Push Marketing & Search Marketing - Two Great Tastes that Don't Taste Great Together
| Manoj Jasra - Friday, September 08, 2006 4 Comments |
Rand Fishkin Finishes Guest Blogger week with "Push Marketing & Search Marketing - Two Great Tastes that Don't Taste Great Together"
There are quite a few online marketing firms providing SEO/SEM services that have built their business on the backs of cold calls, mass emailings, advertising & other forms of "push" marketing. The most common of these tactics is the salesperson contacting prospects with the promise of an increase in rankings & traffic. A common script might start something like:Salesman: Are you aware that your site is currently ranking in position 34 of Google's results for the term "menlo park dentist?" That term gets 50 searches each day and if we helped you to move up to the first page of results, those searchers would visit your site, instead of your competitors.
Sucker: Wow... How do you do that?
Salesman: We have patented technology that's guaranteed to get you into the top 5 results for 5, 10, 25 or 50 keywords at a time. Our search engine research team has deep connections with the software that powers search engines like Google... blah, blah, lies, exaggeration, blithering technospeak designed to intimidate.
Sucker: I'll take it!
The scripts aren't always this ruthless, but, invariably, pushy tactics and a lack of openness come into play. Personally, I find the very idea of a union between any form of push marketing and the practice of search marketing both disconcerting and unnatural. Here's why:
- Not Walking the Talk - you're selling services that rely on consumers seeking services, yet you don't use that same methodology to attract customers. Obviously, not everyone can rank well for online marketing or search engine optimization, but there's an inherent hypocrisy that sticks out like a sore thumb.
- Obscuring the Truth - Openness and a free exchange of how the search engines really work, what the tactics are that you use to achieve rankings and realistic evaluations of your services almost never figure into a cold sales pitch. Obviously, this is in direct conflict with my personal philosophy, but it also works to your disadvantage when savvier clients start trying to learn more about the search engines.
- You Hurt Yourself - Once a company has heard about SEO or search marketing, they're likely to start searching for those terms to learn more. When your website doesn't come up in the top results, many of those companies are going to assume that you must not be good at your work, and that one of your competitors who does rank well is the right choice to pursue.
- Poison in the Well - For every snake oil SEO salesman that calls 100 companies a day, there's 98 fewer companies who trust the field of SEO, the practice of search marketing and will have a positive impression of the people who operate in our industry. Even the best cold callers are going to leave bad impressions with 50%+ of their marks, simply because so many folks associate a negative stereotype to anyone who pushes their services in this manner.
If you're a great marketing firm, or even a decent one, you can think of dozens, and hopefully hundreds of ways to get the word out about your company in positive, flattering and creative venues. I'd urge anyone who's considering a paid sales force to be very careful about how they utilize those resources - our field is young enough that we still have the chance to earn a reputation every day we practice. Put your best foot forward and karma will reward you (at least in my experience).
I once responded to a job posting for a "Search Marketing Associate" for a Portland company I had never heard of. I was suspicious when I saw their template site with a close-up stock shot of two businessmen shaking hands.
During the phone interview, I quickly learned the position was actually a telemarketing job that involved cold-calling Realtors and giving them a pitch exactly like the one you describe.
What "SEO services" did the company offer? The interviewer said he could get them to #1 in Yahoo, guaranteed.
How could he guarantee that with a keyword as competitive as "real estate"?
Well... for a grossly exagerrated fee, they would purchase a Yahoo sponsored listing in your behalf.
When I asked the interviewer why anyone businessperson would pay "us" to do that for them, when they could just do it themself?
He explained that it was a "numbers game" and that small percentage of Realtors didn't know anything about the web or search at all - other than they heard about "getting ranked in Google" at a cocktail party - and they would fall for it.
The interview went downhill from there. Needless to say, I didn't take the job.
I once responded to a job posting for a "Search Marketing Associate" for a Portland company I had never heard of. The dodgy template site had a close-up stock shot of two businessmen shaking hands.
During the phone interview, I quickly learned the position was actually a telemarketing job that involved cold-calling Realtors and giving them a pitch exactly like the one you describe.
What "SEO services" did the company offer? The interviewer said he could get them to #1 in Yahoo, guaranteed.
How could he guarantee that with a keyword as competitive as real estate? For a grossly exagerrated fee, they would purchase a Yahoo sponsored listing in your behalf.
When I asked the owner why anyone businessperson would pay "us" to do that for them, when they could just do it themself?
He explained that it was a "numbers game" and that small percentage of Realtors didn't know anything about the web or search at all - other than they heard about "getting ranked in Google" at a cocktail party - and they would fall for it.
Needless to say, I didn't take the job at the company.
I worked for a company fresh out of college that marketed website and website services to real estate agents. During my experiences there I found out that real estate agents would buy anything.
As their so called “internet marketing consultant” I would tell them to come talk to me before you purchase anything regarding their website. Of course, I would get agents saying the just bought a great SEO package from this company that said I could be number one in Google.
I would then ask them about the details of the purchase and they would have no idea what they purchased. All they would say is "They said I could be number one in Google"
I would have called them stupid, but I would have lost my job. Damn, I should of! 90% of those purchases ended up being snake oil.
Unfortunatly, if the reputable SEO / SEM firms do not step up to the plate and do push marketing the industry may be doomed. 98% of the people that these shady firms are calling would never know how to find someone to do their SEM. They buy what they are sold. So if the only people reaching out and selling the products are shady, the industry will self implode on the bad reputation that is created.
A soft, consultative, truthfull sell from good SEM companies is what we all need. They are out there. They are the ones that will make or brake the industry.