that isn’t the norm.

It seems as though I’ve forgotten what it was like to speak with people that weren’t convinced that an optmization strategy was needed. As I’m jumping back into the small business game, it was really nice to be reminded that there is a whole group of business owners out there that aren’t as likely to have heard of SEO before, much less pick it up just from my explanation. So, it makes good sense to have answers to some common questions.

You’ve probably already heard the common questions before, so we won’t go over them here. I’ll post on them as time goes on. Instead, here are some tips on answering the concerns of a small business owner without losing your mind.

1. Be Confident
When you offer your services to a small business owner, they will have a lot of questions. As unwitting as they may sound when talking Internet stuff, don’t be fooled. Small or big, these are still business owners. They want the best for their business and the last thing they want to hear when discussing a topic that is already so mysterious to a person that doesn’t speak with confidence.

This would be bad:

BizGuy: So what is the first thing you will be doing for us?
SEOGuy: Well, umm…we will have to resaerch your keywords.

BizGuy: My keywords?
SEOGuy: Yeah, uhh….these are ummm…the words that people will use in Google to find you. Umm…in the search engines I mean. All of them. Not just Google. Umm…Yahoo! too.

BizGuy: Ummm?
SEOGuy: I uhhhh…

BizGuy: You uhhh what?
SEOGuy: I mean ummm.

BizGuy: I ummm think I should just get a Yellow page listing.
SEOGuy: Ummm…hello?

2. Know Your Answers May Be Different
SEO is like a fine wine. No, wait. SEO is like a box of chocolates. Hmmm. SEO is…well…different. It’s different for everybody actually. Sure, there are some basic rules most of us follow, but after that we all have our own little processes and techniques. Be ready to explain that fact. If you are the third or fourth SEO a company has contacted, they will see the trend of slightly varying answers.

BizGuy: So you think we should add some pages? The last guy said my site was fine.
SEOGuy: Well, he was right. However, I prefer to categorize the content on a site to focus on a wide range of keyword types; both competitive and long-tail.

BizGuy: Wait, I was told we should only go for the long-tail because anything else would be too competitive.
SEOGuy: This isn’t incorrect, but wouldn’t you rather be afforded the luxury of both?

BizGuy: Sure, but the other guy seemed like a single focus is best.
SEOGuy: I would agree that a singe focus can be a great strategy, I just prefer to run a campaign this way for a wider range of visibility.

BizGuy: What’s the right way?
SEOGuy: There isn’t really a “right” way as long as you have a good SEO on your side. We all work differently towards the same goals.

BizGuy: I see. You mean like fine wine or a box of chocolates?
SEOGuy: Exactly.

3. Don’t Get Angry
Explaining the same thing over and over can be frustrating. It gets exhausting answering the exact same question every time you pick up the phone or have to write an email. But you have to remember, the person you are talking to is probably hearing this stuff for the very first time. This can all be very confusing, especially if you’ve heard a lot of horror stories. Add to that the fact that any good business owner knows to ask a lot of questions and fully understand what you are getting into before you make a commitment for your business. The last thing they want to hear is you getting angry or frustrated.

Take a deep breathe

This would be bad:

BizGuy: So wait, can you explain this whole link building thing again?
SEOGuy: Sigh, look you need links to your site.

BizGuy: But why?
SEOGuy: Because it will help you rank.

BizGuy: I don’t understand why that would be the thing to make my site rank.
SEOGuy: Dude, cus’ I say so.

BizGuy: Wow, I’m gonna go with the SEO that isn’t wearing cranky pants.
SEOGuy: Pfft, whatever.

4. Don’t Get Personal
It’s going to happen. You’re going to be approached buy a guy with a website built by his third cousin who is going to school for “computers.” It’s going to be bad. Really bad. You’re going to have to tell your potential client this. But beware, the last thing you want to advise is that his third cousin should consider chaning majors.

This would be good:

BizGuy: Yeah, I like my site. My third cousing built it. He’s going to school for computers.
SEOGuy: I see. Well, I really like th eheader image at the top. He’s on the path to becoming a good designer.

BizGuy: Really? Thanks!
SEOGuy: Keep in mind that design is a little different. The stuff we look at deals with the search engines in more detail.

BizGuy: I see. So he wouldn’t have done any of that stuff?
SEOGuy: Not so much as a designer, but if he would like to continue his education, he may want to hear about what you are going to learn.

BizGuy: So he won’t be the “smart computer guy” at this Christmas’ dinner?
SEOGuy: Not the only one at least.

BizGuy: Cool.
SEOGuy: Cool indeed.

5. Be Honest
Someting else about business owners. They are getting smarter and better by the minute. Communication is so open and information is so easy to get that lying to gain a client is becoming more difficult. Why not just tell the truth? If you don’t know something, it may be better to just come out and say it. This will help you set the right expectations in the beginning instead of taking on a designer’s site that claims to have a very old domain, making a statment over the phone, then finding later that “old” apparently means a few weeks.

This would be good:

BizGuy: So, when can I expect to be on page 1? How much traffic will I get?
SEOGuy: Well, these are very broad questions and have no definite answers.

BizGuy: So you don’t know?
SEOGuy: Nope. Actually, nobody knows. But that’s what we do. We will research your site and industry as best we can, and implement the best strategy.

BizGuy: I like your honesty. This other guy made a few promises I wasn’t too sure of.
SEOGuy: Yeah, I think it would be better to build a long relationship on trust than just take your money and run.

Seriously Though
These example conversations are meant in fun, but I hope you see the points. A small business owner will have a ton of questions, and it’s best to learn to handle them before they are sprung on you. This will help to prove that you are the guy or gal for the job, and that you will handle the job professionally.

It’s Friday. Have a good day and safe weekend everyone.