SEO Copy-Editing Will Save You Money
Having an optimized website has recently become very important to every website owner, but many companies have already invested a great deal of money into their current site. SEO web content can be expensive depending on how much content you need. Plus, there is the cost of optimizing the site. The best solution for business owners that need to update their sites is to hire an SEO Copy-Editor or SEO Copywriter to edit your current site. An SEO Copy-Editor, or Copywriter, should understand what Search Engine Optimization (SEO) really means. SEO is not just Keyword Density and link building. SEO Copywriters & editors need to view many areas of a website, adjust these areas, and then make effective, correlating content. The areas that need to be reviewed are:
• Meta-Descriptions
• Title-Tags
• Meta-Name Keywords
• Current Content
• Alt-tags
• Anchor Text
• All Relevant Business Information
• Links
Other Research Needed:
• Completely review your competitor(s)'s website.
• Find out how & why the websites in the same business have a high ranking with the search engines.
If it is possible to just edit the current site, both large and small businesses can save a large amount of money. I have seen some absolutely crazy prices for Search Engine Optimization. I may be the dumb one, but I just cannot charge people an outrageous amount of money. I have seen many companies, online, bragging about their optimization skills, yet their SEO page does not indicate that they know very much.
Finding an SEO Specialist
The only recommendation I have is to really question the potential SEO specialist you might hire. Ask about the items above and see how they respond. Do they refuse to give you any information because they want your money first? I have many people email me and the first thing I do is review their site and email back. I give the potential client a short summary of what needs to be done. Some may say this is a stupid practice because they can just take the info and run. Well, this may be true, but I feel that before someone invests a lot of money in me they need to know that I know what I am doing. By showing them that I trust them enough to give them some information, I establish trust. It is a two-way street. So far, I have not had anyone take the info and run and I have made many long-term clients. I have also created a successful working relationship with 4 web design companies throughout the U.S.-none of which are in my home state of Florida.
SEO Knowledge and Personality
I do not want to knock SEO firms that charge a good amount of money. Many companies have taken the time to educate all of their employees, they have invested a lot of money to be good at what they do, and they are good. However, not everyone can afford these firms and many small business owners need SEO strategies. There are many SEO freelancers out there; some know their stuff and others don’t. As I stated above, ask the right questions and see what they charge. Compare the pricing and knowledge with other SEO freelancers. Try to get a feel for their personality; will they be easy to work with? Do you feel like they will stay in continual contact? Do they seem reliable? Do they have good writing skills? Ask for samples and/or view websites they have worked on.
SEO- Art or Science?
Everyone is trying to make a living and all of us need people to be as fair as possible. I try to do that and still provide everything the client will need. Many say SEO is a science; some say it is an art. I would say it is a little bit of both. It either clicks with you or it doesn’t. I like to compare looking at a site and its info to code-breaking. SEO specialists can look and instantly see what needs to be done and they know how it should be done; basically they see the full picture quite quickly. In this manner SEO is a science. SEO is like an art; it requires precision, creativity, and skill. The art and science mesh to create success. You and your business can have this success without draining all of your funds. Take some time and find an affordable SEO Copy-Editor, SEO Copywriter, or SEO specialist.
© Melissa Fach 4-13-06 Panaca Writing & Design