I think it will be partly because your client is looking for instant results, when SEO takes time to develop. I also don’t think people realise that it takes constant upkeep, and it’s not ‘my SEO is done, now what’ kinda thing.
Here is an article you can show them that explains how long it really takes:
also, there are so many things you can do to improve - I’ve been reading every blog I can to learn how other people are doing it. Here are some links you may find interesting:
I would avoid working for free as it devalues what you have already done - show your client how using SEO and Marketing together (on Facebook, Twitter, etc) can get those visitors across.
Submit sitemap to get index in google search engine.
Always use genuine content for your website.
Create valuable links for your website.
SEO dose take some time to give positive result.
Content is important for the site, but quality backlinks for the site are more important than content, try to generate quality inbound links for your site…
Sorry, but I have to say that is nonsense. If you don’t have decent content, you’ll struggle to get quality backlinks. If you don’t have decent content, you’ll struggle to be ranked by search engines. (Google in particular is paying more and more attention to quality content, and less and less to backlinks.) And most importantly, if you don’t have quality content, visitors will not stay on your site or choose to do business with you.
Even if you could somehow manipulate your SERPs on the basis of backlinks, what would be the point if visitors arriving at your site immediately leave because the content is poor? What is your site about, if not the content?
I agree with what you are saying @TechnoBear, with one small addition…
I have spent the last few weeks creating better content (i.e. articles) than anyone within 300 miles who competes with my client, and Google has given us nothing in return!
This leads me to believe that we need tons of quality backlinks.
I have no clue how Google works, but it is frustrating in that good content does not seem to be enough in my client’s case.
My suspicion is that you need great content to get traffic and better rankings, BUT without back-links, no one knows you exist, and so they never come to see the great content.
In the end, I am one frustrated person right now - as if losing one’s job and wasting all day on chump-change projects for ma and pa businesses isn’t frustrating enough!
That’s it right there. Considering how many new pages are put online every day one needs patience and persistence to see results. Google can only work so fast with keeping up.
Traffic needs to be build up, this happens gradually. As stated in the thread, to help speed things up a good SMO - Social Media Optimization campaign should be run along with your SEO campaign.
So make sure Facebook page, Twitter account and Google + pages is setup for the company.
You were saying it’s an auto-repair shop, is it setup on google maps and linked with the Google Plus page? Build a following on Social Media, a number of companies I have built websites for have taken my advise and decided run a blog on the website, so that they actually have links to publish on their social media pages, if the pages are inactive than people will not like the pages.
Also local website directories can help, really depending on the directory; in Ireland I would recommend a company pay for a golden pages listing and a red book listing, as both allow for the links to the site to be added. They need to be high quality directories and not link farms, don’t go down the route of using back links from link farms.
It takes a lot of work, but you can get there in the end, quality content, regular content is a bonus, ensure that the area you are targeting is mentioned ( the address and google maps will help with this).
As for writing content, I also write content for clients, but I charge them separately for doing this, First do a Knowledge/Content Audit for the company, then follow this up with a Content Plan and then plan implementation. Also remember to plan out your SMO campaign.
If the client is unwilling to pay for any more then I would just move on to the next job tbh … I hope this helps. .
@mikey_w I am sorry about what happened to you but SEO is not something that necessarily takes place instantly or the way you want it. many people have been facing such problem everyday.
You don’t have to give up. Concerning the money I think it would be better to keep on trying until you prove something to your client. Every single developer in this world has one day faced such problems or something similar to what you are feeling. In that case you just have to persevere.
If you like I just gave some guidelines concerning SEO yesterday. You can check it out here.
I was out going door to door to businesses trying to get business and I checked Google Analytics and we had 5 visitors yesterday and 0 so far today. (Apparently the spiders in China and Russia got tired of us and so there went all of out traffic.)
Yes.
I have been trying to do that. Was hoping to write two articles this week, before the boss’s sister injected herself into things and sort of bashed my content… “Why are you writing these ‘articles’ again???”
Very frustrating!
To be honest, I feel so disillusioned right now I’m not sure what to do. It was bad enough to lose a good job and have my self-esteem take a major hit. Now I am failing miserably with a nice website, and it is making me second-guess myself and my competence in business and IT.
Maybe Ryan Reese is right and I am not an expert (in anything)…
Hard to compare, but what do you charge?
When I write an article, it can take me from 1-2 hours to a day.
If I bill per hour, that could go up to $400-$500 per article.
It sounds like an insane amount to people, but if I spend a day researching and writing and revising, then why shouldn’t I be paid for a day’s effort?
My feeling is that a well-written article will last for years, and is a great investment. Then again, would you give someone like me a dime when I can’t get a single non-spider visitor to our website in two days?
I realize auto mechanics are not glamorous, but what an abysmal failure!
I agree except that I feel I have failed my client. I sold him on “You don have to pay for great search engine results. It just takes a great website with great content.”
Are you sure you’re targeting the right keywords with your content? I don’t drive, so I’m guessing at the kind of things people might search for when they want an auto-repair shop. “Cheap windshield replacement” perhaps? “24 hour auto service”? I dunno - but it strikes me that the kind of search terms they’re likely to be using are not necessarily easy to target in an article.
So it may be that you have plenty of great content - but not of the kind which will come up when people search for an auto-repair shop. Just a thought.
I think if I had maybe 15+ articles, that over time they would get traction and help. But because people don’t Google articles on small auto mechanics the way they do - How to jailbreak an iPhone, How to start a business, How to set up VOIP on your laptop, How to spice up your love life - it becomes more challenging.
There are some websites I bookmarked somewhere that supposedly help you figure out popular search terms for your area. Maybe I need to read up on them.
I just know that I have been Googling us on some common phrases, and we come up on page 10-12 which says to me that I have more work to do.
Yes, there could be other terms where we do better or where I need to focus, but I just think we are the online “new kid in town” and have a ways to go to get up to page 1.
I think from the outset your expectations were too high and you gave your client unrealistic expectations because of this.
At the end of the day, it’s a brochure website for a local business, it’s never going to get an insane amount of traffic, ideally all you want it to do is show up on page one on google for auto repair and the location you are based in. For it too show up on the first second page it’s going to take at least 6 months, the older the website the more trust google puts into it.
Have you checked what search terms people use and how often the term is searched in your area when looking for an auto repair shop? Google Keyword Planner is your friend: https://support.google.com/adwords/answer/2999770?hl=en
For getting traffic to the site quickly, social media is the only way to do it, as suggested by @Mittineague special offers on social media with links to the site would help. Again this needs to be planned out before hand really.
As for writing content, I tend to have set prices for the length of the article, I expect the client at least to point me in the direction of where I can gain the knowledge about it. Due to previous work experience I can knock out an article really quickly.
As for charging in general, I would always agree a price before I start work, I will estimate how many hours it will all take and give a quote based on that.
A link to the site would be helpful and no doubt you will get good advice from experienced people who have created far more than a couple of sites. At the moment everything is hypothetical and your article could be irrelevant to the auto-trade.
As far as auto-repair, maintenance, etc I think this is a local service that requires emphasis on location, direction, availability and detailed pricing schemes.
A Unique Selling Point could be to maybe offer free pickup, delivery and possible car loan or reduced car rental rates.
I’m not convinced it works for all markets. To be honest, I can’t really picture “petrol heads” (as we call them—people interested in car repair and all that) reading interesting online articles over a cup of tea. In a case like this, it’s not so much the written content as the images. Each link should be an image of a topless woman etc. OK, this is partly tongue in cheek, but not the bit about choosing the right audience for this kind of SEO.
I’m sorry to know your story. Actually many marketers have same struggle as you. I agree that google is after great content. However, what kind of quality content does google want to see for every website? Since we all have different preferred standard of great content. I think that is we should know.
Also website age is a factor to reach in 1st position. Try to make your website more bigger and full of content. Also build backlinks, ofcourse quality and authority backlinks. Wait 2 months. Hope you will get your profit. Also don’t forget about On Page Optimization
