I entered the internet marketing industry around 2003. It all started for me with an affiliate program and a pay per click campaign. Back in 2003 there were not many savvy Australian internet marketers so I had very little competition for my campaign for quite some time.
I watched as more and more people entered the market though, forcing click bids up. I watched while Google changed their rules, time and time again making it harder for affiliates to make money with pay per click. I watched and worked up to the point where the time involved in managing pay per click campaigns as an affiliate, was no longer worth the commissions the campaigns earned.
So I changed tack. I'd pretty much learned all I could with pay per click advertising anyway. At this juncture I started building and optimising websites. I spent thousands working out the most successful and enduring methods of search engine optimisation (SEO) and applied all the techniques to my own businesses. I still own about half a dozen successful websites. Only one promotes my own product, a tourism service I set up a couple of years ago. All the others sell products in affiliate programs or advertising space.
During this time, I have frequently been asked by small and medium sized businesses to help them with their internet marketing. I've never promoted myself in this way, they all came to me from word of mouth, referred to me from others I've done a good job for. The business owners who have come to me all had two things in common. First, they could see potential for their business on the internet. Second, their efforts had been frustrated by an unscrupulous and poorly skilled internet operator.
There is a real issue with the internet industry, it is packed with these bogus operators. There are graphic designers who put together internet masterpieces, charge a fortune for the website, yet no-one can find it. There are marketing professional who apply all their skills, yet they know nothing about the internet so their message doesn't find an ear to fall on. Our industry is unregulated and we are largely self trained. Unfortunately this has left the industry open to the unscrupulous and ignorant. Our clients have been damaged and the industry suffers also.
These charlatans contact me every week trying to sell their services. I can see clearly their modus operendi. They base all their actions on the fact that most business owners are pretty ignorant when it comes to the internet. Therefore, a few nice graphs and some confusing industry jargon is all they offer and expect it to be enough to make a sale. This is despite their general lack of substance when it comes to delivery.
For example, my tourism business hires out surfboards on Australia's Gold Coast. Do a Google search on "Gold Coast Surfboard Hire" or even just "surfboard hire" for that matter. I'm sure you'll find me, mine is Gold Coast Surfboards. Clearly for the product I am selling, I am very well optimised in the search engines.
So I have a website which is supporting a business perfectly. Its optimised in the search engine for the search phrases which are popular and relevant to the service. Despite this, so called internet "professionals" contact me every week trying to sell me their SEO services.
I've worked out exactly what they do. They find my website and recognise it as a small business. They'll do a few Google searches and see that I really am well optimised, so then they set about finding some search phrases that I am not optimised for. In their belief they know more than me, they then try to scare me into buying their optimisation services for the less relevant search phrases. Phrases such as "surf accessories" and "holiday rentals".
If I didn't understand internet marketing, I may have used these charlatans. I'm sure many small businesses have been convinced by their slick presentations. And at the end of their work though, I would have a website which attracts completely irrelevant visitors. People looking for surf accessories or people looking to rent a hotel room, or car for their holiday. This probably would have undermined the optimisation work I did on "Surfboard Hire" and related terms as well, meaning my real clients would have gone to my competitors.
If you are a small business owner and get approached by an internet marketer who is going to "turbo boost" your business by getting it up to the top of Google, look carefully at the words they are suggesting they will do this for. There are lots of phrases which anyone can get to #1 as there is no competition for them. This is because no-one uses them to search. So before you sign up an internet marketer, try and get a good understanding of what your clients search for on Google when they are looking for your product.
If on the other hand you are not being hassled by these salesmen, yet understand the potential the internet has for your business but don't know where to start, I recommend you start asking around your circle of friends. Try and find an operator that someone will recommend first hand. Just make it clear to them though you are looking for an internet marketer, not a designer. There are plenty of students or graphic artists out there who will be happy to take your cash and build you a masterpiece. It will be such a pity no-one will be able to find it.
Finally, if you are one of those internet marketers who abuses our great industry by running around, trying to extract a pound of flesh from every business you come by regardless of the value you add, change your ways. This industry is big enough for everyone so there is a place for you. But skill yourself up and don't sell your services to businesses that don't need them. Only sell your services where the person paying for them will benefit from them. Your reputation, your business and our industry will flourish if you follow this code. (By the way, its called being ethical)
I watched as more and more people entered the market though, forcing click bids up. I watched while Google changed their rules, time and time again making it harder for affiliates to make money with pay per click. I watched and worked up to the point where the time involved in managing pay per click campaigns as an affiliate, was no longer worth the commissions the campaigns earned.
So I changed tack. I'd pretty much learned all I could with pay per click advertising anyway. At this juncture I started building and optimising websites. I spent thousands working out the most successful and enduring methods of search engine optimisation (SEO) and applied all the techniques to my own businesses. I still own about half a dozen successful websites. Only one promotes my own product, a tourism service I set up a couple of years ago. All the others sell products in affiliate programs or advertising space.
During this time, I have frequently been asked by small and medium sized businesses to help them with their internet marketing. I've never promoted myself in this way, they all came to me from word of mouth, referred to me from others I've done a good job for. The business owners who have come to me all had two things in common. First, they could see potential for their business on the internet. Second, their efforts had been frustrated by an unscrupulous and poorly skilled internet operator.
There is a real issue with the internet industry, it is packed with these bogus operators. There are graphic designers who put together internet masterpieces, charge a fortune for the website, yet no-one can find it. There are marketing professional who apply all their skills, yet they know nothing about the internet so their message doesn't find an ear to fall on. Our industry is unregulated and we are largely self trained. Unfortunately this has left the industry open to the unscrupulous and ignorant. Our clients have been damaged and the industry suffers also.
These charlatans contact me every week trying to sell their services. I can see clearly their modus operendi. They base all their actions on the fact that most business owners are pretty ignorant when it comes to the internet. Therefore, a few nice graphs and some confusing industry jargon is all they offer and expect it to be enough to make a sale. This is despite their general lack of substance when it comes to delivery.
For example, my tourism business hires out surfboards on Australia's Gold Coast. Do a Google search on "Gold Coast Surfboard Hire" or even just "surfboard hire" for that matter. I'm sure you'll find me, mine is Gold Coast Surfboards. Clearly for the product I am selling, I am very well optimised in the search engines.
So I have a website which is supporting a business perfectly. Its optimised in the search engine for the search phrases which are popular and relevant to the service. Despite this, so called internet "professionals" contact me every week trying to sell me their SEO services.
I've worked out exactly what they do. They find my website and recognise it as a small business. They'll do a few Google searches and see that I really am well optimised, so then they set about finding some search phrases that I am not optimised for. In their belief they know more than me, they then try to scare me into buying their optimisation services for the less relevant search phrases. Phrases such as "surf accessories" and "holiday rentals".
If I didn't understand internet marketing, I may have used these charlatans. I'm sure many small businesses have been convinced by their slick presentations. And at the end of their work though, I would have a website which attracts completely irrelevant visitors. People looking for surf accessories or people looking to rent a hotel room, or car for their holiday. This probably would have undermined the optimisation work I did on "Surfboard Hire" and related terms as well, meaning my real clients would have gone to my competitors.
If you are a small business owner and get approached by an internet marketer who is going to "turbo boost" your business by getting it up to the top of Google, look carefully at the words they are suggesting they will do this for. There are lots of phrases which anyone can get to #1 as there is no competition for them. This is because no-one uses them to search. So before you sign up an internet marketer, try and get a good understanding of what your clients search for on Google when they are looking for your product.
If on the other hand you are not being hassled by these salesmen, yet understand the potential the internet has for your business but don't know where to start, I recommend you start asking around your circle of friends. Try and find an operator that someone will recommend first hand. Just make it clear to them though you are looking for an internet marketer, not a designer. There are plenty of students or graphic artists out there who will be happy to take your cash and build you a masterpiece. It will be such a pity no-one will be able to find it.
Finally, if you are one of those internet marketers who abuses our great industry by running around, trying to extract a pound of flesh from every business you come by regardless of the value you add, change your ways. This industry is big enough for everyone so there is a place for you. But skill yourself up and don't sell your services to businesses that don't need them. Only sell your services where the person paying for them will benefit from them. Your reputation, your business and our industry will flourish if you follow this code. (By the way, its called being ethical)
About the Author:
Damian Papworth, appalled by the lack of ethics displayed by todays internet professionals, promotes honesty over greed Grab a totally unique version of this article from the Uber Article Directory
Aucun commentaire:
Enregistrer un commentaire