3 Things SEOs Should Be Thankful For

The holiday season, beginning with Thanksgiving and ending on Jan. 1, are a time for reflection on what SEOs have accomplished over the year and for gratitude for all of our blessings. From my grub’s eye view, the working SEO should be thankful for many things. Most notably, we should be thankful that we work in a changing industry, which is filled with challenges and requires constant learning. Those of us who work as consultants, should be particularly grateful for the clients who seek our advice and trust us with their success. Third, from a more personal view, a debt of gratitude is owed to our industry colleagues who willingly and broadly share their knowledge and insights. The list of what SEOs should be thankful for is actually much longer; but these are, in my opinion, the highlights. SEO Is Reported Dead – It Just Plays Possum For years, decades even, pundits and authors have proclaimed that SEO is dead. Each time an obituary is written, or a eulogy delivered, SEO has evolved or morphed to meet the ever-changing environment. SEO does not die, it just plays possum — until the talented and innovative individuals working in SEO make changes to their tactics to make sure that their sites or their client’s sites are still visible in search engines. The tactics used are constantly changing in response to each new turn or twist in the search technology. Because the goal remains the same — making useful content visible to users — all that changes is how we accomplish the goal. Responding to change requires constant learning and innovation. For many SEOs, meeting the challenges presented by the constant change makes the job interesting. SEO is a job that is never boring and will never become mundane or routine. For this, I am personally thankful and eagerly await what the next year of change will bring. Revere Client Trust The marketing power of SEO is well-established. Most companies consider search marketing an integral part of their marketing efforts. When a client engages an SEO consultant, the client is entrusting a key to their business success to the consultant. Not all consultants are created equal. Most are ethical and vary in competence; however, some use unethical practices and work harm to their clients’ sites and, by extension, to their businesses. Yes! One could argue that “caveat emptor” applies to buying SEO services. The problem is that executives are not sure what evaluation criteria to use. As an SEO, I like to treat my clients’ sites by the Golden Rule of “do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” This means following ethical search guidelines to the letter and advising clients when they are about to stray into trouble. They do not always take the advice, but it would be unconscionable not to provide such advice. My gratitude is to those who think enough of my skills and respect my values to take my advice. There would be no livelihood for SEO consultants without clients willing to take the risk of seeking our advice. For this, I am grateful. Industry Colleagues — A Treasure Without the wealth of information that flows across the industry daily, it would be impossible to do this job. Although there are many training programs and courses, SEO is not a discipline that can be learned in school. It is constantly changing, and practitioners are always passing information along about the changes or how to address them. Industry conferences — like PubCon and SMX — bubble with ideas. Even after more than 15 years as an SEO, I still learn from my colleagues. Without their willingness to share their ideas, my own learning would be stunted and my practice less dynamic. For this, I am grateful. As the new year begins, I will be looking for what changes are afoot in the industry and will share my own ideas for how to make search more profitable for my readers.

Search Engine Optimization

3 Things SEOs Should Be Thankful For

Amanda G. Watlington, Ph.D.

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Amanda G. Watlington, Ph.D.