Where to begin an effective SEO campaign.

So whats our cut? Many of us have needs. How are you going to help us?

Not saying people can't help. We do it in this forum all the time. In the last month I have even given away high PR links to help people recover from the last Panda slap. Its just I am always amazed that people who are making money from their sites or business have this attitude that people have a social responsibility to help them make money. Especially when the bulk of people on here are not so impoverished they don't own a computer, don't have their own internet access with access to electricity etc.

We have a social responsibility to help the sick, feed the poor and clothe homeleless and orphan kids but to help someone devise their entire SEO strategy so their employer can make money etc. Not seeing it.

Put in the time looking through the forums and learning like everyone else. Don't demand and call people names because they point out that you want people to tell you exactly what to do so that you can make money and they must do it for free. If your employer wants to make money off SEO then he should allocate you enough resources to either hire a SEO, get the team you are accustomed to, allow you to get a consultant or to go and train to be a SEO.

IF he doesn't want to to do that why should we provide the plan for him for free? Your job shouldn't be on the line if he already knows you don't know how to do that job.

Nobody is being a dick. People are just pointing out the fact that it is a little ridiculous to accept a job you have no idea how to do.

There is a job open down the street from me for an X-ray technician. I have no idea how to be an X-ray technician, but maybe I should just go and apply for that job anyhow. I'm sure there are some message forums where someone can tell me how to do the job.

That is basically what it looks like you did. If you cannot understand why people are not running to your aid to help you for free with a job you took that you were not qualified for, then you really are in over your head.

I'm feeling generous today though... So here are a few things to do.

Keyword research. About the only thing to look for when doing keyword research is the traffic volume. The level of competition is not as important as it is in the IM world in my opinion. Running away from the harder keywords is kiddie stuff. If you were hired as the SEO for the company, it is your job to get the business seen where the customers are looking. You still need to analyze competition to figure out what you need to do to beat the top ranking listings, but not to determine whether or not to pursue the keyword. If it is searched, and it relates to their business, you need to get them ranked. If you can't do that, quit.

You still need to find keywords that you can rank quickly and easily for, but unlike IM'ers, in the offline world you shouldn't be shying away from tougher competition.

Onsite SEO. I think onsite SEO is different for offline businesses as well. IM'ers all want to have a blog and tell you that you should put fresh content on it all the time. For some businesses that can make sense. For a lot of businesses, fresh content is not at all necessary or logical.

Stay away from pop-ups, pop-unders, or long-winded sales pitches. This isn't the WSO section where you are trying to trick someone into buying something they don't need.

Is there internal linking setup properly and effectively for SEO? If you don't know, quit.

Are their graphics optimized properly to not slow down the page load speed? Is there useless video or other junk slowing down page load that is not serving any real purpose? If so, get it off the site.

Are there useless links on pages leading to other sites that are accomplishing nothing but bleeding out pagerank?

Are there canonical issues on the site?

Any duplicate content problems?

Where are they getting traffic from now? Are those sources being maximized or are there more opportunities there?

What is their bounce rate? If it is high, why? How long do people stay on the site? What do they do when they find the site? Which pages are bringing in the most traffic? If the home page is not bringing in the most traffic, are other high traffic pages properly setup to make a sale, get a phone call, etc?

Offpage SEO. Is there market local? If so are they on Google Places and is there listing optimized properly? Are there pictures, citations, etc?

Where are their backlinks coming from now? Are there trashy links that can be cleaned up?

Find opportunities for guest blog posting. Minimum, I would develop a list of 750 websites with PR you can contact and offer unique content in exchange for a contexual backlink. You better have a good email to send out that converts well. And the ones that do agree, each get a unique article. No spinning garbage. A good quality, well written article.

Can other properties be setup and developed to link from?

Do they have a Facebook page yet? If not, build one. And you better rank that for every keyword too. Does a YouTube channel make sense for their business? If so, get one, and get it ranked also.

You mention you have Scrapebox. That is fine, but if you are using it to auto-post comments, you should be fired. If you are going to do any kind of commenting (I never do for offline businesses, but that is your choice), you should be doing it manually.

Those are a few places to get started.

Good luck. You are going to need it.

:rolleyes:

"I am working full time (alone) doing SEO for my employer, I'm sort of lost as I try to figure out where to start"

I am happy to help newbies learn SEO. Strangely, I do not feel so generous toward helping someone out that:

- Should already have the skills since they are working on SEO full-time
- Is a complete prick when someone gives them an honest comment

Personally I have had to work my butt off for years to gain the knowledge I have of SEO. No one was paying me when I did not know what I was doing, nor did I expect them to.

Instead of slamming fellow Warriors, maybe you should get off your butt and learn how to do SEO yourself rather than relying on others to just hand things to you :rolleyes: