5 Things You Should Never Say To An SEO Manager
By Amy @BubbleJobs
Following the undeniable success of Anna’s rant… ermm, I mean blog last week which touched upon five phrases you should never say to a social media manager (if you haven’t read it yet, it’s about time you did!), I thought it was about time I had my own rant about the things that really make my blood boil when people ask me about my job.
Now, I get that SEO can be a pretty hard concept to grasp for anyone not directly involved in the digital sector but even so, there are still some phrases you might want to avoid throwing my way (or any other SEO professional’s way), lest you want to see me turn into the incredible Hulk and majorly kick off… you have been warned!
1. “So you just have to get websites to the top of Google?” – ARRGGHH! There are a couple of things that annoy me about this comment! First up, there’s much more to SEO than just “getting websites to the top of Google” – there’s site build, keyword research, link building, brand building, on-site SEO and off-site SEO – and that’s just for the starters! And there’s no “just” about it. SEO is an extremely complicated, convoluted, complex business which is changing all the time – it’s a multi-million pound industry which is becoming more diverse and challenging with every day that passes. Just because you don’t understand it, please don’t belittle it!
2. “You do social media don’t you?” – Yep, it seems that people still have difficulty grasping the concept that SEO and social media are two different industries. Even my friends have been known to say “Oh Amy does social media” – WRONG! OK, so social and search are becoming more converged every day but they’re still separate entities and should be treated as such. There’s no denying there is some cross-over between the two, and my constant plugging of Bubble on Twitter has probably contributed somewhat to my friends’ confusion, but both industries require a completely different skill set and knowledge base. You wouldn’t say an accountant does investment banking or a doctor does nursing.. so please don’t say SEOs do social media… and vice versa!
3. “SEO; that’s just to do with rankings and keywords isn’t it?” – The one thing that’s worse than people not knowing what SEO is? People who THINK they know what SEO is. Yep, you know who you are; you’ve read a couple of blogs on SEO and think you know enough to have an intense, well-informed conversation with an SEO professional. Please, just don’t! It’s not that we don’t appreciate what you’re trying to do – you know, learning about keywords and SERPS – but, like I said before, SEO is extremely complicated – keywords and rankings are just the icing on a very large, multi-tiered, multi-flavoured cake!
4. “I still don’t get what it is you do…” – Why?!! I’ve explained it to you at least ten times!! Sorry, this one gets me really riled up… and I don’t think it’s just limited to SEO! The problem is that rather than just not getting it, people don’t necessarily WANT to understand – they’re not willing to grasp the concepts and key fundamental ideas behind SEO because they think it doesn’t affect them. You can explain the concepts behind algorithms, Google updates, best SEO practice and on and offsite techniques in the simplest terms until you’re blue in the face – but there are still going to be some who just refuse to “get it”. But guess what? SEO affects everyone so it’s time you got clued up… alternatively, you could just stop wasting my time!
5. “Anyone can do SEO” – REALLY?!?! I don’t think so! Like I said earlier, SEO is extremely complex and requires a great deal of skill, dedication and experience (come on, we don’t have to be so modest all the time!). OK, so you might know that you need to have some keywords on your site and you want to be number 1 for the term “running trainers”… and you might even have had a little bit of success, but please don’t think that means you’re an SEO expert. I mean, I did a first aid course when I was 16 but I don’t think I’m an expert and claim to be able to do a doctor or a nurse’s job! Please, stop thinking you’re an SEO expert and you could do my job because you’ve read a few blogs – trust me, you couldn’t! – and please stop insulting me and everyone else in the industry by claiming: “anyone can do SEO”.
OK, so I know I promised I’d just cover five phrases but I’m on a roll – just one more I promise!
6. “When are we going to be number one for “green sheds”? – Sigh! You really just don’t get it do you?!?! Enough said!
Phew; rant over! And guess what? I feel a whole lot better!
Has this article struck a chord with you or do you think I’ve missed anything out? Tweet me @amy_edwards88 or Anna @BubbleJobs and let us know!
About the Author
Amy Edwards Amy Edwards is the SEO Manager for Bubble Jobs. With a strong background in online content and copywriting, Amy is responsible all the on-site and off-site SEO of Bubble Jobs and the Bubble Jobs blog. You can follow her on Twitter here or add her to your circles on Google+ here.
Anyone agree with this and looking for a new SEO job? Don’t forget we’ve got some great live SEO vacancies on the Bubble Jobs site today – take a look at this SEO specialist job from We Are Adam (http://bit.ly/XFIGh1) and this Senior SEO Analyst Job From Tech Recuit (http://bit.ly/14PELm5) for starters!
I work in SEO/Content marketing and agree! It’s part of our job to educate the clients so that we don’t get these sort of questions
Interesting your first point, when someone asks me what I do for a living I always say…’get websites to the top of Google’ or ‘Get websites to move up Google’ simply because this is the easiest way to explain what is an inherently complex job. But in this context, that explanation only reveals the ends with total disregard for the means. When people subsequently ask ‘well how do you do that?’ they often quickly become puzzled as you try to explain the plethora of different methods used to optimise a website.
Hi Simon,
I agree saying “I help websites move up in Google” is definitely the “easy” answer… you’re right, it gets trickier when you have to try and explain the practices, methods and all the hard work that goes into it – that’s when you see people’s eyes start to glaze over as you lose them with talk of algorithms, updates and relationship building!
Phew!!! Were you really this pissed when you sat to pen this blog? I can imagine the reason and purpose behind it but curious to know your state of mind too
!!! Jokes aside, am a database architect, and havent delved deep enough to understand the nuances of this business. But I have known it to be a prickly and a tricky subject without a straight pattern of events and logic to arrive at that desired goal. Certainly that makes the job even trickier. Having said that, you have provided great insights into steps not to attempt while dealing with an accomplised SEO. Good Job.