I’m starting to get really annoyed with the volume of email I receive through my various websites on the subject of Search Engine Optimizing (SEO) from the countless SEO experts. Excuse me, but how did you become an “expert” at SEO, and what exactly qualifies you as an expert?

I could say that I’m an expert because I spent $10 on this web domain through Godaddy, threw it on to a dedicated server, added a WordPress blog, sprinkled it liberally with the terms “SEO” and “SEO Marketing”. Now who is to say that I am not an expert in SEO? I have a website, an email address, and I know how to spam other people. Maybe you should be paying me just for the title?

Professional Services

I’ve been around long enough to know how people can be an unemployed web surfer one day, and through the magic of free blogs, free email addresses, free hosting, and free access to copied content, the next day they can become SEO experts. Sorry, but I’m not buying it–I’m not buying your story, and I’m not buying your “professional services”.

I’ve been trying to get my own websites to the top of the search engines for years, and not just Google, but all of its predecessors. I would spend hours exchanging links and join web rings just to see my results rise in Lycos.

It was all about net presence, and I learned early on that getting other people to link to your website, your content, your stories, would somehow make you more popular with the search engines.

Back then it also took some submitting, some linkbaiting (before it was called “linkbaiting”), and some networking with other webmasters (those who had actually mastered the web), to build up backlinks in order to score more traffic and get more web surfers to find my sites.

Still, over the years I’ve learned that the strength in the websites is more than just expensive SEO marketing services, but honest, worthwhile content, and a steady commitment to your website.

Search Engine Results

If someone is going to email me using their Hotmail address professing their expertise in SEO marketing, SEM, guaranteed search engine results, and other nonsense, at least have the decency to spell-check the contents of your email, because I’m pretty certain that those looking to secure your services would like to know that you can at least spell the keywords you are going to promote.