Have you ever tried changing your own oil? OK, maybe. But have you ever tried filling your own cavity? Hopefully not!
The point is, sometimes you can manage with a DIY approach, and sometimes you need to bring in the experts. Here are five signs your startup's SEO is screaming for professional help.
5 Signs You Need an SEO Specialist
Startups have a tech-savvy reputation, but there are far too many that fail to invest in SEO at all. Don't believe us? Nearly 20 percent say their monthly SEO budget is a grand total of $0 (yes, zero dollars):
And if you think that DIY SEO is an affordable alternative to professional SEO services, then you're missing out on the stellar results (and cost-saving benefits) that a truly effective SEO strategy can provide.
Wondering whether it's finally time for your startup to call in an SEO consulting company? These are the top five signs you should take the plunge.
1. Your Staff Is Struggling to Keep Up
Back in the early days of the internet, SEO was relatively simple: Sprinkle plenty of keywords throughout your content, try to get as many backlinks as possible and watch the traffic roll in.
Now, things aren't so straightforward. Sure, backlinks are still important and keywords can help search engines determine what your page is about. But modern SEO is chock-full of nuance, and SEO practitioners now have to worry about avoiding things like keyword stuffing and link schemes.
On top of that, advanced SEO techniques aren't exactly easy to implement. For example, structured data and duplicate URL consolidation require a considerable amount of technical knowledge, as well as plenty of time.
As a result, your staff members can quickly start to struggle with the SEO tasks they're assigned. Between the time and expertise required to properly implement them, we can hardly blame them.
So if your staff is working extra hours to optimize your startup's site or is flat-out unable to put SEO tactics into practice, then it's time to start shopping for SEO consultant services.
2. You're Not Seeing Lasting Results
So your team has been DIY-ing your startup's SEO, and their efforts haven't been for nothing. From adding more relevant keywords to doing some basic link building, their SEO tactics have resulted in some noticeable traffic increases.
But do those results last and build on each other? Or do they simply fade away as soon as your team stops actively optimizing for new keywords or gaining new links?
If the answer is the latter, that's a telltale sign you need a long-term SEO strategy that's custom-tailored to suit your startup's unique needs and designed to pay off in the long run.
3. You're Not Sure How to Grow
In the same way that basic SEO tactics aren't typically conducive to long-lasting results, they're also not conducive to meaningful growth.
In other words, you might find that your DIY SEO strategy plateaus after a few months. After all, if you're not an SEO expert (and you don't have an in-house SEO professional), then the number of SEO strategies at your disposal will be limited.
So if your startup's SEO seemed like it was working great for a few months but now you're not sure how to take it to the next level, it may be time to call in the experts.
4. Your SEO Needs Are Growing Too Fast
On the other hand, you might find that your startup is growing faster than your SEO strategy can handle.
For instance, let's say that your company starts with a small site with modest needs. But after a couple of years of DIY SEO and steady brand growth, you're not sure how to make the most of all your site's traffic.
How can you tell you if you're getting high-quality traffic? Are your calls to action (CTAs) optimized to get the most clicks possible? Are you successfully turning visitors into qualified leads, or are they slipping through your fingers?
Those are all questions that a professional SEO specialist can answer, so the sooner you solicit the services of one, the sooner you can get an SEO strategy that's equipped to handle growth.
5. You're Bleeding Money
Like any other expense, investing in professional SEO consultant services can seem like a risk to your bottom line. But the truth is that by holding off on hiring an SEO consulting company, you're actually losing more money than you're saving.
That's because an effective SEO strategy takes time, and every hour your staff spends working on keyword optimization is an hour they're not spending performing their normal duties.
And especially in a startup environment where there may be investor funding on the line, that's time and money you can't afford to waste.
Simply put, if your DIY SEO strategy is eating up your budget, you'll be able to save money (and keep your startup's staff as productive as possible) by getting help from a quality SEO consulting company.
Want Real Results? You Need an SEO Consulting Company
At the end of the day, the only way to achieve professional-level SEO results is to hire a professional SEO consulting company. You'll save time and money, and your startup will be able to get back to doing what it does best.
And most importantly, the high-quality traffic and new leads that a great SEO strategy can deliver will allow your startup to reach new levels of growth. Want to learn more about what a dedicated SEO agency can do for your brand? Hit us up, and find out how FPS can help you grow.
