Above your Gmail.com account, you may sometimes see the sponsorship adwords link related to your business or whatever the content in your gmail account. Since you’re probably interested or knee deep in search, you may get to see this ad which reads:

“SEO Firm Rip you Off? SEORipOff.com - Don’t let them get away with it. Let us know. Post your story today.”

I clicked through the link and the site looks like a nice version of a wordpress blog which only identifies the month of October 2007 as far as past reports. Nothing was filed.

The thoughts immediately go through my head…does someone file and then this site follows up and asks if they can be MUCH better or MORE ethical than the supposed “fraud” that this site claims may have victimized someone. Well, the site ranks #1 for the keywords “seo rip off.” These guys are getting business from people trying to filter out the “bad consultants” out there promoting SEO or somewhere to report or support a bad experience.

The #2 (or #3 result as seen today) is an SEO consultant based in NY who is creating his business via publishing on Associated Content. See below**

The second result today was another article as well identifying the proper steps in avoiding a bad SEO or doing the due diligence required to secure the proper internet marketing services.

Regardless, you can see this appears to be a method of securing business for some new SEO’s themselves.

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**You can see this guy isn’t doing it for the benefit of everyone, but rather just himself in getting himself called after someone reads his article:

Here’s what’s written in the About page:

I have decide to write this article as a result of numerous emails. It seems more and more people are falling victim to bad SEO. The main complaint is that they are paying entirely too much for little or no results. Additionally, many fall prey to bad SEO practices. If you plan to hire an SEO pro in the future, I suggest you use this article as a set of guidelines. Before going with any SEO firm or individual, do the following: A) Find out how established and experienced an SEO firm is before you negotiate. Do they have a sizeable client list under their belt? Are they published? B) Scrutinize their portfolio. What kind of results have they achieved? Contact a few of their clients. Were they satisfied with the work performed? C) Consider and confirm their methods. How will they optimize your site to reach your keywords? Do they use organic methods? Some individuals or companies use doorway pages, hide text in the background, utilize re-directs and other blacklisted methods. Stay away from these. D) Get a least three proposals from different SEO firms. Look at each one carefully. Are there similarities? Proposals will help you see which companies are honest and which are trying to sell you something you don’t need. What is the cost? The cheapest isn’t always the best, however, the highest price may not be attached to a comprehensive and viable course of action. Try to find find an individual or organization that will give you what you want within your SEO budget. E) Contract, Contract, Contract. Get everything in writing. Look over the document carefully. Be sure it covers everything you have discussed, including methods of achieving your desired results. Have the copies signed by both parties. If the job is a large one you may want to consult a lawyer. F) Clearly state the terms of payment. While most SEO firms will not do any work for free or agree to a results based pay scale, many competant SEO professionals will not shy away from a base plus performance incentive package. I am not a firm believer in prepaid contracts.. Most SEO professionals will abide by the 50% up front, 50% upon completion standard. Make sure all financial terms are as clearly defined in your contract as the actual scope of work. This will protect all parties involved in the event that expectations are not met. All in all, try to do your best to educate yourself on SEO. Have a basic understanding of SEO terminology and SEO methodology. Anyone offering SEO services should not have a problem explaining how they intend to get you results. If they fail gain your confidence or raise a red flag for any reason whatsoever, keep searching. You will eventually find someone who will help you reach your goals for a fair price. Happy hunting. To read more articles on SEO read Joe’s blog http://mr-seo.blogspot.com. His SEO services can be found at http://www.mr-seo.com.

http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/3955/the_seo_ripoff.html