Written by Fernando Maciá
The SEO workflow and the pitfalls of implementation – Presentation by Fernando Maciá at the Search Congress Barcelona 2011
Many search engine optimization campaigns fail or do not achieve their objectives not because of a problem in the identification of the problems that are at the origin of a bad positioning of a Web site but because of problems derived from the execution of the improvements and modifications recommended by the consulting company. The last step, which is decisive, is implementation. And it is usually a “ball” that the different actors involved often pass to each other, resulting in delays and lack of efficiency in the project.
I must confess that I have long wanted to make a reflection on this topic that all SEO consultants have experienced on numerous occasions. But it was the presentation by Alex Craven of Bloommedia at the last SEOmoz Pro Seminar in London and the article by Paddy Moogan published last January on the SEOmoz blog The problem with being an SEO consultant: It’s always your fault. which inspired me to find the main thread of the paper. The key was to present the typical workflows of each of the teams involved in parallel, to highlight where they should coordinate their work, what inputs from SEO are most useful and when they should be given.
Another key point is to gain the trust and respect of the other professionals (IT department, in-house SEO, external development company, server management, etc.) in order to obtain their essential cooperation in the implementation of improvements. At the end of the day, they are not the enemy of the SEO consultant, but should be our allies to achieve the best possible results for those who feed us both: the client.
The presentation is based on the work of SEO consulting in three scenarios: development of a new website, website migrations (to a new domain, to a new website, to a new content manageretc.) and optimization of an already published Web site. I believe that the presentation is sufficiently explicit and it only remains for me to add that it is the germ of a couple of chapters in a new book on positioning which I am already writing and which will be published in a few months.
