How Do You Tell Your SEO Clients To Be Patient And Let Us Do Our Work?

Any one that is in the Search Engine Optimization business can relate to what I am about to say.  Why do our seo clients call us to start an SEO campaign?  Because we are the experts right? We know everything about our line of work that our clients know nothing about. 

Then why do these SEO customer decide it is their right to tell us how to do our jobs? Why do potential customers tell us that your price for SEO is too high compared to all the other companies? I guess they think they are the experts now because they have done some shopping around and are looking for the cheapest price possible.  The bad thing is most of these people do not see the value they are getting with an SEO package.  Sure you can charge someone $500 bucks just for link building and call that an SEO campaign. 

The less experienced customer will be happy with that price.  And of coarse when they are not getting the traffic that they think they should be getting(because they are now experts) they pitch a fit.  I am going to help you provide value to your SEO services to get your customer off your back.

What Makes People Call Your SEO Company?

1. Becuase they made a new website and have watched it sit there doing nothing for about 6 months to a year.
2. They talked to a friend that also has a website and is making a lot of money with it.
3. They see their competition on the first page of Google and think their website much better and should be on the first page as well.
4. Because they want to make as much money as the "Get Righ Fast" Advertisements tell them they can.
5. When they get into their website and see how the code looks they freak out.
6. They finally realize that SEO is not as easy as everyone tells them it is.
7. They work and have no time to do it themselves.
8. They want to make some money!
9. They will spend the money to make the money( Best Customers)
10. Because WE ARE THE EXPERTS!!

The Interview

I think it is so funny that when you catch a new lead for for a potential client all things are great and of coarse they want to either talk on the phone or meet up with you to talk about hiring your SEO company to get their site ranked high on Google.   They tell you exactly what they need out of your SEO company.  They want to be like every other website out there.  Some even go to the point and tell you which keywords that they want to rank for.  This can help or it can cause you problems in the future which I wil explain later. 

As the interview goes on you find out more about their websites needs and goals.  You set up a SEO package for them in your head and you figure out what price you are going to quote them.  Then you lay the contract out on the table and then you take a deep breath and look into their eyes and say "This is what the cost is for your Search engine Optimization monthly package."  You have a 50/50 shot of closing the deal here.  This could go really well or reall bad.  The eyes are the key here.  If you see the clients eyes opened wider than the mouth of the Mississippi then the fun starts.  But on the other hand there are some times where the clients just signs up right then and there. 

Why Clients Agree To The SEO Terms And Agreements

1. They see the value ofthe service they are getting.
2. They have already created a monthly budget for an SEO campaign.
3. They want to see search engine results.
4. They understand that they have to give a little to make a little.
5. Your a darn good saleman.
6. They believe in your Company
7. They fell comfortable working with you.
8. You are local.
9. You don’t outsource
10. YOU ARE THE EXPERTS!!

Why Clients Don’t Agree To The SEO Terms and Agreements

1. The price is too high.
2. They can find it cheaper.
3. "You can’t guarantee me site in the first spot in google so its not worth it."
4. "I have my friend Billy Bob down the street who owes me a favor and can do it cheaper."( Billy Bob is still on dial up by the way)
5. They don’t see the value of the service you are providing them.
6. They Don’t Think YOU ARE THE EXPERTS!!

We Are The Experts When It Comes To SEO!

You finally come to agreements with your new SEO client and now are ready to build a wonderful relationship for the many years to come.  You start working on the offsite optimization and the onsite optimization.  You are putting in tons of work getting everything ready and organizing your search engine optimization strategies.  The first month goes by with no problems.  You send the new client their monthly reports on how their website is doing. Heck, you may even call them to let them know how the website is doing.  Everything is going as planned but the customer still asks you "when am I going to be making some money?"  As a good little SEO expert you tel lthem the truth" It takes time for google to find your site and start to rank it. Please be patient it will happen."  Little do you realize that this was just the start to many other questions in the future.

The Million Dollar Question

3 months go by and your client has been paying their bills and still have not seen that much sales.  Now the question is "How can I afford this SEO package when my site is not making me any money?"  This is where the fun begins.  Now you not only have to help rank in the search engines, you have to become their financial advisor as well.  Now this is the time when the customer starts to feel like they are the experts now because of all the information you have been providing them.  This is the time when the phone is ringing off the hook because the new client is trying to micro manage you and ask you what is going on with their site and when can they see some results.

Here are the Top 10 Ways To Tell You SEO Clients To Be Patient In A Nice Way

1.) We can not control GOOGLE algorithms.  They decide who gets ranked on the first page of google.
2.) Your Website is an invsetment that will give you better R.O.I in the future.
3.) Show a video on why it is so hard to rank on google. And show them why they can’t have High expectations.
4.) Show your client that positives and not the negatives your website.
5.) Teach them how to understand google analytics.
6.) Show them the keywords that people are finding them on the Searcg engines.  Google Webmaster tools.
7.) Provide Value to their investment.
8.) Understand their needs and agree with them and understand their pain.
9.) Provide them with great information about how competitive their website is and provide ways to get around these problems.
10.) Prove to them that you are the EXPERTS!!

Most of the time many of the SEO clients will start to beleive in you once they start making a little bit of sales.  Once the clients start to make money everyone is happy.  You have to be upfront with the customer and let them know that we can’t make any guarantees.  Your website is just like real estate on the search engines.  What ever the market wants, the market gets.  I hope this blog will help you with your SEO clients.  Not all clients are the same. Some only contact you by email, pay their bills on time, and let you do your job.  There are a few customers that you have to put your foot down and let them know who the real SEO EXPERTS are.