JeffAshby.com

Through my experience of working with scores of SEO clients, I have ran into a lot of good clients.  These clients have a decent website, have a little knowledge of what SEO is and how long it takes, are helpful in discussing keyword and content strategies, and are generally patient.  I have run into a lot of bad SEO clients as well.  These clients have small timetables, think they know everything about SEO, know nothing about SEO, or generally just have the wrong priorities.

I have decided to make some very generalized customer profiles and how I like to deal with them.

The “I already know everything about SEO” SEO client.

This client feels that they know everything that they need to know about SEO, which makes them very distrusting when you do things other than what they know to be true.  I have had clients that thought that the most important thing was high PageRank inbound links, in which they didn’t care about their content.  I have had clients that only cared about META optimization, and cared very little about link building, keyword stuffing, or adding new content.

How to Manage Them

• Don’t hurt their ego.  They feel like they know just as much as you do about SEO.  We want to keep them feeling good about themselves.
• Explain to them that SEO is a full package of different elements.

The “What am I paying you for?” SEO Client

This client knows that SEO as a “concept” is important, however they know nothing about what is.  They have little concern about keyword research, timetables, or generally staying in contact with you.  If they do call, they will ask you why they “cannot find themselves in Google.”  For example, I had a client a year ago who was paying for the lowest package selling different kinds of coffee.  He wanted to be ranked on the first page for the keyword “coffee.”  These clients have no idea what keywords you are targeting.  They will also have no idea how long SEO takes.

How to Manage Them

• Explain what SEO is and what it generally entails.
• Make sure you both know what targeted keywords are expected.
• Explain that SEO is a long term process and they need to be patient.
• Give them things they can do to help (write content, write blog posts).
• Show examples of good rankings you have for clients.

The “How long will it take to be #1″ SEO Client

This client wants you to tell them exactly when they should see themselves ranked on top.  Unless you are Google, this isn’t possible.  All you can do is perform SEO to your ability and search engines take care of the rest.

How to Manage Them

• Never guarantee rankings.  If they demand a time frame, give yourself a generous window of when you expect to see decent results.
• Discuss realistic ranking goals.  Some keyword phrases cannot be broken into without a huge budget and lots of time.
• Point to past clients and the time their website saw success.
• Reassure the client you are doing all you can to get them ranked.

The “Why is my PageRank not increasing” SEO Client

This one absolutely bothers me, not just because I get it so often, but because it shows a great lack in understanding about what is important.  PageRank actually has very little to do with actual rankings, however it is a good indicator that you are going in the right direction with your website.  PageRank also updates just 2-3 times a year.  If you study some of the most popular key phrases and check the PageRank of the top ten sites, you will usually notice a large spread from PR 0 to PR 7.  That should show you that it is more important to optimize for keywords at not for PageRank.

How to Manage Them

• Explain that Good Rankings trump PageRank every time.
• Explain exactly what PageRank is and what it indicates.
• Show clients with awesome rankings and lower PageRank.

Hopefully this will help SEO’s better deal with their clients, and also give notice to SEO clients to give your SEO’s a break.