Are SEO Companies Going To Call Me?

adamx8 · 03-08-2007, 09:12 PM

This morning I recieved my first ever phone call on a new website I am developing. I mean I have not put much work into yet becuase I have 14 others I am working on also. I wish I remembered the company, but the guy told me my code is wrong to be found in the search engine (don't know how he found it then). He went on to tell me how they work with google, msn, and yahoo to get my website in the top25...normal bull. Finally let me know that I could pick 2-3 keywords to rank for...then I stopped him and told him v7n has taught me a lot and gave him a almost done site to show him what I have been doing. I told him I rank in the top 10 on all search engines for all my keywords and I do that myself. At this point he gave up...

My question is, am I to expect these companies to start calling on a regular basis every time they happen to hit on my developing sites? Is this common practice?

Adam

Web Gazelle · 03-08-2007, 09:46 PM

One funny thing I have seen is I get lots of spam about helping me optimize my SEO company site to show better. Do I want to hire an SEO to optimize my SEO company site?

Ferre · 03-09-2007, 09:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Web Gazelle

One funny thing I have seen is I get lots of spam about helping me optimize my SEO company site to show better. Do I want to hire an SEO to optimize my SEO company site?

Well, you can't believe how many people with 'seo consultancy sites' we have seen here asking questions that even the most amateurish seo should already know.

Redfly · 03-09-2007, 09:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ferre

Well, you can't believe how many people with 'seo consultancy sites' we have seen here asking questions that even the most amateurish seo should already know.

I hear ya!

Everyone needs help every now and then. Even the most in the know SEOs but sometimes I just get so angry that people set up these "Consultancies" and actually get clients. Then come here asking what to do.

John Scott · 03-08-2007, 09:48 PM

Yeah, it's common. One way to stop it is to move to a foreign country so it would cost them too much to call.

Nameslot · 03-08-2007, 10:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John Scott

Yeah, it's common. One way to stop it is to move to a foreign country so it would cost them too much to call.

Nice.

Thanks god no one calls me. And even if they calls me I will offer them SEO services from my company at cheaper rates then they have been offering. I can offer outsourcing of our services on the phone for which he has paid to call me.

MattUK · 03-09-2007, 02:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John Scott

Yeah, it's common. One way to stop it is to move to a foreign country so it would cost them too much to call.

Not always

I still get calls from India (I'm in the UK)

Kasparoff · 03-09-2007, 09:26 AM

Getting back to the main post. I think that it's sometimes cheaper to hire someone else to do your SEO work rather than doing everyting by yourself. This will save time and help you to devote more efforts to your core business.

Yeah, I think it's a good idea that people call you. I wish someone would call me to offer SEO services as well, but no one does. Last time I got a phone call, it was from traffic-power.com in 2004. They went bust a year later. Sad story.

bcombs · 03-09-2007, 01:29 PM

Heck, I've received calls here at the office myself from SEO firms. Of course, they've all spent a lot of time looking at my website.

But not enough to realize that I'm in the SEO industry as well!

Web Gazelle · 03-09-2007, 01:33 PM

The URL should be enough to tell the spammers that I am an SEO.

adamx8 · 03-09-2007, 01:38 PM

John I don't want to leave the States just yet, but I will keep that tip in mind. I also agree it would save me time as long as I find a reasonable priced SEO company. Honestly though, the only reason I would hire an SEO company is to get me links and I have found going to freelance sites and finding some people here I will fair much better. I don't mind the calls, I just hates the obvious lies like they work directly with (pick search engine), or my code is not good enough (when he really meant I don't have links). Thanks for everyone's comments!

imaginemn · 03-09-2007, 02:01 PM

I mostly get emails not phone calls. Probably because I don't make my number easy to find on my website (on purpose). I also get a lot of, I just visited your website and noticed you need a logo...Hello, for one I have one and two I design them.

When I do get that rare phone call. The first thing I ask for is a credit card number. They always pause and ask why. I say that my time is worth a lot of money, they are keeping me from my work and I want to bill them for my time because I didn't initiate the call. They ALWAYS hang up right away.

adamx8 · 03-09-2007, 02:17 PM

Now that is something to do to them, I love it. I bet they won't call back after they find out you want their credit card for that!

charlesgan · 03-11-2007, 01:33 AM

sound like that guy is desperate for sales.

the fact is top 25 mean nothing i can say. and most importantly, how long would it take...

the best is to learn how to seo your site, and DIY.

KeithCash · 03-12-2007, 11:36 AM

It must be nice.
I get 1+ call a day about change phone service.
I get 1+ call a day who does your cleaning serivices.
I get 1+ call a month about SEO.
I get 1+ call a day where you buy your supplies.

It goes on, financing, copier, software, etc .

I can be a problem when your working on something.

But they are just trying to make a living like you and me.

Cheers

Sadu · 03-12-2007, 10:01 PM

It's an easy fix.

When telemarketers call me after say 7pm at home (I run a home office, and regularly get real phone calls late at night from overseas clients), I tell the telemarketer I'm really really interested in what they have to offer. I then put them on hold, and then go take a **** or make some dinner or whatever while they are waiting.

After 10 minutes or so, if they are still on the line, I'll explain that I'm not actually interested. Sometimes they will complain about me wasting their time, but then they seem quite happy to waste my time plugging their product / service that I'm not interested in, so it goes both ways.

The purpose of this tactic is to have my name put into the telemarketing companie's database as "DONT EVER CALL THIS GUY HE'S A REAL A$$HOLE".

If everyone does this, telemarketing becomes unprofitable. 2 or 3 calls to people like me per hour totally kills their ROI, and telemarketing will stop.

Telemarketing is worse than spam, and it disrespectfully eats into my valuable family time. I think I'm well within my rights to be intolerant of unsolicited phone calls after hours, or even within business hours.

Sadu · 03-12-2007, 10:07 PM

Actually I have been thinking of taking one of these companies up on their "any keyword top 10 for $100" type deals. Give them a brand new domain, and watch how hard they work to try and get the site ranking top 10 for "mesothelioma" or "weight loss". Of course they don't get paid their $100 until the site is top 10.

The stupid ones might actually try to get you results for that phrase, in which case the price of a domain is a cheap price to pay for a good laugh.

EBORG9 · 03-12-2007, 10:48 PM

Thank God for the DNC. I have never gotten an SEO call, but I also sell mortgage leads from one of our sites, and I get calls from India all the time from companies trying to SELL me mortgage leads.
They always tell me that their leads are better than mine, and if I buy theirs, my clients will be happier, and I will get more business.

Now here's the kicker! I had a guy contact me to buy bulk leads, at a reduced rate. In the negotiations, he admitted that he was a middle man, and told me the company that he was attempting to supply with leads....

You guessed, one of the very same companies that tried to sell me leads.