Search Engine Optimization

There have been people asking if I am able to help them optimize their website for them. And the numbers seems to increasing by the month especially this year. This set me thinking what is so great about search engine optimization?

What is search engine optimization anyway? one might ask.

Well search engine optimization, by my definition, is a way for designing your website such that it can be easily search via the search engines. And when I say search engines, it does not mean the big names like Yahoo or Googles. It can be for smaller, unheard of search engines that are gathered in the world too. So, after optimization, the sites ranking may be high in one search engine but not in another.

Anyway, back to the point of what is so great about search engine optimization? To me, it is a good avenue for making money, no doubt. As each SEO project might cost between 3k to 10k, depending on the coding that the website is written and what are the keywords that the clients might want. But don't jump into this market because I said that it is good money.

To me, SEO is interesting and letting websites have higher ranking does poses its challenge and gives a certain satisfaction. However, to be honest, I rejected quite a few people who wants to do SEO. Not because they don't have the budget, but because they don't know what they want for their site and they demanded traceable results.

Some people will now be screaming, "then show them the results", but other than showing high ranked search results for certain keywords, what can be shown? Higher Alexa ranking? Better Hit counters? Is that it? No no, the client wants a certain ROI. Which honestly speaking, I do not know how to provide. SEO is a better coding of the website, which the web designer should have already done when the client was going through the website with them.

Us, being second hand, can only do so much. and when the results cannot be clearly stated, I rather not earn the money but go into more traceable methods...

Sorry if I do not sound straight thoughts today, cos I am not feeling well and just want to get this off my chest...:)