Dealing with the management as an SEO professional

Understanding and getting results with both SEO and SEM is difficult enough, but as most consultants know, dealing with the management is just as important. Here is what to expect and how to approach the management of your clients:

Roles – The first and most important aspect is to know who you will be dealing with understanding what their roles are in the organization. In addition, know what level of knowledge each level has in SEO, marketing and other technologies. You will deal with Marketing Directors and other senior marketing staff and product managers at a lower level.

Educate – Often many of the upper management and senior staff will lack knowledge of SEO and SEM. In these situation be prepared to educate them as you go along. Explain how each tactic works and why different approaches have different time horizons for returns. A good approach is to explain these four points: what are we doing? How are we doing it? Why are we doing it and how do we show results?

Results – Finally, place a special emphasis on results. Keep track of any and all achievements. In the marketing space you are only as good as your last victory. To that end, establish a baseline to measure change. Track results daily, weekly and monthly. By tracking regularly, you can respond faster to any issues and take advantage of opportunities that you might otherwise miss.

Dealing with people can be harder than getting results with SEO, but is an essential part of getting better results.