Project promotion in an SEO agency – pros and cons

In recent years, all business has gone online. Globalization dictates its rules in all spheres of our lives. Consumers are becoming more demanding, and a modern business or project cannot be imagined without a website. Attractive and unique website design, professional photos of services or products, a recognizable brand with a good reputation – all these are integral attributes of a successful company.

But even a perfectly designed website, in terms of design and technical parameters, may not attract traffic. But why? In order for your project to bring you profit, you need to optimize it for the latest search engine algorithms. SEO optimization – one of the most important aspects of promoting a resource in the Internet space for the long term.

In this article, we will identify the main pros and cons of working with an SEO studio, consider the specifics of the work, and also compare with alternative promotion options.

Personnel decides everything

Agencies often value their reputation very much and are scrupulous in selecting specialists. In addition to the standard resume, candidates undergo testing or an exam. Employees are constantly trained and sent to various courses. Thus, there is no doubt about the qualifications of the SEO studio’s specialists. Working on a large number of projects, specialists gain experience in promoting projects of various topics and directions. The agency allows for constant career growth of employees and exchange of experience.

It is also quite possible to find a full-time specialist or a freelancer with impressive experience and knowledge, but choosing a candidate can take a lot of time. It is quite problematic to check the qualifications of a specialist at the interview stage. Unlike a studio, where a senior specialist can easily check the competence of a candidate, checking an in-house employee or freelancer is quite problematic. An important factor is the limited knowledge of such a specialist. Basically, a successful portfolio consists of projects on one or more related topics. Obviously, there is no question of career growth for a full-time employee, and this has a significant impact on motivation. There is a high probability that after a few years of successful work, your full-time employee will leave the company.

Approach to work

Obviously, the approach to working on a project by an agency or one or two people hired by a client to staff their company has a number of differences.

Speed ​​and volume

In an SEO studio, at the initial stage of cooperation, they often offer a package of services that includes a set of standard tasks for promotion, regardless of the topic or specifics of the project. In the meantime, a freelancer or in-house employee will first highlight the highest priority tasks for optimizing the site and begin to implement them.

The studio’s specialists are able to complete a large number of works and entire sets of tasks in a short time. Work in studios is automated as much as possible to save time. It’s no secret that a good company is promoting a large number of projects at the same time. Thus, the time to work on one site is limited.

If you hire a full-time SEO specialist, it is likely that he will be 100% busy working on one project, immersing himself in the topic as much as possible. The approach will be more flexible with the ability to monitor even the smallest changes.

Feedback

When working with a studio, most likely you will communicate with the manager who is leading your project, and not directly with a specialist. This can cause problems and misunderstandings between the client and the contractor. There is always the possibility of transmitting inaccurate information or its distortion. It is worth noting that such problems are more the exception than the rule, since interaction between departments has been honed over the years to the point of automation.

Having hired a full-time employee for your company, it is possible to receive an instant interim report on the work done or successes. Directly discuss the effectiveness of the strategy and make changes. In this case, the client is confident that his wishes and priorities were heard correctly.

At the same time, a freelancer is not tied to a company or other obligations. There is always a chance that an unscrupulous remote employee will simply stop responding and delete all his contact information.

Software

Another factor is the use of professional software and paid services by studio specialists. The data they receive allows them to more effectively promote the project in the shortest possible time.

The use of such resources by a full-time employee is very expensive and is not advisable for the employer if the work is carried out within the framework of one project. Freelancers also quite rarely use such software, since work on promotion does not cover the cost of paying for services.

Response

The studio’s specialists are constantly on the pulse of all changes in search engine algorithms. With the next update, the studio manager will immediately offer the client an option of action that will not allow the changes to negatively affect the site. Our specialists have extensive experience in dealing with such situations.

An in-house specialist, in turn, can very quickly determine the source of an internal problem on the site. Unlike a studio, where edits can be made by different people and it is problematic to react quickly.

Price policy

SEO agency services are more expensive than hiring a remote employee. This is due to the fact that the studio has high expenses for maintaining an office and staff. At the same time, the agency provides a full range of services at once: copywriting, programmer, PPC specialist and others, which is much more convenient than looking for third-party specialists separately.

If you hire a full-time SEO specialist, then you should not forget about the costs of equipping his workplace, paying for services and software, as well as wages and taxes. From time to time it will be necessary to involve third-party specialists as the employee’s knowledge may not be sufficient.

The least expensive option is to turn to a freelancer for promotion. But, as in the case of an in-house employee, for certain tasks it will be necessary to attract additional specialists, whose qualifications cannot always be verified.

Guarantees

Unlike remote or full-time employees, the agency always completes assigned tasks with the highest quality and within the agreed time frame. It is very important for all employees to maintain the good reputation of the studio. The agency is always responsible for the results, without any exceptions.

The agency always provides the most detailed and understandable reporting on the work performed. It is very important for the studio that the client always understands the significance and effectiveness of the tasks performed. Compared to single specialists, agency employees have very deep knowledge and understanding of analytics, which is also always reflected in the report.

An important factor is the ability to draw up a contract for the provision of services. It displays all the conditions, scope of work and their cost. It is possible to make payments through accounting and prepare tax reports. Having a contract with the client is a legal guarantee of quality work done.

The human factor should not be overlooked. In addition to vacations, an employee may have health problems or any other force majeure at any time. The result is missed deadlines, wasted time and money. When working with a studio, such situations are excluded. Specialists are interchangeable and, if necessary, will back up their colleague. In most cases, the temporary replacement of an employee goes unnoticed by the client.

To summarize

Let’s summarize and highlight the main advantages and disadvantages of working with an SEO agency:

Minuses

• The cost of services is higher than that of a single specialist;
• Communication with the contractor takes place through an intermediary – the project manager;
• A large number of projects at the same time. The presence of a “conveyor” effect in the work;
• Limited time to work on the project;

Рros

• Proven specialists with extensive experience;
• High speed of performing a large number of works and complex tasks;
• Use of paid services and professional software;
• Availability of specialists in different fields. Teamwork;
• Deep understanding of analytical data and use of modern working methods;
• Complete and high-quality reporting on work performed;
• The presence of a contract as a legal guarantee of quality work performed;
• Lack of human factor.

Before contacting an agency, you need to competently assess the current state of your project. If the site is at the development stage, then single specialists can easily prepare it for launch. A freelancer can conduct a project audit or targeted priority work, which will help save money. When working with a large project or several at the same time, you should first pay attention to the services of the studio. This will help you achieve high results in the shortest possible time, attract new clients and gain a long-term foothold in high positions in your niche.

Pavlo Vlasiuk

CMO

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