Outsource Search Engine Optimization

Should you outsource search engine optimization for your business or keep it in-house? It’s the age-old question. Like any other marketing decision your company might make, both methods of SEO have advantages and disadvantages. Truly, it depends on the type of SEO experience your business is looking for.

Of course, if you’re not looking to direct more organic traffic to your website, you are missing out on a host of opportunities. It’s important for your business and website to have a solid SEO strategy whether you decide to outsource the work or do it in-house. Read on for more information about the positives and negatives of outsourcing search engine optimization and ways your business can profit from the practice.

type-writer-with-a-page-sticking-out-of-it-that-reads-co-working

What is Search Engine Optimization?

Search engine optimization, or SEO for short, is the process of making your website more visible within a browser’s search results. People are more likely to click a link that appears at the top of the page when they enter a search. Because of this, the sites that browsers choose to showcase at the top gain more visitors. If you’re running a business, these visitors can be converted to customers. So, more visitors equals more customers equals more profit.

What Does it Mean to Outsource SEO Services?

To outsource search engine optimization services means to hire an agency, like SEO Design, or some other contractor to manage your website’s SEO. This means that the agency or contractor works with your company to conduct on-page and off-page SEO. On-page SEO is the process of getting an individual web page to rank higher on search engines. Off-page SEO is the promotion of your brand through other strategies like social media, reviews, or content marketing.

There are so many different services that each contractor or agency might offer. At SEO Design Chicago, for instance, we offer a wide range of digital marketing services to our clients. These services encompass anything from website design to link building to content marketing.

Advantages of Outsourcing Search Engine Optimization

In many instances, choosing to outsource search engine optimization can be a better option for businesses. To understand why this is and see if outsourcing is right for your company, you need to know the advantages.

First, when you outsource SEO services for your business, you can expect the changes made to be of a certain professional quality. If you hire someone to work in-house for your team, you risk losing the quality of the services an agency could provide. Agencies, generally speaking, want to keep your business in the long term and have teams of specialists ready to study and fix the weaknesses in your SEO.

Another point to be made about agencies and contractors is that they tend to be more affordable than hosting an in-house SEO specialist. After crunching the numbers, it tends to be more economical to outsource search engine optimization. When you hire someone to do SEO for your team, that’s a whole new salary your company has to pay for. Agencies have content creators, graphic designers, and auditors at their fingertips. If you choose to hire in-house, you’re likely getting a smaller skill set for a higher price. Most places you outsource to will be able to work faster because they have more people at work.

man-wearing-a-suit-opens-a-newspaper-that-reads-business-on-the-title-page

Disadvantages of SEO Outsourcing

While there are plenty of advantages when you choose to outsource search engine optimization, there are also going to be some disadvantages. While hiring in-house SEO is still the more expensive option, investing in any type of SEO service for your business can prove to be pretty pricey. A lot of the time, it takes months to see the results of search engine optimization on your website. Search engine optimization services tend to be a long-term investment, so it’s not completely ideal for startups looking to grow online.

Additionally, just as an advantage of outsourcing is receiving quality content, you can sometimes run into agencies that produce low-quality work. This is more of a vetting problem than anything. It’s incredibly important to vet the agency or contractor you intend to work with so that you know what you’re getting into. Research the agency, read reviews, make sure it’s reputable before giving them your money.

Definition of In-House SEO

Instead of outsourcing search engine optimization, some companies decide to hire internal staff to run their SEO strategy. There can be a sole SEO specialist within your business or an entire marketing team. Let’s see why companies might prefer in-house SEO to outsourced SEO.

Advantages of In-House Search Engine Optimization

The biggest single advantage of hosting an internal team or specialist for SEO is their relationship to your company. Agencies will get the job done because they want to keep your business in the long term. By outsourcing SEO, your business risks being misunderstood by the agency. Sometimes an agency can bring more organic traffic to your page but this traffic doesn’t turn to revenue.

In-house staff will ultimately be more knowledgeable than outsourced staff about your business and its goals. These employees can form a stronger bond with internal content creators and web designers to create a more fluid product. Essentially, if you have very specific SEO ideas and an unlimited budget, hiring a team of in-house SEO specialists could be the right decision for you.

two-people-strategizing-while-writing-on-a-whiteboard

Disadvantages of In-House Search Engine Optimization

While in-house SEO can seem like an easy way of getting exactly what you want, it doesn’t always turn out that way. There are some major drawbacks to having your own internal SEO team. Make sure to vet potential employees so that your business doesn’t run into the following problems later on down the road.

One of the problems that companies encounter with in-house services is a lack of SEO knowledge by employees. If you, as a business owner, don’t understand much about search engine optimization, then it’s likely that you shouldn’t carry out an SEO campaign on your own. Lack of expertise in the subject can lead to you actively harming your SEO strategy. Because of this, you could waste money and time, setting yourself further back than where you started.

Additionally, in-house SEO employees need to be held accountable. If you don’t have enough people working for you, some of your ideas will be pushed to the side. Search engine optimization encompasses a whole range of on-page and off-page factors that need to be attended to by professionals. If there are not enough hands or enough time, you will likely fall down on the job.

Should You Outsource Search Engine Optimization for Your Company?

Determining which choice is right for you relies on a variety of different factors. Here, we’ll list three facets of your business that might influence your judgment. Mostly, it has to do with money and control.

The first facet that might influence your choice is your budget. Of course, if you are looking to grow your business, this is likely to come before all of your other preferences. You don’t just want to throw around your money without knowing exactly what you’ll get out of it. If your biggest concern is the budget, then you are probably better off outsourcing your search engine optimization.

The second facet that might impact your decision is the knowledge your team has about SEO and marketing strategies. If you don’t have the know-how within your internal team, chances are you’ll waste time making mistakes. In this case, you’ll also probably want to pair your business with an SEO agency.

The third and final face that could affect your choice is how many people you have working for you and their goals. If you are already understaffed and struggling, adding SEO responsibilities onto your team members is not likely to do your company any good. It’s easy for SEO to become a daunting task if you aren’t familiar with best practices. When you add that on top of all of your other responsibilities as a company, it can be too much work. This is especially true when your business sets high-reaching goals.

a-coffee-cup-sits-on-a-table-next-to-a-book-titled-knowledge

Outsourcing SEO vs. In-House SEO

Really, the entire debate comes down to your preferences when it comes to budget and control. If you have a higher budget, your options are more fruitful. Sometimes, even if they already have an internal team, businesses decide to outsource certain aspects of SEO to agencies and contractors. The higher your budget, the more you’ll be able to control your project and outcomes.

If you have a smaller budget, you’re more limited in your options. Both in-house and outsourced SEO can take a big chunk of change from your pocket. Weighing your options by considering your expertise level can help you make the decision to hire in-house or outsource to an agency.

Whatever you’re thinking for your business, take some time to look over the services we provide here at SEO Design Chicago. We can help your business boost its visibility through on-page and off-page SEO efforts and campaigns. Don’t hesitate to contact us with any inquiries about search engine optimization.

FAQs:

  • Should my business outsource SEO?
  • What is SEO?
  • Advantages of outsourcing SEO?
  • What is in-house SEO?
  • Should I choose in-house or outsourced SEO?

Contact Us Today!


Call Now