Setting Realistic Expectations for Your SEO Campaigns

As a business owner, positive results are all you care about. If you aren't getting them fast enough then it's not good enough. You want as many calls and leads coming through as you can possibly manager. The sooner you get these results, the sooner you can meet your long-term goals, and the sooner your business will grow as a result.

This attitude can be both a positive and a hindrance. It's all well and good to be eager to get results, but often impatience gets the best of us and we begin to get frustrated. If you've got a good online marketing agency in your corner, they will have spoken to you about this when you first signed on with them.

Thinking Long Term

The first thing to remember is that SEO is a long-term solution that should be based on long term goals. Trying to achieve immediate success is something that will never happen. Further to this, SEO campaigns are never ending; they must be persisted with in the knowledge that putting in the required time and having some patience will begin to see results. If you and your online marketing agency continue to work on it, the better ROI you'll realise.

When you begin your SEO campaign and how it will look in the future, try not to have too many expectations on what should happen. Every site is different and every site responds to different strategies. Also, as digital marketing is constantly evolving, what worked last month might not work this month due to a change in an algorithm by Google. The good news is that if your online market agency are doing their job, they will have read up on this and begun planning how to best combat it.

You Only Get Out What You Put In

You need to recognise from the beginning that the success of an SEO strategy relies heavily on the input of both you and your online marketing agency. While they will do a majority of the work to optimise your website so it ranks higher on Google, you too will need to put in the hard yards. Having a team of SEO specialists working with you will give you structure and direction with your plan.

That's not to say that you can't do all of this by yourself. However, trying to run a business while juggling to prioritise your key channels of optimisation is extremely difficult. Don't be afraid to get some assistance from an online marketing agency in your local area. There are plenty of them out there; you just have to work out which one is best for you.

Evaluating Your Plan

No doubt before you start an SEO campaign, you've probably got a list of expectations about how your campaign is going to pan out. But as previously mentioned, every business is unique and you can't predict your results. The good news is that marketing strategies are built to be flexible and allow for any unexpected issues that might come up.

A good idea is to re-evaluate your plan when you reach a milestone in your campaign. You'll need to take a look at everything about your plan: your progress, your current strategy, and your goals. You'll be able to make tweaks and adjustments throughout the process, fine tuning everything until you find that balance of investment and payoff in the areas you want to develop.

After One Month...

At the start of the first month, you'll be at the ground floor. Make sure your online marketing agency has set up a Google Analytics account for your website and that the tracking script is set up. Remember to document where your metrics are at that time as this will act as a point of reference when you are comparing at different stages.

It is during this month that you'll be helping create a lot of systems and procedures to ensure your campaign moves forward. Measuring results at this stage is pointless as nothing much has happened. If anything it'll give you an idea of how people might respond to your content, but there will be little to no major insights to look at.

After Three Months...

After three months of your campaign, you'll be able to get a more accurate reading. Again, check your Analytics as this will be able to tell you how much your traffic has grown. The team at your online marketing agency will need to manage your expectations here if you happen to see a slight increase. Remember - it's a marathon, not a sprint. You're in it for the long haul.

It's at this point that you might want to start evaluating the effectiveness of your content. If you happen to notice one type of content getting more attention than others, then consult your online marketing agency about what the best course of action is to take.

At Six Months?

At six months you should be able to make a definitive analysis of how well your campaign is tracking. If you haven't seen much change, or if the growth is inconsistent, it might be the result of an algorithm change. This is where your online marketing agency will really earn their dollars by implementing a solution to combat this issue.

It's important to set realistic expectations for your SEO campaign. Getting impatient and frustrated with a lack of results after a few months won't get you the results you want. Better to take a deep breath and remind yourself that you are in this for the long haul. Your online marketing agency is and they will work with you every step of the way to make sure you realise the results you are after.

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