SEO isn’t too hard. Really, it’s about a month’s worth of learning, then years and years of trial-and-error testing.
Course, it doesn’t take years to see some success. Like any new skill, you’ll see beneficial results relatively quickly. But it does take years to figure out the ins and outs of the search engines. How updates affect SEO, how to become resistant to these updates, how to create your own strategies, etc.
But once you get competent with SEO, once you’ve proven to yourself you can rank your own websites, you’ll probably start feeling an urge to do SEO for private clients. We can’t blame you – the SEO industry is lucrative. If done correctly, you can build a six-figure business relatively easily.
To do that, though, you’re going to have to be different. You’re going to have to stand out from the other SEO companies (and there are thousands of them).
Most people give up the second they hear about competition. If that’s not you, continue reading…
Keep your Integrity Intact
The internet marketing space is, frankly, disgusting. As I work with small business owners, I’ve been shocked at the antics pulled by my fellow internet marketers. It’s all a focus on the short-term. All about getting money in your bank account as quickly as possible. And that’s it.
I talked to one company that hired an SEO guy at $1,400 a month. This company knew nothing about SEO, and the contractor took full advantage of this. He didn’t even install an analytics program for them! He worked for eight months and they had no clue if what he was doing was working.
Then once they figured out he wasn’t doing anything, they let him go (they originally signed a six-month contract, but kept him on for eight months).
When they let him go, he ripped all of the on-page work he’d done off of the page, severely damaging the functionality. They weren’t sure, but they told me they thought he removed the links he’d built as well.
This is not an internet marketing horror story – it happens all the time! These internet marketers take full advantage of the fact that internet marketing is complicated. If the client doesn’t understand it, they figure they can milk them for a few extra bucks!
This is not how to make money. This is how to make short-term gains and sacrificing long-term potential.
If he’d done a good job, if he was 100% upfront and delivered on what he claimed, he would’ve been a permanent asset. Because SEO increases revenue. If he was affecting small businesses on the bottom line, making them more money, they would want to continue employing him!
Go the Extra Mile
Want to know what sucks about selling internet marketing services? Getting your first clients.
You haven’t proven yourself, and it’s a HUGE uphill battle (thanks largely to the unethical internet marketers like mentioned above).
So many companies have been burned by dishonest marketers. Not only are you cold calling them, but you also have to work against the negative reputation of the last marketer they hired.
The process is a grind. But it’s not that bad – eventually, you’ll get a chance to prove yourself. When you get that chance, NAIL IT. Go above and beyond what they ever expected.
This might sound difficult, but believe me, it’s not. Realize that most marketers don’t even do what they claim they’ll do. So by simply delivering on what you promise, you put yourself above the vast majority of other marketers!
It’s the little things that count. Explain everything you’re doing in detail. Give them ways to check your work, to make sure you’re doing what you’ve promised you will do. If they need a quick fix, do it for free.
Why?
Because they will shout your name from the rooftops. It truly is this simple. If you do business correctly, the only clients you need to cold call for will be your very first clients. From then on, you’ll thrive on word-of-mouth advertising. You’ll find small business owners are very connected. And they all have the same problem – they can’t find internet marketers with integrity!
So when they find one (you), they will tell everyone they know about you. And then with those new clients, they’ll tell everyone they know about you. Soon, you’ll have more clients than you know what to do with.
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