SEO Services vs Marketing Consulting

[Tamra]

I've noticed that most of the threads in this offline marketing forum focus on providing seo services.... get to the first page of G00gle, etc.

Is anyone here providing marketing services with internet marketing techniques (seo) being one of the strategies in your toolbox?

T

 

[aldragon]

I do Sem even though SEO is my thing, SEM can get many good results but if not done well is like throwing you money to the trash, same as the 99% of the SEO services that you will find even by the "best companies in the web"

 

[Tamra]

SEM is definitely more encompassing than SEO and can generate excellent results for a client if done correctly. A couple of years ago, I thought sem was the same as seo. I know differently now.

I'm guess what I'm asking if anyone does any traditional marketing consulting along with seo?

T

 

[wookie85]

It doesnt really matter how you call it. You can do seo, sem, online marketing, prospects don't really care what you do or how you do it as long as you can make their phone ring. I would not sell "seo" though as this is what everyone is doing so all business owners gets calls constantly from people offering this so you need to be different. You can still do seo but phrase is differently...

 

[.david.]

I'm set up where my friend does traditional consulting - branding, TV, radio, direct mail, etc... and then he's worked my SEO services in for the online part of his proposals.

 

[Tamra]

@Wookie85 I completely agree. I don't want to position myself as a seo expert or the web gal, etc. The value I want to provide is to increase the business' bottom line.

@.david. That's sounds like an excellent arrangement!

My reason for asking this question is that sometimes offline marketing methods can be quite effective in increasing the bottom line. Adding internet marketing (sem, seo, etc) on top of that can really hit it out of the park...so to speak.

T

 

[corvettespeeder]

I offer seo services, but my title is Internet marketing consultant.

 

[Canuck]

Never walk in and say you sell SEO. You help businesses generate traffic, leads and sales.

I don't just do SEO - I also do Google PPC, FB Ads, Social Media Marketing (Custom FB fanpages/Twitter accts + account setup + management), Email Marketing, Direct Marketing (Txt Message Marketing), Mobile sites + tie-ins like Foursquare/Facebook Places, etc etc.

You're an internet marketing expert, not just an SEO expert. Anyone just trying to push SEO is probably not making a good living or is falling flat on their face. You have to be the whole package.. (but you don't necessarily need to know + do everything, that's what outsourcing is for )

A business who needs a big SEO campaign probably needs a good social media package as well (especially with the way Google is going, taking tweets and that into account for rankings and getting more personal). They probably also need a way to effectively capture those leads and sell to them (email marketing). They could use a way to connect with existing customers and continue to sell to them (email/sms marketing). And if they're a local business they need me to manage their local listings and reviews on Google, Bing, Yahoo, Facebook and dozens of other citation sites.

 

[oxonbeef]

SEO is one of the last services I offer an offline client.
I'm a Digital Marketing Consultant.
I boost my clients custom long before we think about SEO.
SEO for offline businesses is redundant besides local search optimisation.
Social Media Marketing Is an instant earner if you know how to do it and
I don't mean spamming facebook.
I see so many people jump on this wagon when they really don't
have a clue about marketing in general.
Everything I do is measurable. My clients love their ROI because I show them
how much profit they made from each of their marketing campaigns.
I'm a partner not a service provider. I wouldn't take on a business unless I know
I can get them a profit from their campaigns.
Don't think about yourself, think about your profit from this partnership.
You need them as much as they need you.

 

[Canuck]

I'm a partner not a service provider. I wouldn't take on a business unless I know
I can get them a profit from their campaigns.
Don't think about yourself, think about your profit from this partnership.
You need them as much as they need you.

Totally agree with the partnership. You're in it to make money for them and get a cut yourself. You can charge a flat rate, but with bigger clients you'll probably want to negotiate a percentage of sales generated. Just worked out a deal with a long time client to handle social media marketing for a flat fee, but also take 10% of sales my efforts generate.

On the comment of "You need them as much as they need you" - I have to disagree. They don't have the online marketing knowledge to grow their business that you have (or should have). I've had to fire a client before because the requests were getting out of hand and it looked like they may be trying to stiff me on commissions. So I just walked away and they came back a couple weeks later begging me to come back - offering me more money - because the system fell apart without me there (and no, I didn't purposely sabotage anything, I'm not that bitter - they paid for the work and they got it, but they no longer got the management).

 

[anavas23]

I always present myself as a strategic marketing consultant because I do more than just strategies like SEO or PPC. Sometimes, before doing any of that, you need to help them create a well converting landing page to their traffic strategies work. Once I made the switch, it was easier to charge more because it wasn't only about doing a particular thing but making sure I optimized their entire marketing plan (or created one) that was specific to their business.

 

[Gold Hat]

i always present myself as a marketing consultants and seo is presented as the new modern marketing tool.

however i am more focused on increasing my clients business which is done through proper marketing channels, re-activating his database, promotions, growing his database of customers, joint ventures with other businesses to grow his business, direct mail campaigns, sms marketing, telemarketing, etc.

 

[Tamra]

I have been away from the forum for a bit and didn't realize this thread had been revived.

i always present myself as a marketing consultants and seo is presented as the new modern marketing tool.

however i am more focused on increasing my clients business which is done through proper marketing channels, re-activating his database, promotions, growing his database of customers, joint ventures with other businesses to grow his business, direct mail campaigns, sms marketing, telemarketing, etc.

This is pretty much what I do too. I pretty much follow the HMA model even though I use internet and social marketing to get my foot in the door