With the meteoric rise in internet culture and the opportunities for online markets, new opportunities for online-focused marketing agencies. Amongst these are SEO marketing agencies. These are designed to help businesses improve their online visibility. This is achieved through a variety of aspects.
Beyond classic things, like design, they work to make sure that search engines, like Google, recognise your website as being the ‘most relevant’. This involves things like using certain key phrases and formatting that the search engine likes to prioritise when displaying search results.
SEO marketing agencies provide are an exciting prospect for burgeoning entrepreneurs looking to spearhead the future of marketing. But, like with any business, where to start with forming your business can be confusing. Here’s a quick guide on how to get your SEO marketing agency up and running.
1. Register your SEO business
For your business to operate in Australia, you will need to register an Australian Business Number (ABN). This is used by the government for identifying your company for tax purposes amongst other important things.
Likewise, since you’re delving into SEO, you’ll obviously want a business/company name to help stand out. Registering it as a trademark is easier than ever and will help ensure your company is protected from copycats.
2. Company structure
Generally, businesses are structured as sole traders, partnership or as a company. Each has its own pros and cons, namely, to do with the way debt, profits and tax are handled. Deciding on your business structure will be particularly important given that an SEO marketing agency has the potential to be run from anywhere.
Is this your business to be run from home, or are you planning on renting offices with multiple employees?
While an agency might imply a load of staff, it is possible to run one yourself! Just be careful not to get overwhelmed by taking on too much work.
3. Contracts
Contracts are a part of any business. While they may seem overwhelming, they are vital to make sure that all bases are covered legally. You will need contracts for your clients to set out your terms. You will also need contracts for your employees and business partners. Having the right document ensures that everything is in writing so that no one can double back on promises and ensure that the business runs smoothly.
4. SEO tools
While an SEO marketing agency can do an eye test on most sites to determine their optimisation, in-depth SEO programs are necessary to be competitive. These not only analyse most sites and provide immediate feedback on the SEO score, but they allow the tracking of your agency’s success in optimising the site over time.
A variety of programs exist for you to suggest to your clients, each with their own pros and cons. To access most, you will likely need to license them from a software provider.
On your end, it’s important that you tailor these decisions to what your client needs. This will then make your job easier in the long run when implementing your own strategies to the site.
Likewise, research is important. Search engines are consistently updating how they optimise results. You will need to be as up to date as possible with these changes. For example, YouTube has a self-learning algorithm in place to prioritise search results. Recognising what it wants and how to optimise for it takes analysis and research rather than a simple formula.
5. Employees
As with any online-focused company, you’ll need a variety of skills to create a successful SEO marketing agency. Whether this is just you, or a team of people, you’ll need backgrounds in marketing, analytics and coding. SEO involves not only campaigns but working closely on the backends of company websites to optimise them for their particular platform.
Conclusion
Ultimately, the opportunities within SEO marketing are growing year-over-year. As even the most old-fashioned companies move to online platforms, the resource of search results is becoming ever more valuable. If you’re passionate about online marketing and helping businesses grow, then this could be the right venture for you. If you have further questions about starting a business, it may be worth contacting a business lawyer.
