There is much debate in the general public and in the search engine optimization community as to what amount
companies should pay for search engine optimization expertise.* Prices are all over the board, and can be
influenced by an SEO firm's size, reputation (or lack thereof), resources invested in customer service, and many
other factors. Moreover, there are a variety of pricing models from which to choose.
Rather than hire a firm, some companies instead opt to attempt this specialized discipline in-house in order to
"save" money. Of course, there is a cost associated with this option as well--labor. Often, the cost of effectively
performing SEO in-house, when fully calculated, will be equal to or greater than the costs of outsourcing (due to
a sizable learning curve and the necessary testing and experimentation required).
In any case, companies often make decisions on whether to outsource (and if so, which provider to choose) based
solely on price. However, one thing that is rarely factored into the decision making process is the potential cost
of doing SEO wrong.
The Price Tag
The most obvious cost of doing SEO wrong is the price that was paid for the actual work, whether paid to a firm or
toward salaries for internal resources. While this is the most quantifiable cost and the easiest to recognize, it
is generally the least expensive consideration. This concept is sometimes difficult to understand, since there is
typically a finite sum the company considers "at risk" when they sign a contract with an SEO firm or commit internal
resources to the task.
Penalization Issues
In many cases, companies hire shady optimization firms that use underhanded techniques to increase rankings. Other
companies use well-intentioned but over-eager internal resources that implement dated, and often dangerous,
methodologies. Such strategies may work in the short term, but it is typically only a matter of time before the
search engines catch on to the gimmick and the site becomes penalized**. In this scenario, the company actually
winds up in a worse situation than before they hired the search firm or committed the internal resources, since
now they have lost any search positions with which they started! Afterwards, getting back into a search engine index
is difficult and sometimes near impossible.
Lost Opportunity Cost
Search is currently one of the hottest marketing channels in the world, and increasing numbers of companies are
jumping into the mix and realizing outstanding returns on their investment. However, it can take several months to
attain optimal results with search engine optimization, and choosing the wrong provider or using ineffective
methodology can delay any returns. It is critical that the methodologies used at the outset are effective and
timely to minimize the waiting period for results.
Disenchantment Leading to Channel Abandonment
Worse yet, sometimes a company that hired an inexperienced or unscrupulous firm, or used internal resources to
little effect, will abandon the idea of pursuing SEO. Frequently, companies will make blanket statements about
how SEO "doesn't work for their business", because they didn't get results from a single poorly-executed initiative.
This mistaken belief is potentially the most expensive cost of doing SEO wrong, since the major increases in revenue
that SEO can provide are never realized by such companies (although they are often realized by that company's
competitors).
Conclusion
While price can (and should) certainly be a factor in the SEO decision making process, it should not be the primary
factor. Unfortunately many companies who think they are saving money when making SEO decisions find out later that
the actual costs of doing SEO wrong can make the "savings" pale by comparison. Worse yet, firms that focus primarily
on price will sometimes unknowingly embrace methodologies that put their site at great risk for penalization and at
best do not get the anticipated results. Meanwhile, those who abandon SEO entirely due to a single bad experience
leave the channel wide open for their competitors, who are usually happy to take advantage.
* For the purpose of this article, we refer to "natural" or "organic" search engine optimization, where a company
helps a firm to show up prominently in the natural results, as opposed to the "sponsored" or "paid" results.
** While fear of penalization is often used as a scare tactic by SEO firms, the threat is very real--one need only
read about the recent Traffic Power fiasco to confirm it:
http://www.isedb.com/news/article/953
http://www.seoconsultants.com/traffic-power/clients
http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/ripoff64783.htm
About The Author
Scott Buresh is managing partner of Medium Blue Internet Marketing, an
Atlanta search engine optimization company that works with clients all over North America. His articles have appeared
in numerous publications, including SiteProNews, ZDNet, WebProNews, MarketingProfs, DarwinMag, PromotionData, and
Search Engine Guide.
