Need $1000 bucks this week?

[kflanagan28]

Although I am going to get in most people's bad books for this. There is a lot in this tread that really frustrates me !!!

This is a great idea from Jay and I can see you + others in this post know their stuff. What gets me is a lot of people, who clearly have no understanding of SEO, are going to list a company (which is really really SIMPLE) and then offer full blown SEO services as an upsell (which is actually quite difficult). This is why the SEO industry is known as a cowboy industry because most people think of it as a get rich quick scheme !!

Now, I think your actual business plan is GREAT Jay but in any other industry you wouldn't get complete newbies going to offer services that actually TAKE YEARS to perfect. I would challenge people to actually provide value for the client and offer a pay per performance model. Even in saying that, do people actually know the CTRs from business listings or how much that will benefit the actual client. I rank many clients for competitive keywords in both organic and business listings. Those business listings don't sent much traffic the clients way.

Please make sure you OFFER the client value and have the skill set to do so ....

[Jimnopks]

This may have been asked and answered Jay, and if so anyone can chime in and let me know the answer.

Getting notified that there was some new posts, I read the first post and thought if I was an accountant and you asked me "What keyword would you like me to get you on the frist page", I would say, "Accountant Overland Park", So I did a search for that and there a thru j is already taken, same for 'accountant lenexa ks' the next town over, and 'accountant shawnee ks.

Then I checked for plumber same 3 cities and got the same results.

What do you say when they give you a keyword phrase that already has 10 listing on the first page?


Thanks

Jim

[JaySabree]

Originally Posted by zeddy7

1. Can we really charge customers for doing something they could do in five minutes, especially when we need them to give us the google code when called?
2. If we then on the back of this try to sell them SEO services, how can we justify the costs when we just showed them how easy it is to be on page 1 of Google. How do we tell them that we now need 6 months to get your keywords on page 1?

Hey there Zeddy,

Great questions!

Ok, short answer to question one is simply YES... I've charged $97 to $497 just for the business listing alone.

First of all you need to differentiate The Local Business Listings from SEO.
They are two different services. A crude comparison to the LBL is the yellowpages online. The difference being that you can track the impressions on the listing vs. the click through of interested prospects. That ability to track and target your listing blows yellowpages out of the water.

SEO on the other hand is the art and science of achieving first page rankings in the SERPs. This process is a skill that is known by many but only mastered by few.

** side note**
Local keywords for businesses in your town/city are generally less competitive and you very well may rank on the first page of Google,Yahoo or Bing within a very short time period e.g. 1 week

Originally Posted by kflanagan28

What gets me is a lot of people, who clearly have no understanding of SEO, are going to list a company (which is really really SIMPLE) and then offer full blown SEO services as an upsell

Agreed! However, this thread was about getting newbies started! Yes, learning SEO takes times and practice. This is why newbies should get the business and outsource the SEO work to others that have the skill set to deliver results. There are numerous warriors that can and will help the noobs. There are also countless SEO - WSO's. So, my advise is not to let what you can't do get in the way of making a great income from providing offline businesses online services.

[dle45]

I don't believe that a business owner is going to question having to pay you when you got their business on the first page of google for their KW.

They obviously don't have the slightest clue when it comes to anything remotely related to IM or they would have done this themselves or already had it done.

The point as Jay as pointed out so many times before is to get the person to believe, confide, and trust you. This leads to other business opportunities with them down the road. If they don't see the value in this service then you can quickly take it away as quickly as it went up.

I have talked to many business owners (mainly MD, Attornetys, Accountants...etc.etc) about what I do and they are clueless.

But everytime I explain to them what it is we are involved in an hour long conversation because they generally spend 1000's a month on advertising that is untraceable.

They think just because they have a billboard or a commercial that is how to market. If you inform them that online is 100% trackable down to the penny and you advertise to people who are already looking for their service then you see their eyes light up.

One thing I always do is tell my clients I am going to do a competition analysis. This always works. I find out what their competition is doing online and do it better.

I must say for the noobs out there don't just try to wing your first SEO optimization or PPC campaign. If you don't know what you are doing it will seem daunting. Search the forum and read post and ask questions.

I have been doing this awhile and I found myself up till 4am last night reading post and refreshing my knowledge.

Once again Jay thanks for being so open an sharing your technique...

p.s. dont feel bad about charging for a simple task because you have the knowledge. Do you think an attorney feels bad for charging $100 just to talk to you or a MD feels bad charging you $150 to start an IV which cost less than $1. People pay for knowledge and skills!

[zeddy7]

Hey Jay,

Thanks for answering my questions.
Your postings have really opened up the eyes of many many people.

Am i correct in assuming the following.

If for example my Keyword Phrase is "leather handbags" and i put up a LBL with "leather handbags" in the correct place. Is it not possible that my listing could show up in a organic search results on google rather than JUST in the LBL?

If this is the case, then we have already proved to the customer that we can easily get page 1 google for one of their major KWP. Then in turn this might detract from the SEO services that you offer as all they want is to be on page 1, they don't really care if it's a LBL or an organic listing?

zeddy



[QUOTE=JaySabree;1073991]Hey there Zeddy,

Great questions!

Ok, short answer to question one is simply YES... I've charged $97 to $497 just for the business listing alone.

First of all you need to differentiate The Local Business Listings from SEO.
They are two different services. A crude comparison to the LBL is the yellowpages online. The difference being that you can track the impressions on the listing vs. the click through of interested prospects. That ability to track and target your listing blows yellowpages out of the water.

SEO on the other hand is the art and science of achieving first page rankings in the SERPs. This process is a skill that is known by many but only mastered by few.

** side note**
Local keywords for businesses in your town/city are generally less competitive and you very well may rank on the first page of Google,Yahoo or Bing within a very short time period e.g. 1 week

[JaySabree]

Originally Posted by dle45

p.s. dont feel bad about charging for a simple task because you have the knowledge. Do you think an attorney feels bad for charging $100 just to talk to you or a MD feels bad charging you $150 to start an IV which cost less than $1. People pay for knowledge and skills!

Well put!

Originally Posted by zeddy7

If this is the case, then we have already proved to the customer that we can easily get page 1 google for one of their major KWP. Then in turn this might detract from the SEO services that you offer as all they want is to be on page 1, they don't really care if it's a LBL or an organic listing?

Hey there,

Simply put, that's not the case. Now and again you will find the maps showing up for businesses here and there. In general, the map only shows up when you type in the KW and the location. SEO targets a broader sense of the KW hence generally giving more exposer to the top ranking sites.

[zeddy7]

Originally Posted by JaySabree

Well put!



Hey there,

Simply put, that's not the case. Now and again you will find the maps showing up for businesses here and there. In general, the map only shows up when you type in the KW and the location. SEO targets a broader sense of the KW hence generally giving more exposer to the top ranking sites.

Jay,

When we say to customers you will appear on the first page of Google, do we not mean on the first page of organic search results?

Because everytime i've tested this, the results have appeared on the organic search results page, not on any LBL page.

So if they do appear on the first page of Google like we promised them- we then need to justify that by doing proper SEO will take time and patience- how do we overcome this?

On a different point- when choosing the keywords. I presume we need to have their home town in the keyword. So if they sold digital cameras, the keyword could be "digital cameras chicago" - the problem with this that I have found is that all these KWP with the town as a suffix have a very low number of searches per month?

Apologies if i'm missing something basic here, just trying to get my head round this.

[JodyRossDeane]

Hi Jay and everybody

great post. So simple. We like simple.

after reading this thread, all fired up, I entered an estate agents into the lbl on google

I put the keywords into the company name section

and filled in everything. I also added a few categories, including

ones that didn't show up in the suggestions, such as "valuers"
and "commercial property agents"

and also added these locally targeted keywords in the description as well

Well, the code was verified and a week has gone by without it showing up.

In the google account that I set up for this business it puts the listing status as "awaiting update"

I looked this up in help It says something about 3weeks regarding bulk listings.

Anybody have any idea about this?

Should I just delete And start again, keeping to only suggested or original categories?

I am even tempted to actually put the company name and then the keywords into the company name section after reading google's guidelines explicitly stating not to do what has been stipulated in this thread regarding only putting the localized keywords in to the company nAme section.

The business i am doing it for is ghat of a family member who urgently needs google love and I am doing it for free as they are struggling to keep afloat.

Can you help?

Thanks in advance

Jody

[jsherloc]

I am actually surprised that this trick has been allowed to go on like this for so long.

While I am not doubting its effectiveness, I do worry about the companies that may actually get their listings penalized for using this technique.

I'd recommend using the Local Biz Center listings as a way to introduce yourself and your services to potential clients, and just list them the correct way the first time.

Once Google figures out exactly how to spot these listings, what are you guys going to say to your clients?

I am not fear mongering or trying to put a depressing outlook on a thread that has made people a good amount of money...just trying to be realistic about what is taking place. A blatant violation of Google TOS that they are currently well aware of.

I think it will actually be difficult for them to handle these types of listings, so I am curious to see the outcome of things.

I just encourage you guys to look at other ways you can provide value to offline clients, as this one is quick but probably on its last leg.

[Essam Nabil]

Great info thanks for sharing.

[jfriend1811]

No work no money..just go through warrior forum,then u get a of idea how to get money.

[JaySabree]

Originally Posted by JodyRossDeane

Should I just delete And start again, keeping to only suggested or original categories?

Hey there,

Not share if you've solved this issue but go ahead and
place the company in the right area and try using all
the keyword categories that you're provided with. If
you're still waiting at this point for updates then delete
that listing and start over fresh

[JodyRossDeane]

Thanks Jay,

I did what you said, but then when I checked it out I found that it had actually already listed in the meantime!
What I did is I modified the company name area to include the company name and the keywords, and I also deleted the categories that weren't default and replaced with the default ones.
What I have noticed is that with one of the categories that I "created", the business has shown up as the only listing as a Google Local Biz for that category - and hence is in first position for those keywords.
And with the other categories that I created the business shows up a a local biz for those keywords, which is quite a result.
I will report back about the results from my inadvertent deleting and changing.
Thanks all
J

[Vieuxboxeur]

Just finished reading the article, seems great, maybe too easy.
But, I'll probably give it a try

[JaySabree]

Originally Posted by Vieuxboxeur

But, I'll probably give it a try

Hey there,

your first post! Welcome to the forum

Don't let my writing style fool you this method
is great and it's constantly changing. Since this
thread has started Google has gotten a little bit
more sticky on signing up for a gmail account.
But overall this is still a great way for you to
make money in the near future. You just need
to roll with the punches... To your success

[Jimerson Farveez]

Hey man, you have given very useful tips to get new clients. Really helps. Hope it will work out , Let me try.

[Kevin Marshall]

Originally Posted by kevinmarshall80

For my J.O.B., I just updated our listing on Google Maps using this exact method. We have a new service we're offering, and our business isn't listed anywhere on Google Maps or anywhere else for this specific service. We are listed for other things we do, but not for this new service.

This is really supposed to be done by our marketing department (corporate bureaucracy), but I went behind marketing's back and created a new listing for us targeting a highly trafficked keyword for the new service we offer. If this works as well as I think it will, it will likely be enough for me to want to quit my job immediately and start soliciting these listings to other businesses in my local area.

We'll see if the phone starts ringing off the hook for our services that are not being advertised anywhere right now. I haven't decided if I will tell my boss what I have done if the calls start coming in. In the meantime, I'll update everyone if we start to see a big difference in lead flow from my Google Maps update.

Oops... looks like I screwed up!

My company was already listed under several keywords under different names, but it wasn't listed under the category I was targeting. I setup another listing for the new category, and now all of the categories are showing up with my new listing. Some of the listings aren't even showing up now or they show up way down the listing order. I changed my listing back to the actual business name, but all of the other listings are gone. It appears Google deleted them. I don't know that the company would ever figure out what happened, or that I changed it, but now I am screwed!

Is there anyway I can setup these additional listings again?

[iBBnet]

I need clarification:

You can setup the same business for multiple categories on Google Maps???

I have a Business listed, but only once. Didn't think you could do that...

[austinjames]

This what we say RESULT! oriented approach.

thanks for sharing it.
I am just a bit afraid of 30Hrs result delivery.

I guess if I am like you.

[JaySabree]

Originally Posted by kevinmarshall80

Oops... looks like I screwed up!

I'm sending you a PM - Please check...

Originally Posted by iBBnet

I need clarification:

The short answer... You can setup multiple categories (keywords) in one
listing.

Originally Posted by austinjames

I am just a bit afraid of 30Hrs result delivery.

Make sure you setup a couple listings first and watch
your results. Just do a couple for free! Your friends, family,
business contacts, clients etc. Don't give any time lines until you're
confident in the process.

Step 1. Setup Map
Step 2. Monitor the result
Step 3. Now that you understand the process offer the service
at a premium. $500 setup and $50 per month maintenance fees

Tip - Setup a paypal account! - Setup a subscribe button or send
the customer an e-mail. You can automatically debt the customer's
account $50, $97 or what ever you want per month for this service. - Set and forget...

[tattij]

Did something happen with Google recently. The business stoped showing up in the local search results for the 2nd and 3rd key word phrase that was listed. It was pulling them up fine just 2 weeks ago. Do you have any idea what could be wrong

[sahanull]

great idea

[Cryp]

Hey Jay, brilliant thread!

Would like to add a suggestion, what about setting up a 1 on 1 instead of selling over the phone? Its much easier to say I'l think about it over the phone just to get the seller away than it is to refuse in person. After your intro in your OP - Something like:

"Mr X I can give you a method to boost your sales by at least 20%, it won't cost you anything, are you available on monday afternoon 3:15 or would wednesday 4:45 suit you better?" (Always give him a choice between two options and at different times) Also, every single person hearing a sales pitch over the phone is likely to instantly reject it - they do not have enough information to make an informed buying decision. Another thing, don't give up so easily, when the client says "I don't have time right now" or "I am not interested" rephrase it - "Mr X this will only take 5 minutes and it will won't cost you a dime". What a person says is most of the time not his real intention for not being interested. "I am not interested" can be "what is this going to cost me or whats the catch?"

Anyway there is alot more to add, but most of this info can be found in brian tracy's books. In parting, always meet buying resistance with a question, talk less than the buyer, seem outcome independent, take the role as advisor instead of 'seller' be enthusiastic and above all persist!

[crudeoil]

am sure this is a great way to start,am a newbie more objections are needed to get me fully started.

[crudeoil]

am sure this is a great way to start,am a newbie more objections are needed to get me fully started.i would like to make 500$ at

[RyanCoisson]

I think this could be a pretty good idea for people that are not making a lot of money online yet. As long as you are able to deliver value to these clients and do it in a timely manner. Another idea is to offer SEO help on their main site as well as doing adwords campaigns for them.

Ryan

[Kevin Marshall]

Originally Posted by Topgunb

Hi Jay,

Doing the listings are easy. Put the business name in the place it belongs.

Tip
You can achieve multiple listings at the same address by using office no:1 in the address line after the street address - if you have it available. or you can put the street number on the second listing on 11a if the number is 11.

I'm with you Jay, do the keyterm research first.

I find the lisings on google in approx 12 hours now.

If you have a office away from home, get both listings.

The listings for my company are still screwed up. See earlier post. I read through most of the thread and I found this post from page three of the thread. I do not completely understand what he is saying here. He lost me when he said 11a and 11 and all of that. How can I get my companies' listings setup the way they were before???

Also Jay, for companies that already have a listing or multiple listings setup (like mine), how can you setup a new listing without screwing up their existing listings?

I am planning on going into full-time IM soon, and I would like to try this off-line business along with all of my other IM activities. Are there any e-books out there that discuss everything in detail? The thread is great, but I 'd like to find something a little better organized.

[bobmcalister]

hi kevin
I think he is talking about using street address ...116 main , then 116 main suite b, then 116 main suite d, etc. dont know if this is correct or not
I have search terms for local biz that have NO maps and have not had any success submitting the business to the the ONLY one on the map , so I would love some directions on doing that.
thanks
pm or post ....

[Tom Lazenby]

Hmmm, I think I must be missing something here...apologies if this has been answered before and I've missed it somewhere in the thread....

You give the example 'Dentists New York' as having loads of LBL competition but 'Tooth Extraction' has none? Surely for the local business listing to show up they would have to type 'Tooth Extraction New York' which only has 170 searches per month.

I never seem to get any LBL's come up unless I type the Service + City and a lot of those alternative keywords that don't have any competition have a really small amount of searches.

Am i just being dumb?

[netgain1]

Great info. Another super easy way to get in the door is by offering a video commercial for free. They understand this and perceived value is very high! I am doing this NOW! I offer a free video commercial for the business that takes me about 15 minutes to create. Then I upsell on You tube submission, other options, etc.

I have figured out a way to get high quality videos created quickly and on the cheap. I will share how I do this with any Warriors for free. As long as you are not in Atlanta, GA : )

[baronig]

this is great info thank you for sharing with us.

[baronig]

Originally Posted by JaySabree

Hey there,

.... If you've had limited
success with the script then its truly based on
two things.

sorry if i missed this what script that you are referring to,thank you

[baronig]

Originally Posted by JaySabree

First of all you need to differentiate The Local Business Listings from SEO.
They are two different services. A crude comparison to the LBL is the yellowpages online. The difference being that you can track the impressions on the listing vs. the click through of interested prospects. That ability to track and target your listing blows yellowpages out of the water.

how we can track the impressions on the listing?google analytics?thanks

[plester]

Hi Jay,

This sounds like a Great Strategy!

Thanks for sharing

Please help me clarify something though,you pick a company that has a website but is on page 3 or 4 on google,and then you list them on google's local business section using keywords that have a lot of searches but little competition.

i'm curious as to how using the external keyword tool you can determine that info on a local level,how do you find a good keyword to use for say "new york style pizza" business located in tampa florida?

also,when you find the right keywords based on search volume and competition how does that local business listing keyword help their placement on google's main listings pages go from page 3 or 4 to page 1?

please help me to understand a little better how that process works.

Thanks,

Paul

[admin@subashseo.com]

Very good information got this thread.
Thanks

[JaySabree]

Originally Posted by kevinmarshall80

Oops... looks like I screwed up!

Hey there, I'm neck deep in my business and really have very little time...
This is the time when businesses are really reaching out to internet
experts to help them build their business. I've positioned myself very
well to achieve that. Today I gave my first talk to about 28 or so business
owners and next week I giving another talk to twice that amount.
I would like to help you but you do need to be patient with me for the
next couple weeks...

And to everyone else, I'll get back in here and answer your questions
as soon as I can...

[pioneer]

Hello,
I am not familiar with google keywords.Could anybody help me introducing with it? I wanna know what is it and how is its uses. Plz help me. I will happily accept your assistance.

Regards,
Pioneer

[FredJones]

This is amazing - great job done Jay.

[skyparc]

Interesting, thanks you JaySabree, well thought out twist, I am going to give this a go

skyparc

[Karan Goel]

Wow..That's something really very innovative and nice!

[Ghalt]

Jay -

First of all, THANK YOU for taking the time to share this concept, and to keep updating the thread. I am working toward a goal of quitting my job, and off-line income will have to be a part of that. This is a major step in that direction for me.

Even after reading through, I'm a little confused about 'Phase Two' of the process.

As I understand it, for Phase One you have them pick a keyword phrase and you use that as their biz name for the local listing.

What if they pick three more phrases, after agreeing to pay you? Are you creating MORE listings, or just adding the keyword phrases to the description?

Based on the quote below, it looks like you are leaving it with just one listing, and adding keywords to categories. Is that still strong enough to get them on page one for those keywords, too?

Originally Posted by JaySabree

Hey Debbie,

Ok, I give them 1 keyword to start. Once they show me
that they're serious and become a customer then I expand
their reach on the business listings. Many times I just fill
'all' the categories with different keywords in their niche.
I only use the main ranking keyword in the description
all the rest go in the categories. Think of it like keyword
density when you're writing your articles.

[Bennette]

Jay,

Just wanted to say thanks for sharing this method and taking the time to lay it out step by step. I got my 1st client using this method and it does work.

I wish you continued success in your business.

[7_8_shortcuts]

Originally Posted by JaySabree

I agree with that. Sometimes simplicity is the best route. I was trying to make things too salesy in the beginning of marketing the local listings. Keep it simple and you'll do fine... NO SALES experience needed. Just play the numbers game and you'll make a couple sales by this time next week. This method works GREAT!!!

Well yes, the point is to demonstrate value and actually deliver value. After that there is no much reason to act like a pushy salesman. Basic psychology :-) the more you push the more they pull...

[mariahm]

I've been trying out your wonderful idea, but what i've been noticing is that it takes sometimes a little over a week for my listing to show up on google. Am I doing something wrong or is that the norm for everyone?

[niac7]

Mariahm, I tried this out on a test subject yesterday and it is already showing up in the category today in less than 24 hours.

Have you been contacted with the confirmation code?


Also - For EVEYONE else that is trying this strategy. It is a great strategy, but I believe there is a lot of confusion despite the explanation of how it works, so let me try to clarify some things.

First off, a lot of people are scared to try it because they don't want to put the Key Word in the Business Name area.

Great News, you DO NOT need to put the keyword in the business name area. It is totally unnecessary.

You only need to put it in the Categories section.

What clued me in was that Jay mentioned using both the DBA spot on the Categories spot for the keywords. Google may read the DBA section also, but it places you based on the category.

This should ease a lot of fears.

Another thing that I noticed was a lot of people seem to think that a person would need to actually type in "keyword + city or state" in order to see the listing.

This is not the case.

Go to Google now and type in Bakeries and it will automatically pull up Google Maps for Bakeries in your area. No need to type in the city or state. This is because there are Google Maps businesses with Bakeries in their Categories sections.

So, for my test, I took a random bakey business that was already on Google Maps and just changed one of the Category Fields to "Birthday Cakes". I did not touch the Business Name area.

This morning, there it was in the Google Maps results for Birthday Cakes. No Google Violations, no need to type in the City, just plain "Birth Cakes" and bam, there it was.

I did a search on Google and noticed that not too many people are taking advantage of this great idea. The only area I saw someone advertising to get sales reps was in L.A.

Anyway, this is a great idea and it can be done without any violations to Googles TOS whatsoever.

Find a high-volume keyword related to the niche that shows no Google Maps listing when you search it.

Use Google Insight to drill-down and find out if the search volume in you area is decent for that keyword.

Create or Modify a Google Maps listing and put the keyword in one of the Categories and it should show up in less than 24 hours.

The great thing about Modifying an unclaimed Google Maps listing that already exists is that you do not need to get a Confirmation Code. This is great for testing, but you would obviously want to claim it once you actually start working with clients so that you can have control over the listing.

Hope this helps.

I'll definitely be implementing this in my area.

Best of Luck.

Thanks Jay for the Great Idea

[shan beach]

I have been trying to do this for MY business since the summer and it's not working for me I must be doing something wrong!

My business is not too competitive in my hometown but I can't seem to choose the right categories or something. I have a small business consulting firm but none of the words I use EVER bing up my site when searched.

I'm stumped!

[niac7]

Originally Posted by shan beach

I have been trying to do this for MY business since the summer and it's not working for me I must be doing something wrong!

My business is not too competitive in my hometown but I can't seem to choose the right categories or something. I have a small business consulting firm but none of the words I use EVER bing up my site when searched.

I'm stumped!

Hey Shan,

I'm in Atlanta too.

I'm using this strategy for a couple of businesses right now. The bakery that I tested was also in Atlanta.

Maybe I can help you. We've definitely been having no problem getting people on the 1st page.

I did the initial Free Listing for another Warrior last night. It was literally on the first page in about 5 minutes. I'm going to do his other keyword listings for 50% off since he's a warrior.

Not sure what you might be overlooking, but I'll contact you and we can figure it out.

[niac7]

Hey Guys,

I got a few PMs about this, but unfortunately, I can't send PMs yet.

Until then, contact me by going to my profile and putting something on my message board. I'll have to post my response there also, so you'll have to check back for my response.

Sorry for the inconvenience.

[aslam786]

Great info thanks for sharing, I will use this strategy

[Palomino]

Hey guys,

I've been reading this thread for a while, and I really like the idea. I tried listing on Gmaps w/ a fake address (picked a real address, changed the last #, thought that would work) but so far it hasn't shown up. Went back in today, saw that it said something to the effect of "verifying content". Changed the address to a real address (borrowed a different business address). I already have our business listed on Gmaps for our city, but since I didn't check on how long that took, didn't use the keywords in the title, etc, I decided to create this new one. I'll keep you guys updated.

Overall, it's been a very good thread. I did read David Preston's thread before, and I signed up for his postcard mailers. At $.06/postcard, they're very cost effective- the mailing's what's expensive. I have had poor results with those so far, but I expected that, as direct response is typically a .5% response rate. So, I'll keep using them and sending them out.
I've also used Bandit signs, which have had a good return- just be careful about losing them to your local city, and always place them on Friday nights, remove them Sunday night. It cost me $167 or so for 100 bandit signs, red lettering on white background, with "artwork" from BanditSigns.com: 100 Custom BanditSigns for $87!. However, if you'd like to try them out, you can get 25 for free and test them by going to www.freebanditsigns.com/270. Yes, that is an affiliate link, but I only get paid $1.50 per person, so no, I'm not doing this to earn money off of my friends here that way. I just really like my bandit signs, and I feel that some of you could definitely use them too!

One of the best local SEO threads I've found was on here regarding sending out cookie filled gift-baskets to well-qualified leads- eg, leads that you can charge $3-$5k/mo for, leads that stand to gain quite a bit of money from a 1st page ranking.

Also, for a confidence/proof thing, try to get your own site up and on the 1st page of Google before approaching a business- it will give you an estimation of the amount of time and effort required to do the job correctly. Currently I am #1 on Google for "wxyz lounge Plano" under the MeetUp.com group that I run. My company, L7 Marketing Solutions, is also on the first page of Google for "Plano web design" and "McKinney web design", and I am very happy to announce that our first "premium" ($2k/mo) client is on the first page of Google after only 3 weeks for "Plano chiropractor" AND "Plano chiropractic"!! Each client to him is worth roughly $1,500-$3,000 or more, so you can bet he'll be well rewarded for new leads we'll be bringing him!

Again, it does take a fair understanding of SEO, and I think many people can do it, but make sure to not over-sell yourself early on. When I first got started out, I followed some bad advice involving link wheel strategies, etc, and I really didn't understand enough of the techniques and strategies required, and I got a $2k client for one month, that really didn't go anywhere. looking back now, I understand that I should have bid my services lower, but I was over confident and under-equipped for the task. I feel now, that if I were to go back to them, I'd be more than prepared to lift them to the front page of Google and they'd probably pay me $2k/mo full time.

Anyways, I guess the point is to learn from your experiences first and then go after the clients! I really value this thread and others, like David Preston's, which give you valuable insights on how to approach prospects.

I've got a foolproof way to get into businesses, which has lead me and my business partner to 2 potential deals of $3900+/mo each- we will be going in next week to hopefully close both deals! I'll be posting these methods in an upcoming WSO here shortly, after I write down all of the steps, so if you're interested, keep your eyes out guys. :-)