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03.16.06
Measuring Success As An SEO
 By
Jim Hedger
"How do I know if my SEO campaign has been successful?"
I was asked this deceptively simple question the other day. I wasn't able to give the fullest response but considering the circumstances, I gave it a great effort.
It's mid-spring in Victoria and the golf courses are playable again so I joined a friend and a few of his acquaintances for a short round on Saturday. By the time we had gotten to the third tee-box, talk had turned to Google and eventually search engine marketing in general. That tends to happen around me for some reason.
This is not a golfing story but its kernel was found on a golf course and golf is a game that is rich with metaphor. Golf, like SEO, is a deceptively simple game. On the surface it is easy enough to understand but once you get involved, you learn there is always a lot more to learn.
Like search marketing, the golfer's goal appears simple. Top placement is measured by the lowest number and a 1, 2 or 3 looks amazing on anyone's scorecard. Fortunately, it is infinitely easier to score a 1 in SEO than it is to do so while golfing. Unfortunately, explaining success in the world of search marketing, over the course of 9-holes is hardly possible. As it is in golf, success in search marketing is a very subjective thing.
To put it in a simple sentence, success equates to meeting one's goals. What those goals are, and how they help you or your business achieve a greater objective is another matter.
Pure Rankings
The easiest way to measure success in SEO is still found in pure search engine rankings. Either the site appears in the Top10 listings under target keyword phrases, or it does not. Top10 rankings are what most SEO firms promise their clients.
While pure rankings are the easiest metric to measure, they are not necessarily the most accurate one. From rankings, we learn generally where a site appears from day to day but that's all. We can never be certain that the rankings we see or record are exactly the same as those seen by our clients who might be drawing results from a different server.
Pure rankings are often the first goal of most SEO campaigns however what happens after that goal is achieved is where most SEO firms really provide value for their clients.
Click here to read the rest of the article.
About the Author:
Jim Hedger is the SEO Manager of StepForth Search Engine Placement Inc. Based in Victoria, BC, Canada, StepForth is the result of the consolidation of BraveArt Website Management, Promotion Experts, and Phoenix Creative Works, and has provided professional search engine placement and management services since 1997. http://www.stepforth.com/
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