Today's SEO Tips entry was via Dan Perry at danperry.com
"The larger the company, the more personal relationships matter when it comes to being successful with SEO"
I'm sure this tip could be construed in many different ways, so I'll have a stab at it and Dan can comment if it's not what he meant.
We've worked with some large companies on SEO campaigns and generally, larger companies are far more complicated beasts, with many plates spinning on many different sticks, with even more teams managing each plate, sometimes with different agendas.
The key to great SEO campaigns is delivering ROI, which requires getting under the skin of a company. Understanding what makes money in their company, what actions they are currently taking, what metrics you need to track and sometimes changing your reporting to tailor the data to that company's individual requirements.
Without a doubt, you will be working alongside other members of their internal team, sometimes other agencies, all with their own timescales and objectives. This means to implement changes in the most efficient way possible, you're going to need to be on the phone, or better yet face-to-face with these people and communicating with them on a regular basis.
It is not uncommon for companies (certainly at the start of a relationship), to be cagey with the information they provide with external agencies. Fostering personal relationships within companies and really caring about results can give you the inside track on the internal workings of a company, which will allow you to be more reactive, precise and ultimately successful with your campaigns.
So I guess there's a tip for companies that are hiring SEO agencies too - once you've made your choice, make sure you are giving them all the information (no sugar coating needed!) so they can perform the best job possible.
I suppose this would be an opportune moment to mention our not-so-often-mentioned Louisa, our client services director. Louisa manages our client relationships, making sure we have regular contact, meetings and both the technical side and client side know exactly what's going on.
If you'd like your SEO Tips featured on the Further blog, just Tweet your SEO tip to the #fseo hashtag.
Previous SEO Tips:
SEO Tip #22: Don't be lazy during build
SEO Tip #21: Use old URLs for new content
SEO Tip #20: Use an existing domain
SEO Tip #19: Optimise internal links
SEO Tip #18: Rewrite offline press releases
SEO Tip #17: Create rewarding campaigns
SEO Tip #16: Information Architecture
SEO Tip #15: Check logs for longtail searches
SEO Tip #14: Use full-text date formats
SEO Tip #13: Don't be a link scrooge!
SEO Tip #12: Use Google Local Business Listing
SEO Tip #11: Write your own product descriptions
SEO Tip #10: Competitor Link Research
SEO Tip #9: Good usability means good SEO
SEO Tip #8: SEO Success = ROI not rankings
SEO Tip #7: Localise, don't just translate
SEO Tip #6: Get the on-page basics right
SEO Tip #5: Check the use before date
SEO Tip #4: Integrate SEO and PPC Campaigns
SEO Tip #3: Using Twitter
SEO Tip #2: Create Unique Content
SEO Tip #1: Stop! Keyword Research
Post by Further search marketing.