Tips for Outsourcing SEO
For many companies, especially small to medium sized businesses, it doesn’t make sense to hire an SEO team or professional in house. At the same time, it’s also likely that the existing marketing team or professional doesn’t have the time to add SEO responsibilities onto their plate without sacrificing productivity elsewhere. This is why outsourcing SEO work is such an attractive option. A company knows that it’s being handled by pros with experience and the fees are less costly than adding additional in house salaries and associated employee overhead costs. Once you decide to outsource SEO, be sure to follow these tips to make the process as successful as possible:
Choose a partner wisely
You essentially have two options when outsourcing SEO, hiring a consultant or a full-service firm. The right choice depends on your needs and in house bandwidth. If you have some in house resources, a consultant can teach and guide and outline a plan that can be implemented in house. If not, hiring a full-service firm is the way to go. In either case, take the time to choose the right partner, which can make a world of difference. Google recently put together a great guide for hiring an SEO professional. Check it out here.
Make sure you’re on the same page
In the beginning, you’ll want to get everything in writing, such as the SEO provider’s process and campaign that they’ll execute. It should outline what’s needed from the client in order to ensure the process continues to move in the right direction. It should be broken down into timeframes, for example, what will be executed each month or on an ongoing basis. Once the campaign is underway, the provider should be sending deliverables so that you always know what work is being done. This can include blog posts that were written, links that were generated, and items that were shared in social media. So many companies have no idea what their SEO firm is doing for them, and this really should never be the case. It’s a good idea to keep in touch with your SEO provider regularly. The nature of the relationship really dictates exactly what this means. For a new relationship, a monthly call might make sense. Or for an established partner, regular emails might be adequate.
Keep things organized
Even the best of SEO client/provider relationships can end due to things like budget cuts or internal staff changes which is why everything should be documented and kept organized right from the beginning. You don’t want to lose access to important passwords or work that has been completed when a relationship ends.
Outsourcing SEO work is a great way to ensure that the work is being done and it’s being done as effectively as possible. By following these tips, you’re setting yourself up for the best possible results.
Categorized in: SEO
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