How to Use a SEO Consultant

Posted in Content Development - 03/08/2018

Years ago, Herb Guenther and I wrote training manuals together. Last year, we met up again when I re-launched Littleviews. He showed me what was involved in Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and how his company, InviteThemHome.com (or Invite Them Home SEO) supports it. I thought you would be interested understanding the mechanics behind SEO consulting work.

 

Interview with Herb Guenther of Invite Them Home, SEO Solutions

Littleviews (LV): InviteThemHome.com is a very unusual name for a company. How did you come up with it?

Herb Gunther, president of Invite Them Home SEO consultingHerb Guenther (HG): Our name plays on the word “Home,” as in a website’s home page. The goal of Invite Them Home SEO is to increase the number of visits to your website by making your site inviting to search engines and your target audience.

LV:  Many businesses and people who own their own websites believe that SEO is used to help land their site on the first page of an Internet search. Do you regard that as being a realistic objective?

HG: The goal of being on the first page of a Google search results page is the universal desire of every website owner.  To be clear, being on the first or second page is important, but surprisingly, what is more important is knowing what search words identify you and your competition.

LV:  Your competition?

HG: In the past, many brick-and-mortar shops congregated in the same physical area. This is true on-line, too. To meet that goal, you need to know who your competitors are and the search words that lead you to that mutual neighborhood. Then, make sure that the text description shown is compelling, so searchers click to your website.

LV:  I bet most people considering a SEO service only think about their own ranking.

HG: Yes. They might be dimly aware of their competitor websites, but never think about their competitors existing in the same online town. A good SEO consultant helps them focus on these issues and works to position their site in a prominent area of their online town square.

LV:  Do you advise your new clients to prepare information before seeking your services as a SEO consultant?

HG: Well, we guide them through their homework, although they do not have to prepare prior to our initial meeting. During InviteThemHome’s initial SEO consultation, we ask several questions, with the top three being:

  1. If you were to search for “you,” what words do you think most commonly describe your business or services?
  2. Name who you believe to be your competitors. (Note, they might not be who you think they are.)
  3. Have you defined your goals, such as obtaining more orders, developing greater consumer awareness (mind share) or reducing support calls? When you have goals in mind, we can work towards meeting them and have a base line from which to measure success.

LV:  Sometimes a website is so poorly served by SEO that Google can’t even find its name. Why is that?

HG: Business names often do not describe their business activities or are commonly identified by a meaningless acronym. Acronyms, of course, are shared by many organizations or represent shortcuts, such as LOL, which is also used in social media. Basically, a SEO consultant like InviteThemHome makes sure that your site is found by major search engines even if your name is common, hard to spell, punctuated strangely, is primarily known by its acronym, or is used by other topics.

LV:  Do you typically see technical details that your clients have not noticed?

HG: Yes, for example, here are three out of many things most people do not notice:

  • The site should be transmitted via HTTPS (emphasis on the S, which stands for secure), not HTTP.
  • If your viewer searches for your site when using a mobile device, Google weights the sites it returns in favor of those that are responsive. A responsive site’s design changes when viewed on a small screen.
  • Meta Data and HTML coding, such as a title and meta description, plus the H1 and H2 tags, must be properly used and populated. This can make or break your click through rate. The same is true for artwork and photos, especially if you want images seen through links in social media.

LV:  Does Invite Them Home SEO use special SEO analytical software?

HG: SEO consultants use a variety of analytical tools as well as good old fashion common sense and hard work! Our SEO tools include:

  • MOZ and SEMrush, which check websites for technical issues.
  • Website statistical gathering programs and Google Analytics track the phrases people use to find sites, plus keep track of website user volume and activity.
  • Readability analysis tools determine whether a website’s content is understood.
  • Competitor website analysis tools watch for and monitor changes to your competitors’ sites.

LV:  Ultimately, what goals need to be addressed when pursuing SEO?

HG: InviteThemHome’s staff makes sure that websites meet their organizational objectives. If current and future customers (or clients, patients, etc.) find a website’s content engaging and its visitors reflect the site’s business model, an important part of site optimization is accomplished.

 

Links on Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

 

Author

This interview was conducted by Karen Little of Littleviews.com during March, 2018. Featured is Herbert Guenther, owner of Invite Them Home SEO. Contact Karen Little at info@Littleviews.com for permission to reproduce this article, otherwise, all rights are reserved by Littleviews.com.