The Real Cost of Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)

The myth that SEO is somehow free from cost has pervaded the business world for far too long. A quick Google search for “free SEO” will show that the SEO industry itself isn’t trying very hard to break down this perception either. So, with natural search results being free and a myriad of free SEO tools out there, where’s the cost?

The first false assumption to address is that you have a right to a certain amount of “free” search traffic just by having a web site. To get any traffic at all a certain amount of SEO had to be done, even if it was poorly executed, or the accidental side effect of another activity. Just because you didn’t budget for it does mean it didn’t happen.

Search Engine Optimisation is largely resource dependent so there’s often no distinct budget line attributed to it. This further contributes to the notion that it has no real cost. To compound the problem, when compared with the immediacy of ROI calculations for Paid Search the longer term ROI of SEO can seem a bit fuzzy and intangible.

The Moment of Realisation

Unfortunately most businesses discover the real cost of SEO too late. Let’s consider some common examples of these moments of realisation. How many of these scenarios have you heard of before?

Company A has just launched its gorgeous new Flash web site, all slick presentation and dazzlingly visual displays that ooze gorgeousness on the huge plasma screens at the launch party. A few weeks later, the champagne’s lost its fizz, and the board want to know where all the visitors have gone. Then an analyst pops in to mention there’s no natural search traffic any more.

Company B knows “this guy who can fool the search engines and get top listings”. After a few days of huge traffic, it all suddenly stops, leaving nothing but a banned site and a space “this guy” vacated as soon as he’d been paid.

Company C got on the link farming bandwagon a couple of years ago, throwing a chunk of its overall budget into buying up as many links as it could. Because SEO wasn’t top of the agenda for anyone there, no-one noticed Google clamping down on the practice and now they’re wondering what went wrong.

I’ve had actual calls from people who’ve found themselves in each of these three situations, and plenty of other similar stories. The problem is, if your moment of realisation comes when you’re already losing money, you’re already too late! SEO can’t be switched on and off like a light bulb and the reparation work will take time and (even more) money to come to fruition.

How to Add SEO into Your Plan

SEO is a resource hungry discipline, requiring talented people to spend many hours working with relatively inexpensive tools and equipment. Given this, you’ve got two options, either to outsource to an SEO agency or to recruit staff.

If you’re starting from scratch there may be no budget available to go out to the market and employ an agency, and you’re most likely unable to increase headcount in this financial period either. So what can you do?

Trying to build web sites without SEO is a bit like trying to build a wall without a bricklayer. You can probably do it, but it’s going to be a pretty unsafe mess and will probably need to be redone later. As a minimum you should reallocate some existing resources and get them some training so they can at least mix the metaphorical mortar properly.

A better solution would be to conduct a risk analysis and flag up the issue with the wider business as soon as possible. Then if the web site needs to be rebuilt during the next budget round everyone will be aware of why and will hopefully provision for it accordingly.

Long Term Planning for Sustainable Growth

SEO should also not be considered as a project. Optimising your site is an ongoing and evolving process that requires constant attention to be successful. Bearing this in mind, you should consider SEO in your long term planning to avoid getting caught in any of the traps mentioned earlier.

It’s worth bearing in mind the gestation period for optimisation work which is measured in months rather than days or weeks. So, even if you don’t currently think there’s anything to worry about, it’s worth looking at your SEO output today. The clock is always ticking, even when you’re not looking at it.