When I came to Hong Kong I was surprised by the state of the SEO industry, and knowledge in general about search engine optimization. The bad news is that when it comes to Internet marketing in general, Hong Kong is about 10 years behind the US. The good news is that this means there is a great opportunity for those companies that dive in first.
Some Hong Kong companies believe they have made a significant investment in online marketing, but there are two mistakes I see many companies making here.
Mistake #1. The first is to invest heavily in paid search, or pay per click marketing. Don’t get me wrong, PPC advertising is great. We manage PPC campaigns for our clients, and it’s certainly a viable source of lead generation and online sales. But most people do not click on pay per click ads. They click on the organic search results. If you focus on PPC you may be getting 10% of the traffic, but meanwhile 90% of the traffic is going somewhere else.
Mistake #2. The second mistake I see Hong Kong companies making is to see SEO as a one-time event. I see companies investing in SEO as though it were a project. In doing so, they are leaving money on the table and opening the door for competitors. SEO produces the best results when it is provided as an ongoing service. We have clients who have used our services for several years, faithfully paying every month. Why? Because we keep delivering leads and sales, and these clients understand that SEO is like a big train. It takes a lot of work to get it moving, not nearly as much work to keep it moving, but if you stop pushing, the train will slow down and eventually stop, especially if you confront “hills” like major algorithm changes (i.e. Penguin, Panda, Hummingbird, etc.) or increased competition.
There is value in a one-time SEO audit. There is value in having an SEO consultant come in and work on a 6-month engagement to improve results for your company. But the ideal SEO arrangement, the one that will generate the best returns and give you an long-term advantage over your clients is an ongoing relationship that lasts for years.
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