Is it smart to reveal your clients and projects in the Q&A forum? What about on your own SEO blog?
-
On one hand it seems like having my cake and eating it too: blogging about SEO using my clients as case studies in order to give them a couple backlinks. On the other hand it seems like asking for it from Google or from competitors. Got any advice?
And what of mentioning actual domains and brand names when asking questions here in the forum? One one hand it seems like I'd get more specific advice, on the other hand, once again, it seems like it comes with some amount of risk. Any advice?
Thanks!
-
So anyone out there disagree with the consensus and think it doesn't matter or else is particularly advantageous to be forthcoming with client specifics?
-
Right, sure. Yeah all of this is helpful.
-
Some clients might not want to find out that their 'SEO Expert' is on here asking questions of other SEO's...they may think they should have employed the SEO Experts answering the questions.
Also some companies may not want their competitors to find out that they are using SEO services as if their competitor then hires an SEO the amount of competitive advantage is potentially reduced.
I would use example.com, company.com./product etc to get any points across. If it looks like you can only get the help you need by revealing more details then it may be best to PM the people who offer to help.
-
Thanks Vinnie.
-
Right, that makes sense.
-
Hey Louis,
I can understand both sides of the argument, but land on the side of don't post them. Like David said, you would never want to post clients sites without their permission. Even with their permission I would be hesitant to post specific phrases or results. I don't even want to tell other clients who my other clients are most of the time. Protecting niches is very important in this industry. If you want to discuss past successes you have had I suggest speaking in generalities and give broader examples of marketing or link building ideas without pointing out specific sites.
Personally I don't even post my own sites on any SEO or webmaster forums if I can avoid it.
As far as your Google concerns go, as long as you aren't cheating or link farming or anything that would take away from Google's reputation I doubt they would penalize you or your clients sites for posting SEO case studies.
I look forward to seeing other opinions on this issue.
Cheers,
Vinnie
-
I do not keep an SEO blog. Our company blog is just for generic info that we use to bring in new clients and also for existing clients to see us sharing information openly about the best practices and tips. Honestly, since we redid our website, we have one or two blog posts and never blog and didnt even finish our website, we are too busy with client work. Speaking of that... we need to finish our site lol.
The benefit a SEO blog would bring is fresh content (Google loves it), attract new clientele, share information to establish yourself as a thought leader in your industry, city, and client list!
-
Thanks David; that makes sense. Do you keep an SEO or other company blog? What benefit do you get out of it?
-
I think the only way to do it properly is with your clients full permission and knowing that they understand the full ramifications. Honestly, my clients would never go for it. The last thing they want is their strategy or their secret weapon (my company) to be known to their competitors. The link juice is minimal unless you have an exceptional blog.
My rule is to never expose a clients name, URL, or strategy unless it's completely anonymous and literally no chance of it getting back. However, you may find some clients okay with it, in that case... GO FOR IT
I'd love to post some of my best work but my clients are pretty strict on me releasing that information, so for now I'll have to keep my trap shut.
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Does a blog on a subdomain pass on SEO credit to the main domain?
When setting up a Hubspot blog you are asked to create a subdomain such as blog.website.com in order to have the blog hosted there. Two questions: 1. Does a blog on a subdomain pass on SEO credit to the main domain?
Industry News | | cmortensen
My understanding is that a subdomain is treated like a unique site but I'm not finding current articles to confirm this is still true. 2. If it does not pass on credit to the main domain and the subdomain is only building "SEO love" for itself but your posts are getting found and driving conversions... from a marketing perspective does this non-transfer of SEO credit really matter? Meaning if blog.website.com is linked to the navigation on website.com, your site has quality content, has relevant calls to action, and you are lead nurturing like a good marketer... does the passing of SEO credit matter if your posts are what's getting found and filling the top of the funnel? Thank you in advance,
Christine1 -
Best Site or Place to Hire Mid Level SEO Specialists
Hello Mozzers, Our digital agency has been continuously growing which is a good thing BUT recruiting for Junior or Mid Level SEO Specialists is getting harder in our area (we are in Orlando Florida). We post on Indeed.com but the level of knowledge and also the amount of candidates is not a lot. Do you know any other site that only pertains to our industry? Any suggestions? In fact, its been hard , we are even thinking of developing a job board site just for our niche. Your recommendation and thoughts?
Industry News | | ChatterBuzzMedia0 -
A suggestion to SEOs that cold call potential clients
Learn some basic salesmanship. Do you realize that business owners are getting 3-4 phone calls and emails a day from other SEOs claiming to be the best? Be polite, ask questions, and don't insult me or yourself through ignorance. Ask questions. You might just discover that we could work together. When you tell me that I'm not ranking for "competitive keywords" it tells me that you don't know what I'm trying to rank for. When you tell me you can get me to the top of Google in 3 months or less, you're still telling me that you don't know my business and what I want from my website. Who said I wanted national ranking anyway? Oh right, not me because you never asked. And if I answer the question "Do you want more business/leads?" with "No." Then politely end the conversation and move on. The rare time that I do get asked about my current efforts, don't insult me by calling me an amateur. I may be one, but talking down to me, or trying to make SEO sound like you're turning lead into gold will get a quick hang up from me. If you want a contract with me, learn to negotiate based on my needs, not your process that you feel married to. There are a lot of business owners out there that would be willing to work with you if you treated you leads with respect rather than iteration 23 of your cold call script. And in response to the person this morning that sent a "free report" of basic SEO fixes for my website, make sure you put that report together using **my website. ** I know you're working from a template, so it should be really easy to remove the info from the wedding company and the lawyer's webpages before you email it to me.
Industry News | | wreevesc0 -
How much margin do you add when estimating client projects?
After you calculate how many hours you need to complete a marketing project for a client, how much extra do you add for project management, communication, all the little things that come up, unexpected problems, client questions, etc.? One resource I read said to add 10% to 20% for project management, then add 25% to 33% more for fluctuations, then state a +/-15% margin of error on the estimate. I was wondering what percentages others use when estimating client projects.
Industry News | | AdamThompson0 -
Problem with SOME Indian based SEO companies, HELP!
First of all I want to say that I hire 2 great Indian SEOs at my company and this question is in no way meant to offend, or single anyone out. However It's come to a point where the amount of emails we receive for "Ethical SEO, High PR Guaranteed Link building Services, SEO professionals etc" from Indian based companies is costing us a lot of time on a daily basis to filter out spam from real enquiries. Blocking their emails is not even working as they use gmail accounts and multiple domain emails so we can't keep up with them. I have even spoken to some of the owners of these 'companies' and they admit using different email accounts so as not to be blacklisted. They also seem to believe that the opt-out option (which is legally required when sending out promotional emails) is itself optional!!!!! Now when I asked how exactly they were getting my email they said that they get info from the, and I quote "first page of Google"!!!!! So my question is the following; is there anyway I can block my site from showing up in a particular country altogether? Again this is in no way attacking ALL Indian based SEO companies, my beef is with the 74 (we counted) different 'companies' that are flooding our email with offers P.S. Is anyone else having these issues?
Industry News | | MassivePrime0 -
Why do most Local Directories turn around and lie and try to steal your clients?
OK, it'ssssssss RANT TIME! I am quite accustom to clients sending me emails they have received stating how their site is not optimized and the spammer can get the site ranked number one on Google. They all have @Gmail.com so I am assuming that is a very large SEO firm. Occasionally I send them an email from an anonymous account asking about their site and phone number and they have neither due to exigent circumstances (I assume prison left them broke). But, I am ready to declare war on some local directories! I have now had several clients call me regarding inquiries they received within minutes or days of local.com or merchant circle or SuperPages etc. having us post a listing for the client. Ten minutes ago, I get a call from a pleasant young fellow who introduced himself as being from Web.com. As he began to talk (or read) he stopped all of a sudden and said, "Oh, I see you do most of what we do....." I stated hold on a minute, now who are you with?" It finally came out that my local specialist had listed our company or changed our company with them a few days ago and they were calling to tell me how unoptimized we were." NOTE: I am always pleasant to the caller as they are just doing a job. I said, understand that what I am going to say is not about you, but about your company. I sign up multiple clients with you which helps your business and you run around behind my back and tell them I did not do a good job and you can help them. They just need to leave me. He responded, "Sir, we never recommend anyone leave a company." I said, I am sure you don't. In the end he stated that it probably was not a best practice to mess with people who bring your site business. So, here is the question: Why do we put up with this crap?!?!?! When are we going to say: If you have a directory, be a directory and not a cover for a web sales firm? Why don't we start a couple of directories that are exclusive to those who can answer basic SEO questions and have an email address with the same domain as their marketing web site. Why do we keep letting these clowns do this? Imagine, having built my wife a site, she comes in at the end of the day and says: "I got this call from these people who said the site was not optimized correctly and we are not ranking in Google?" That was Local.com, I believe. My favorite was the rep who called and the more I questioned the SEO and ranking knowledge they were professing, she said: "I think I should let you speak to our Google expert." I said, Great. Three minutes later she returned to tell me he had gone to lunch and would call me back." I am still waiting. Hope I hear from a few of you, sorry for the long rant. I do feel better now though 🙂
Industry News | | RobertFisher2 -
Can anyone recommend SEO Vendors in the NY NJ area?
I am looking for an SEO consultancy service preferably in New York, any suggestions?
Industry News | | EBDM0 -
How do you hire an SEOmoz-savvy SEO consultant?
I'd like to find an SEO free-lancer to review WikiTree.com and give me ongoing advice. My first instinct would be to go through oDesk, but I know I want someone who is tuned-in to this community and uses SEOmoz's tools. Advice or recommendations? Thanks!
Industry News | | Interesting.com0