Thursday, July 30, 2009

Google Experts

June and July have been very busy. Nearly 35 companies have come to us to talk about Search Engine Optimisation and growing an online business. Its been great - this is what I love to do. I've had so many ideas, so many talks and so many meetings. This post is about so-called Google Experts, who they are and how to identify them

Its good to see the Irish SEO community, particularly those at the top, start talking a bit more. And I've been very chuffed to see that I've been recommended a lot over at the Irish Webmaster Forum and Boards.ie.

And so I haven't been able to get to my blog - and this isn't going to be my future blog going forward, as I've embarked on a number ambitious new web projects. Because I trade online - i.e. I have my own websites that are selling to consumers - I have real experience in what makes a web business over what makes a website. Anyone today can stick a website together, and as such - many people are putting together websites thinking that they now have a web business.

So my mission on the blog, my next SEO blog and on the boards and forums, is to bring home the message that a web business is a business and it requires marketing, and promotion, and development. Just because it's on the web doesn't mean it will bring you business.

Secondly, I've been very busy trying to educate people as to so called "Google Experts". They come in the form of online marketing specialits, the self-conceived and self-appointed "Google Retail Partners" (complete nonsense) and other online web design companies who feel they now need to sell SEO but don't fully understand the bigger SEO picture.

So this is my plan over the next few months:

Learn how to build an online business

1. I'm going to conceive, plan and run a new web business from scratch
2. I will use Google - AdWords (Pay-Per-Click) and Google Organic rankings (through my SEO Google Expertise)
3. Affiliate marketing
4. A brand new design
5. Brand new domain names

I will highlight the following key points:

1. Budget
2. Timescales
3. Promotion
4. Identifying and selecting your Partners
5. Getting the name out there
6. Designing the site
7. Developing the site
8. Managing and promoting it all the way through to making money.