| LED Digest 2529: Ask The Experts, Vol. 2 |
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================================================== The LED Digest Moderated Discussion List "Effective Online Advertising, Since 1997" Data > Information > Knowledge > Wisdom www.GetWebContent.com/LED : the LED's Key Sponsor The Web's Most Experienced SEO Content Providers. www.SEOToolSet.com/training/ : the LED's Premier Sponsor Bruce Clay's Search Engine Optimization Training & Certification ================================================== List Moderator: Published by: Adam Audette LED Digest adam, led-digest.com http://www.led-digest.com .............................................. November 6, 2007 Issue no. 2529 .............................................. .....IN THIS DIGEST..... ====== NEW ====================== <Moderator Comment> --== How Do You Price SEO Services? ==-- ~ Jeremy Weiss "...for the most part SEO is a vague term when viewed from a client prospective." ~ Thomas Schmitz "...real professionals will spend twenty minutes on the phone with you to discuss your project..." --== Inventions, Patents and Marketing ==-- ~ Chris Nielsen "I think you first need to figure out if anyone is going to care about this idea..." ~ Scott Marino "Consult with a qualified Patent Attorney..." ~ Dirk Johnson "...you need publicity as soon as possible." =========== NEW ================================== <Moderator Comment> Greetings and welcome to another issue in the continuation of our "Ask the Experts" series. I also published a new Q & A online here: The Legality of Buying Links http://www.led-digest.com/content/view/1943/172/ Back to our regular programming tomorrow - and a lot of really good posts. I almost hate to interrupt those discussions for this, but I want to get these published too. Enjoy, Adam --------------------- From: Jeremy Weiss Subject: How Do You Price SEO? QUESTION: "How do you price SEO? That's it, just want to know. I'm curious from the client side as I'm shopping around, but don't know what to expect to pay and it's all pretty confused. Your industry could use some regulation if you ask me." ANSWER: Honestly, for the most part SEO is a vague term when viewed from a client prospective. When getting prices it's important to have the company spell out what they're going to do in exchange for your investment. You don't need step by step instructions (and I doubt many would give them to you), but just a general overview of what you're really paying for. Some companies charge clients monthly for the actual on-page optimization that they did the first month they were hired. So the client ends up paying for the same work, that was done once, over and over again and the only thing they're getting for the money is a new report each month showing what their rankings are. Others will state that they are going to spend X number of hours each month writing articles, finding sites and persuading them to link to you, looking over log files and doing keyword research, etc. And still others will have... other responses. As for how much they charge, that varies just as much as anything else in this market. Everyone is different. Some charge by the hour, others a flat fee. Some, like myself, calculate the costs a year at a time so that the initial on-page optimization is split over 12 months. That way it isn't priced out of reach of smaller businesses who typically need SEO services the most. Jeremy Weiss Internet Consultant | Blue Phoenix Consulting, LLC Small Business Consulting and Internet Services http://www.BluePhoenixConsulting.com -------- new post - same topic -------- From: Thomas Schmitz Subject: How Do You Price SEO? You are right. The pricing of SEO can be confusing, especially if you're not well practiced in negotiating for management consulting or other business process consulting services. It's just as hard for consultants. I have an entire shelf of books on consulting and not one of them provides any dollar figures. Should I charge by the hour or the project? Should I charge for the work, the deliverables, or the results? This truly is a culture where practice makes perfect. Fortunately, there are many practitioners who do disclose their pricing on their web sites, so while it will take some leg work on your part, it is very possible to do research and to get a feel for price points. Also, real professionals will spend twenty minutes on the phone with you to discuss your project and whether it is a good fit for you to work together. Don't expect them to tell you their secrets or exactly what they will do for you, at least not in specific terms. Consultants do have to protect themselves. A good consultant will also tell you what they charge and, the more specific you are about what you desire the more specific the consultant can be about what it will cost. Lastly, a good consultant will not expect an immediate answer and will expect you to shop around. After all, this is going to be an important relationship. Yes, an in demand consultant can easily fetch $500 an hour just as you can find the perfectly legitimate consultants who charge $75 an hour. You may even find a great consultant in India who charges $25 an hour. (Just so you know I am pulling these numbers off of the top of my head so do not take them as being precise.) It all depends on matching the money you have to spend with the abilities, resources and experience you desire. Another reality is that there is plenty of regulation for us to abide by already, both on the state and federal level. Regulation will not solve your discomfort. No amount of regulation can replace research, negotiation, and sound contracting by both the client and the consultant. Also, any regulation would only affect consultants in the state or country where you are doing business. Domestic regulations can not be enforceable on consultants operating in foreign countries. Thomas Schmitz Marketing Piranha http://www.marketingpiranha.com/blog/ ========= Begin Sponsor Message ========= Who *DID* Put The Jolly In Ol' St Nick? Santa's copywriter, of course! How incredible has that person's work been for the past four or five centuries? For SEO'd web content that's fresh as a Christmas rose and relevant as a reindeer, visit http://www.GetWebContent.com/LED today! ========== End Sponsor Message ========== -------- new post - new topic -------- From: Chris Nielsen Subject: Patents QUESTION: "How do you market a potentially significant invention?... Do you start marketing the thing before finishing the prototype in hope of getting further investments (and risk embarrassment, remember Steorn)?" ANSWER: I think you first need to figure out if anyone is going to care about this idea and if they do will it be practical to manufacture and market? I would contact a lawyer that has done this kind of work to make sure you protect your interests as much as possible and then do some research to find out companies that would be in a position to take advantage of your idea and approach them with a non-disclosure agreement. Chris Nielsen Nielsen Technical Services http://www.nielsentech.com/ -------- new post - same topic -------- From: Scott Marino Subject: Patents Consult with a qualified Patent Attorney (if you have not already done so). They can provide you with the best advice. Also, I know in NJ, they have an "inventors club" (one of my neighbors joined after he invented something). They might be able to provide some guidance. Personally, I'd be hesitant to release any details to anyone without a signed non-disclosure agreement that was drafted by an attorney. Scott Marino PandaImprinting.com -------- new post - same topic -------- From: Dirk Johnson Subject: Patents > It's a green energy producing device, invented > by my father who is a geologist, based on his > gravity / thermo-dynamics research. First, check with your patent attorney as to the appropriateness of publicizing the invention. If you get the green light, then you need publicity as soon as possible. All things "green" are hot these days (he he). Craft some very good press releases. Put them out to any and all media that is involved with renewable energy. There have to be several trade publications and websites in that field. Get to know the editors on a first name basis. Invite them to evaluate your prototype. Write an article for them. Ask them who would be interested in your particular technology. Participate in online forums, but you probably want to focus on the forums where real engineers and industry pros hang out. Ask them to discuss / evaluate your project. That makes people feel invested. Like all of us here at LED Digest...:) Governments worldwide are throwing money at this issue, sponsoring symposiums that bring people together. Find them. Make a presentation under the guise of emerging technologies, if they will accept it. You mention "gravity / thermo-dynamics research". As a mechanical engineer, that is an intriguing clue. Does it work anywhere, or in certain locales that have geo-thermal potential? I'm envisioning Old faithful blowing bowling balls up to the top of a tower...:) If it is localized to specific regions, you can focus on the local angle as well, where this might create jobs and a local economy. This is also an emotional / political issue. I'd just advise to try not to get caught up in that end of it. Yes, there is a need for renewable energy, but in the end, the technology will have to stand on it's own economic merits, and not emotion. You need to become known, among people that matter, and they will be more practical than emotional. Best regards, Dirk Johnson DomainDrivers LLC www.domaindrivers.com (c) Copyright 1995-2007 Orange Wheel, LLC. All Rights Reserved. ----------------------------------------------------------------- "A process cannot be understood by stopping it. Understanding must move with the flow of the process, must join it and flow with it." - Dune |
