SEO and Internet Marketing Services
Our Service Areas
Augusta, GA
Just south of Columbia, SC, Augusta, GA is the second largest city in Georgia. Its proximity to SC and Atlanta makes it an ideal location for businesses that want big city conveniences without the traffic and hassles of large cites like Charlotte and Atlanta.
Augusta is the hometown of world famous recording artist James Brown and the greater Augusta area has a population of approximately 600,000 people. Augusta is also the home to the Masters golf tournament.
Spartanburg, SC
Anderson, SC
Columbia, SC
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Charlotte, NC
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Atlanta, GA
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RTP, NC
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Raleigh, NC
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Anywhere, USA
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Where are you?
SEO Professionals, Held to a Higher Standard
The Search Marketing Expo (SMX Advanced) turned out to be good fodder for bloggers this year. During the Expo Matt Cutts, a world renowned Google expert, answered a question that was misinterpreted and blast across the Internet. The most concerning interpretation was that SEO professionals are being profiled and criminalized by Google.
Let's examine the statement made by Matt Cutts.
...The closer you get to money and the closer you get to people who are doing it deliberately for links -- and there's a certain segment of people who are doing whatever they can just to get those links -- that's a higher risk endeavor in our opinion.
Breaking this into points that make sense we can come up with a logical conclusion:
- Statement - ...The closer you get to money and the closer you get to people who are doing it deliberately for links...
Logical Assumption - This statement clearly appears to be aimed at SEO professionals
- Statement - ...and there's a certain segment of people who are doing whatever they can just to get those links...
Logical Assumption - The portion of this statement that stands out is where he says that people are doing "...whatever they can...". To me this implies the use of Black Hat SEO and Gray Hat SEO techniques.
- Statement - ...that's a higher risk endeavor in our opinion.
Logical Assumption - Okay, this is where the bad part comes in, but is isn't something that we didn't already know - Google HATES Black Hat SEO!
A lot of Internet Marketing companies and Search Engine Optimization Professionals are simply not well versed in what the current guidelines are for the major search engines. They simply hear some techniques that will help them get ranking and read a few articles then call themselves experts. The truth is that search engine engineers know about these techniques and are constantly tweaking their algorithms to combat them. That is why most of the commonly promoted techniques are not even used by Google for positive ranking. In fact, Google looks at these areas, that are known targets for unscrupulous Black Hat SEO technicians, and if you are found using tactics like keyword stuffing, you are penalized.
In conclusion, Google and the other search engines are not criminalizing SEO professionals. They are simply punishing sites that are associated with Black Hat SEO technicians and tactics. Yes, this means that if you hire these less than reputable so-called "SEO Experts" your site can be penalized for your association even if you have a clean site. If you follow their guidelines you will have nothing to worry about. Consider it another way. If someone told you to hold your breath for 30 seconds and you will win $500k you would obviously try to do it. Unfortunately there are those that think 90 seconds is too hard and would fake holding their breath to try to win. So search engines like Google legitimizes the contest by punishing the cheaters by, let's say, putting them in a smoke filled room for 90 seconds. Thus if you cheat, you suffer.
Be sure that you hire an SEO expert who has the experience and a certification that involves paying for training in Natural Search Engine Optimization. Reading articles and doing what your colleagues say works is not enough in this day and age. You have to stay abreast of the details and practice what the search engines preach.
Dan Bish, CTO
Mid-Atlantic SEO and Internet Marketing
Greenville, SC