The SEO Girl

Last week pretty much zapped the energy right out of me! The weather was gloomy, I had a few problem/resolution situations to take care of, and a great deal of monthly work left with the end of the month just a few days away. Yet, it was one of the most inspiring weeks I’ve had recently. We developed a plan of action to get our name out more, with our investment being mostly our time, expertise, and our motivation to illustrate that we are industry experts and have the proven experience to back it up.

A lot of great ideas get a lot of spark in the brainstorming phase, but seem to fizzle out after that. I was so proud to see my team fully embrace our plan of action and set out on it, needing only just a few words of encouragement and direction. It’s a trait I’ve seen again and again in our industry – such a desire to constantly move forward, learn more, and better ourselves. We’re not 9-5 pencil pushers, we’re creatives that happen to know quite a bit about search. This passion to continue thriving, regardless of the stressful days, gives us the motivation to want to continue growing a small business in this economic landscape. In turn, we have a desire to learn more, pass this knowledge on to client’s via their SEO and social media services, and always keep moving ahead.

I’ve been a posting slacker once again! My SEO job has been extremely busy over the last few months, with me hitting the treadmill after a long day, spending time with friends, or simply relaxing with some tea once I’m home. I’ll try my best to post more, but you’ll need to bear with me, as I’ll be venting my stress from time to time. But hey, any online marketing or advertising job out there is stressful, but we still love it! You can check out posts on SEO techniques from just about anywhere, but you can kick back and empathize after a long day here with me

Online marketing has always been pretty cutthroat, but we’re noticing more and more competitors with underhanded techniques – using completely spammy SEO techniques or techniques that “sound good” but have little value, and others banding together to squash smaller companies. All’s fair in love, war, and SEO, but what happened to sharing accurate knowledge, employing “pure” SEO techniques, and advancing SEO as an industry that’s ethical and employs tactics that actually work. Companies out to deceive their clients are giving SEO a bad name, and it’s going to hurt every SEO company out there. After all, if the fly-by-night companies are making quick money, then the actually ethical companies are going to need to dilute their techniques in order to survive. It’s simply lowering the bar, and it’s a shame to see it.

I do believe this can be turned around, but we need to band together and hold ourselves to a higher ethical standard. By actually knowing your stuff in SEO and educating clients on the techniques that really matter, you’re advancing our industry, getting clients to trust SEO experts again, and creating more SEO jobs in the process. So speak out: What kind of standards should exist in the SEO industry?