Search Engine Optimization or SEO is a term that is becoming increasingly popular by the day – and because of that, there are more self-titled ‘SEO Experts,’ jumping into the scene to sell a product and/or service they really don’t know much about which has created destructive confusion among small business owners around the globe.

The lack of understanding and trust in not only SEO but the so-called SEO Experts who sold the product has left much of the industry in shambles and small business owners loosing literally, thousands of dollars with nothing to say for it.

Here’s what you can do to ensure a potentially great SEO campaign doesn’t become a waste of time and substantial financial loss.

Realistic SEO expectations.

SEO takes time, and it’s a process. Good SEO is based on not only on-site factors, it includes human generated content creation and link building that is designed to gradually increase your websites authority in Google to create a massively powerful marketing tool for your business, and again – it takes time.

How long does SEO take to ‘kick-in?’

Creating and maintaining great rankings relies heavily on the individual website, it’s prior history, and the competitive nature of the industry.

Over the years I’ve seen small business owners loose literally, thousands of dollars by pulling out of an SEO campaign early based on emotional decisions and lack of understanding about the SEO process.

Here’s an example of a great, seasoned SEO campaign built on user generated links & site authority.

The important thing to take note of is the gradual SEO progression. Sharp increases in visibility can typically relate to paid links or unnatural link development. The screen shot below shows how creating computer generated links, paid links, article spinning etc for quick gains can result in a website being penalized as the graph below clearly states.

Lets get back to the previous question. How long does SEO take?

My answer is open ended and is based on experience, but a local business who is in a semi-competitive industry who’s SEO provider is participating in natural, user-generated content creation and link building can expect a good foundation within 3-6 months. (see graph below)

You can read the full report on Search Engine Land.com here.

We’ll be striking up a conversation on how you can take advantage of a Google Grant for your non profit. Stay tuned.

We have VERY LIMITED availability so if you plan on making it, R.S.V.P now by calling 303-627-8466.

Here’s the details:

WHAT:  Free SEO & Business Development Workshop
WHEN: May 17, 2012 at 6:00PM – 8:00PM
WHERE: Clear Channel Studios 4695 South Monaco Street, Denver, CO
WITH: Sean Hakes & Tom Martino

Again there is very limited availability so please R.S.V.P by calling 303-627-8466.

Small business owners, I’m sure you can relate to this. SEO seems to be extremely complicated. It’s an industry that is flooded with excuses, when those who you trust fail to deliver the results promised.

I/We do things differently here. First, we are all about education. Before we even get close to initiating a relationship with a client we educate them on the fundamentals of search engine optimization strategy as well as what makes it tick.

Keyword research is not performed behind closed doors. We believe in order to have the most successful SEO campaign we can, we need to understand your business, your goals, and your needs, therefore we provide a complimentary keyword discover meeting where you get to see and learn the tools that we use to make a truly exceptional SEO campaign.

There are a lot of good SEO companies and very few GREAT SEO companies and that’s what we strive to be, no matter what it takes. We believe in transparency, exceptional customer service and true dedication to making a great digital marketing experience.

That’s it for now… I invite you to contact me directly (Sean’s cell: 303-731-6588) or contact my office at 720-545-1555 for a friendly, free SEO evaluation.

Mark your calendars, it should be a great show!

I will also be co-hosting a free SEO & business development seminar with Tom Martino on May 18, 2012 starting at 6:00PM. There are VERY limited seats and I’ll be posting the details to R.S.V.P.