SEO Market Research

GeXus · 06-04-2004, 03:43 PM

Hey Folks!
Im writing up a business plan to obtain funding for an SEO company. Does anyone have any good sources of information in terms of industry revenues, numbers, news, etc. Basically any sources usefull for including in a business plan.

Thanks alot!

kwvarga · 06-04-2004, 03:47 PM

the first thing on my list would be to
Hire JohnScott

GeXus · 06-04-2004, 03:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by theSpear

the first thing on my list would be to
Hire JohnScott

Okay, Ill make a note of that :wink:

awall19 · 06-04-2004, 10:01 PM

I am not real good at the business side of SEO. I know that larger seo firms usually get somewhere along the lines of 20-30% of what their customers spend on PPC ads.

for individual projects I did my first one for $100 and now usually charge over $100 an hour to consult people. it really depends on how well you establish brand.

most big seo companies also charge ongoing fees with their work. something like 5k to start and at least 1k a month. these are numbers from just a few companies I know.

I, Brian · 06-05-2004, 12:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GeXus

Hey Folks!
Im writing up a business plan to obtain funding for an SEO company. Does anyone have any good sources of information in terms of industry revenues, numbers, news, etc. Basically any sources usefull for including in a business plan.

Thanks alot!

The start up costs should be realistic, but overall overheads shouldn't be so great. The problem is actually distinguishing yourself to get clients - the local market is a great market to tap into.

But absolutely make sure that you are actually able to get the rankings, and have the relevant SEO experience and knowledge-base to do that. I was a year as a "hobbyist" SEO before I went commercial, and there is an extremely marked difference between the two - commercial SEO forces you into an altogether different learning curve. And do be quite aware that if you offer rankings but cannot achieve them, you could make yourself liable for more than just refunds.

disgust · 06-05-2004, 04:15 AM

"I am not real good at the business side of SEO. I know that larger seo firms usually get somewhere along the lines of 20-30% of what their customers spend on PPC ads. "

that's impressive that they make that much, but they really don't deserve that much in many cases.

sometimes very small optmizations can make a huge difference. making a similar amount to PPC ads just seems absurdly high to me..