Last month, Rand Fishkin of seomoz.org posted “less than 30% of companies that spend money on organic search ranking services are getting a good deal” Read the full article
A big AMEN to that, here’s a Top 10 List of Why SEO’s Suck…

10. They want to be search marketers because it’s the cool new thing. It is cool, don’t get me wrong.

We go to cool conferences-Who went to the Web Attack conference years ago where Dennis Rodman rode his motorcycle onto the stage? Way cool;)

We wear cool clothes-My favorite swag this year, Acquisio Bid Management Tool T-Shirt reading simply “I hate doing this shit”.

We are trend setters. More than two years ago we were discussing the impact of social media, today my Aunt Debbie has a groovy page on MySpace and Social Media has its’ own conferences.

We have cool nicknames. My favorite search moniker? Search Commander, Scott Hendison. Love it!

We are great performers. Just check out our Google Karaoke YouTube from SES San Jose (okay, so we can’t sing, but we do have fun!)

Yes, search marketing is cool, but it’s a lot of work.

9. They only want to do the sexy stuff. Is it fun to get kudos for a high profile article or exciting new search placement, yes. Is it fun to create exceptional, relevant title tags and meta descriptions for every page? No, it’s tedious, it’s painstaking and you won’t get any pats on the back for doing it right. But you will struggle if you don’t take the time to implement this foundational element with care. Meta data may not mean as much to engines, but it means a great deal to searchers. If a searcher sees a page title that matches their search query they’re more likely to follow that “scent” and click thru. Commit to the process, grunt work and sexy stuff alike.

8. They don’t properly educate themselves. Don’t disrespect the industry or fellow search marketers by taking a 2-week Search Marketing certification course and then hanging out your shingle. Do an internship with a respected agency. Spend the money on SMX or SES conferences. Join a Search Marketing Organization, such as SEMPO or SEMPDX. Read books on search marketing. Commit time daily to blogs and forums dedicated to search marketing. Then when you execute your first project, do so with small, achievable goals.

7. They speak poorly of their competition. This industry is growing rapidly and it’s made up of very bright, highly skilled marketers and a handful of snake oil salesmen. Speak only well of your competition and if you have nothing nice to say, don’t say anything. There is plenty of work to go around. Nice is the new mean!

6. They focus on just one tactic. Today’s search marketing strategies require multiple tactics on many fronts. Start with best practice items first-good site architecture, exceptional unique content, relevant and strategic linking. Then begin employing Web 2.0 tactics that can help you get an edge. Create a solid foundation so your house will still be standing if Google nofollows every social media link on the planet or universal search takes more than a couple of months to roll out. It sounds trite, but don’t put all your eggs in one basket and don’t forget the basics.

5. They take projects inappropriate for their skill level. I attended my first Search Engine Strategies Conference in 2002. I’ve been in the industry since 1997 and involved in search since 2001. I provide exceptional results for clients, but if I had a new client with needs beyond my abilities I’d reach out to the appropriate resource for help. (If I were a podiatrist and someone showed up in my office for brain surgery, I’d refer them to a neurosurgeon). Your clients will appreciate your honesty and likely retain you for other projects more inline with your skill set because you were interested in their long-term success.

4. They work alone. If you’re a technical genius, it can’t hurt to involve marketing and business development in your search strategy. If you’re a marketer, don’t dismiss IT work as “the techie stuff”. We need each other. One of my favorite parts of my job is hearing from different disciplines about what is most important. The truth (and our best results) can be found in our aggregated knowledge. If you can’t hire an employee, work with subcontractors who own a skill set you don’t. Knowing your abilities and limitations is the first step to greatness.

3. They don’t create expectations. I’d be willing to bet the reason why many business owners aren’t happy with their search results is that their agency isn’t setting expectations.

2. They over promise and under deliver. It’s okay to say, “we can’t win without a redesign” or “it will take 9 months to reach our goals”. It’s not okay to say “Yeah, we can do that” and then you don’t.

1. They don’t review business goals. Don’t just set a goal for search placement (20 keywords in page one results in 3 months). That doesn’t answer a business goal, ask about the goal your client is trying to reach-improved sales, more lead generation, increased white paper downloads. Attach a quantifiable goal to all of your search milestones and when you deliver, your clients will know you’re for real…then you’re on your way to not sucking.

If you’re a business owner looking for an SEO that doesn’t suck, get references and ask them to show you results.