Monday, 9 March 2015

Freelancing Advice: Why Writing SEO Content Is Still a Great Home Biz Opp in 2015

I've been a freelance writer since 1993. In 2007, I started writing SEO content - and my career took off like a rocket. I haven't looked back. Before we get to why this is still a great, low-cost, practically no-cost home business opportunity, let me back up a bit and explain for those who don't know what this type of technical writing is.

What Is SEO Content Writing?
SEO is the acronym for search engine optimization. All that fancy phrase means is writing content for the web in such a way that it gets found in search engines like Google. For example, if you had a plumbing business in Seattle and you wanted your company to get found online, you'd write content with the words "Plumber in Seattle" in it.
"Plumber in Seattle" is what's known as a 'keyword phrase." These phrases clue search engines like Google, Yahoo, Bing, etc. in on what a piece of content is all about so that when a web user goes online looking for a particular product/service, then that company's website pops up.
This is a very basic explanation, but is the foundation of what SEO Expert writing is all about. Once you grasp the fundamentals of this form of technical writing, it's not hard at all. And, businesses will pay you nicely to produce this type of web writing for them, eg, for their blogs, their websites, their newsletters, their social media sites, etc. And, this brings me to the first reason that SEO writing is still such a viable home business opportunity today.
3 Reasons SEO Copywriting is a Great Home Biz to Start in 2015
I. It's High-Paying: Did you know that the average SEO writing salary is $56,000 as of this writing, according to SimplyHired, a large job search site? How does this compare to the average American household earnings? According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average American worker got paid $24.57 per hour in December (2014), or $850.12 per week. This works out to just over $44,000 per year.
FYI, the salary for this type of writing has ranged from a low of around $42,000 to a high of $66,000 since I started tracking it and doing this type of writing in 2007. Mind you, this is for a full-time employee. Freelancers can ostensibly earn much more because you can set your rates according to what the market will bear, and you can offer complementary services that push each invoice higher.
II. Digital Marketing Is Growing: Piggybacking on the last line just above, there are quite a few online marketing services that go hand-in-hand with this type of writing, eg, social media marketing, email marketing, SEO Services consulting, etc.
According to the 2015 Marketing Budgets Report, which is cited in the March 2nd, 2015 post on the e-Consultancy blog, "77% of companies plan to increase their digital marketing budgets, the highest rate since the survey began, and up from 71% in 2014."
III. Companies Spending Money: This point underscores the previous one. When companies start to spend money on a product/service, it means they're getting value from it - which means it's not going anywhere soon.
In essence, when corporations start to "put their money where their mouths are," then you can bet they're not pumping it down a black hole. It's because they're getting a return on it.


Tuesday, 3 March 2015

Factors That Help to Identify the Right SEO Company



Search Engine Optimization has become a necessary requisite for every business with an online presence; it has thus gained immense popularity as an essential component of website optimization. The relevance of online presence of the business is measured by analyzing the context of the content while the authoritative aspect is based on the quality of content, the number of links to a particular webpage and so on.
If a company has a website, it is essential to use search engine optimization strategies. A SEO Company can be hired to do the job but the brief and instructions given to them must match the requirements of the company both present and future, and therefore it calls for a great deal of planning and formulating a strategy that can be both workable in the short-term as well as long-term. A good SEO company must be able to provide overall services that improve the quality of the website.
Essential services provided by a SEO Company
Basically, a SEO company has to help the business achieve its business goals through -
• Increasing relevant web traffic to the company's website
• Achieve higher ranking for the site in search engine functions through optimization of website content
• Reduce online competition in search rankings through identifying common usages of terms and use 'intelligent' terminology and content
• Provide advice and design strategies for an online marketing campaign
• Identify areas of future / further growth and provide a competitive environment
• Make the company website SEO friendly by structuring and linking it with other trusted business
Having said that, finding the right SEO Company is quite an arduous task and it will certainly help to know some factors in identifying the right one.
1. No 1 SEO company can guarantee perfect results; however evaluating their competencies in relation to a company's business needs is of prime importance. Honesty is the key.
2. The SEO company should have credible word of mouth recommendations and references from business associates - researching the company's background, reading customer reviews etc. is essential.
3. Understanding their portfolio of services in relation to case studies of success stories with other clients is necessary.
4. If the SEO company has been able to optimize its own PR rating, then that should speak volumes about their experience in achieving the desired results.
5. A little digging up on the techniques used by them will be useful - some SEO agencies use unethical means to get page rankings quickly; search engines quickly recognize these and prohibit them. A good SEO company will adhere to the regulations laid down by the Webmaster.
6. The profile of the people in the company should be inspiring; along with knowledge and experience, they should be practical and realistic, not 'promise the sky'.
7. Any company that is regular in scheduling meetings, discussions, reviews and identifying areas to act on; in short, a SEO Company that relies on continued communication and constant feedback on the progress is a reliable one. Their support system as well as means of communication should always be open and constant.
8. In turn, the SEO company should also be in a position to understand the content of the website and provide more creative ideas and suggestions for ethical use and inclusion of keywords and phrases in a manner that generates more sales leads.
They should be open to suggestions from the website owner and his team and be amenable to changes in strategy depending upon the results seen.
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