Why does Search Engine Optimization Cost so much?

Hi M,

Search engine optimization is a huge and complex process. (Oh, if it were only as simple as putting in the keywords where FrontPage asks for them!)It's goal is to get your site ranked on the first page of as many search engines as possible, on the theory that 80% of traffic to your site comes from search engines (which personally I don't think applies to coaches, but hey...I don't have stats on that).

Getting ranked highly requires:
1. well selected keywords and high keyword frequency and knowing where to place those keywords in your website (not just your metatags)
2. Links back to your site from related businesses
3. Relevant and interesting content that changes at least once a month.

I bid 3 hours just to do the keyword selection. There's an article on my website that explains what I do, or how you could do it yourself. http://www.girlgeekwebdesigns.com/Newsletter15.htm

Most coaches don't have the time or the budget to do a full-search engine optimization, but they need well selected keywords for the Pay Per Click programs too. So I suggest doing at least that much. Last time I got a bid for search engine optimization from a company who does nothing but that (and this was with my web designer's discount) it was $1200 for only 3 months!

Thanks for asking!
Annette