"Positioning for effect". - You have probably come across this type of offer more than once. At first glance, it would appear that this is the best model of cooperation with an agency from the client's point of view. Is this really the case? What does it involve? positioning for effect? Is it worth opting for? What are the alternatives? Read our article and you won't be deciding in the dark when choosing your first SEO company or changing your current service providers.
Positioning for effect - how does this billing model work?
Most modern-minded entrepreneurs are already aware that SEO for a company's website is a must. It is an integral part of marketing for anyone who wants to establish an online presence and reach new customers. Companies in the industry SEO offer their services on a variety of basis - either on a subscription model or just payment for effect.
The pay-per-performance model of SEO is outdated and fortunately a significant number of specialists are moving away from it. What exactly does such cooperation consist of? The most popular is billing for phrases in the TOP10 search engines. The client pays when the website appears on the first page of search results for the agreed keywords. It is less common to find billing for conversion. In this case, the client pays for the achievement of a goal, i.e. when web users perform the action desired of them. This could be a purchase or signing up to a mailing list. A final example of positioning for effect is accounting for organic traffic growth.
Is SEO for effect beneficial and makes sense?
The cost-effectiveness of the measures we have described is questionable for both the agency and its clients. It is not difficult to deduce that this model was created to reassure principals that SEO agencies are actually working to improve a website's position in search results. Those 'uninitiated' in SEO are tempted by the simplicity of such billing. There is an effect - I pay, there is no effect - I do not pay. Simple! Unfortunately, not in this case.
Why? Because the actions of an SEO specialist are determined by Google's algorithmswhich are subject to change non-stop. Therefore, if someone offers you positioning for effect, it means one of two things. Either they can afford to spend time and resources without being sure they will get paid (doubtful), or they have no intention of playing fair, i.e. they will use methods black-hat SEO. And in such a situation, it is above all the parties of your companies who risk being penalised.
Effects-based billing - defects in the contract
As is not hard to guess, the basic disadvantage of positioning for results is that agencies will do anything to achieve these (often apparent) results. This is when they decide to act dishonestly. What are they? Stuffing key phrases in thematically unrelated places, adding them in a way that is only visible to robots (e.g. in the form of text that "blends" with the background) or impersonating other brands with an already established reputation. What is the risk mentioned in the previous paragraph? Pages may be filters and penalties imposed by Google. Taking them down is an additional (not inconsiderable) cost, and it also requires time and work. We leave it to you to answer the question of whether it is worth it for short-term results.
Leaving aside the risk of penalties (algorithmic and manual) in positioning for effect, it is also worth mentioning the results the agency itself manages to achieve. Usually, numbers and "dry" data are impressive, but one should not forget about the holistic view of building online visibility. There is no denying that a SEO agency positioning for effect will aim to achieve high rankings as quickly as possible, because that is what they get paid for. Therefore, each of their activities is narrowly focused, targeting a specific goal. What is missing is a forward-looking view of the business, e.g. with a view to long-term acquisition of new customers or expansion of the website (friendly to both robots and real visitors). All this means that after the great euphoria caused by high positions and the discontinuation of cooperation with the agency, the effects disappear as quickly as they appeared.
Movement is not equal to movement
It is also worth noting a rule of thumb that applies to internet marketing activities in general. Not every traffic, lead gained, display or click has the same value. If an agency wants to increase traffic to its website as quickly as possible, it will acquire traffic everywhere and in every possible way. And while it will be the easiest to acquire, it will unfortunately also be the worst in terms of quality. What does this mean? Visitors will usually be casual users networks, and the chance of them becoming customers of your companies is very slim.
The safe alternative - subscription
Billing the agency on a per-effect basis is a model of obsolete, a relic of the old approach to SEO activities. Of course, often for people not involved in SEO, cost is the only determinant when choosing a billing method and working with specialists. When comparing various positioning-per-effect offers, they come to the conclusion that they are more cost-effective than subscribers. They do not take into account what is included in the individual contracts. They forget, for example, that currently, in order to reach and maintain high positions, one must position websites holistically, not a few phrases.
We are aware that many clients also have a problem with trusting the agency. They fear that when they take out a subscription, the professionals will be lazy and they themselves will throw money down the drain. That's why it's important to check that the agency you choose is transparent about the reporting of activities undertaken.
Positioning for effect - summary
Are you tempted by offers from SEO agencies that promise cosmic results? We hope that our article has cooled your enthusiasm a bit and that you will revise your expectations from SEOs before signing a contract. Do you want quick results, which you will lose in a flash when the cooperation ends or even when algorithms change? This contradicts the essence of SEO! After all, it is based on successive actions which produce long-term effects. If this is the kind of cooperation you want, opt for subscription-based positioning with fair rules and transparent reporting - that's how we work at SEOSki.
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