SEO Consultancy

Fees charged by SEO (search engine optimisation) consultants can sometimes be astronomical and established London based SEO agencies are often out of reach to many small to medium size business owners. As a Brighton based small business consultancy, JHM aims to provide clear and ethical advice to anyone considering SEO as part of their strategy. JHM provides completely free advice at any time either over the phone or via email. However, if you’re considering employing the services of a consultant there are a few important things to consider:

SEO is not magic

There are some freelance consultants and agencies who will try and convince you that SEO requires a certain “magic” ability and that you won’t get anywhere unless you employ the services of an expert. This isn’t exactly true. Although it’s advisable to employ an experienced consultant (especially if your understanding of SEO is limited); the fundamental concepts can still be grasped by anyone. The key to SEO success, however, is time and dedication. If your knowledge is basic and you lack the time to educate yourself, or if you lack the internal resources to implement an in-house SEO campaign, then you should consult an expert.

SEO is not a quick fix

There are also some consultants and agencies who will tell you that they can acheive page one results on Google in a very narrow space of time. Be very wary of anyone who makes this claim. Acheiving high rankings in the search engines is dependant upon a very wide range of variables including factors such as your website age, the quality of your content and how well that content has been optimised, the quality of the inbound links pointing at your site and a whole host of other issues. If you have a well established website that is already ranking on key-phrase terms related to your sector then, yes, it’s possible to improve your rankings fairly quickly. However newly established sites will require months if not years of development work in order to acheive the best results.

SEO is not about volume links

Again, many consultants and agencies will advertise a link-building service “guaranteed” to propel you to the top of the engines. Sometimes the offer will come dressed as “1000 links for £XXX” or similar. It’s highly advisable to avoid investing in any quick link schemes. A good link-building campaign should be measured and long-term and, more importantly, should focus on the quality of the links not the quantity. Quantity links from “bad neighbourhood” sites may actually harm your website rather than increase its prominence in the search engines.

SEO should involve open and clear techniques

JHM aims to deliver an open and clear approach, offering up-to-date advice and comprehensive step-by-step guides posted to our blog. JHM’s step-by-step guides aim to equip you with the knowledge and expertise to bring certain SEO tasks in-house and enable you to keep your outsourcing costs low.

Small Business SEO Rates

JHM provide a basic assessment of your website free of charge. This would include an outline of some of the key areas in which we could assist you with improvements. For on-going services JHM aim to provide an affordable solution that meets your individual requirements. We believe that results count and we are open to discussing payment terms for top 10 placements. Alternatively we can work on a retainer fee starting in the region of £200 per month dependant upon the scale of the project, the size of your business and your objectives.

For further information or advice, please get in touch via our contact page.