SEO Consulting
Frequently Asked Questions

What are your rates?

Our telephone consulting fee is currently $100 per hour for the first 10 hours. After the first 10 hours, the rate will double to $200 per hour. You can purchase a 25-hour telephone consultation package for $3000. The 25 hours must be used within 3 months of purchase.

An 8-hour seminar or class is $1500 plus travel expenses (airfare and hotel room).

Our small business internet marketing package (which does not include search engine optimization) is $500.

Other rates are determined on a project-by-project basis. We do not offer pay-per-click or long-term link-building services.

Do you provide "black" or "white" hat services?

We provide reasonably safe, ethical consulting services and advice. We do not advocate circumventing search engine guidelines. However, most so-called "black hat" practices usually only differ from so-called "white hat" practices by degrees of excess. We do not advocate or assist with the development or use of misleading content, sneaky redirection, cloaking, or other controversial practices. We can, if you desire, provide some referrals. We make no guarantees.

Do you offer other kinds of referrals?

If you ask for services we don't provide, we'll do our best to help you find a reputable SEO firm that meets your requirements. We may ask for a $250 referral fee from you if the SEO firm does not agree to a referral fee. We do not have any contractual relationships with specific SEO, design, or PR firms at this time. Referrals are made on a case-by-case basis.

Do you design Web sites?

Not really. We can, if you wish, put together a small, attractive Web site for your needs. If you have a specific purpose in mind, feel free to contact us. A typical static (2-6 page) small business Web site can be designed in a couple of days, provided we have all the information about your company that we need. Interactive content, catalogues, order-processing, or user-oriented service design and tools are beyond the scope of the service we'll offer. We may, at our discretion, assist you in contacting a reputable Web site developer. See our referral policy above. A static Web site similar to this site can be designed for you at a cost of $500 for up to 6 pages. Each additional page up to 12 pages is $200 per page (for a maximum of $1700). We will use a fee-based template service for the basic design. Template fees usually range from $10 to $100.

Do you do logo design?

You really do not want us to design your logo for you.

Do you write press releases?

We do have some press release writing experience, but that is not one of our primary functions. Depending on your need and whether we do other business for you, we may write press releases for you at a cost of $150 per release. Distribution fees are extra.

Do you write original feature articles?

We can write original feature articles for your Web site at a rate of $0.10 per word, up to 5,000 words per article. Minimum of 1,000 words per article. We do not offer photography services. If you want an article rewritten (you must own the copyright on the article), our rate is $0.05 per word up to 5,000 words per article. Minimum of 1,000 words per article. You retain the copyright on all articles.

How many articles can I buy from you?

As long as we have enough information to say something meaningful, we'll write as many articles as you can pay us to write, but deadlines will be set according to our schedule.

My Web site is banned/penalized. Can you help me?

If your business or Web site model contravenes existing search engine guidelines, there is nothing we can do for you. Once you have removed whatever content or features resulted in your Web site being banned or penalized, you can ask for reinclusion from the search engines. It is best to be absolutely certain you are not violating their Webmaster guidelines before seeking reinclusion. After being cleared by a search engine, it may take up to six months for your site to reappear in their results.

If you don't know what you did wrong, we will evaluate your Web site and make suggestions for $500. We offer no guarantees that we will identify all of the probable causes for your penalties or bans. The more information you provide us, the better our analysis will be. If you don't tell us everything, our analysis may do you no good. Search engines do not typically reveal the exact reasons for penalties and bans, but common sense and experience indicate that deceptive content, excessive artificial linking, and other violations of search engine guidelines are the most common reasons for penalties and bans.

I used another SEO consultant and I still need help. What can you do?

A very unfortunate but common experience in search engine optimization is a mismatch between client and service provider. Many good SEO consultants have complained through the years about clients who refused to implement suggestions, or who made changes without consulting their SEOs, or who otherwise sabotaged relationships. Some of our own clients have paid us and done nothing with our reports. Their rankings continue to be dismal. If you decide you want to change consultants, be sure you have not burdened your SEO with unreasonable expectations and that you have done what you've been asked to do.

Sometimes, the SEO just cannot help you. It may be due to inexperience or insufficient resources. So there is no harm in getting a second opinion. Many dissatisfied SEO clients have found that they first contracted with so-called "black hat" SEOs who used hidden text, page redirection, and other disreputable practices. If you signed a contract with a service provider who created doorway pages leading to your site, or who embedded hidden text or redirecting code on your pages, you may want to speak to another SEO -- especially if you are not getting the results you want.

We can evaluate the work performed by other SEOs and advise you on whether the work is beneficial to you. But if you are expecting immediate results and don't have a spectacular, new, innovative, unique, in-high-demand product or service, your chances of seeing immediate results are slim to none.

How long should it take my new site to rank?

Depending on your industry, we may be able to help you achieve acceptable search engine rankings in 1-2 months. It may take 6 months to a year. We offer no guarantees.

The people at Threadwatch make fun of you. What do you think of that?

There are plenty of unpfrofessional people in the SEO community. They're welcome to their opinions of me and everyone else. Most of them will be repeating my advice in another year or two anyway. Business as usual.