Written by Steven Brough on March 11th, 2010

Outsourcing Services: Search Engine Optimization and Link Building

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Search engine optimization (SEO) is a marketing technique used by businesses to either (i) encourage a greater number of ‘hits’, or (ii) to filter through relevant internet traffic, i.e. potential customers. Search engines operate by examining websites to find the most relevant pages. By optimizing a website with generous references to keywords, a business will be able to ensure its website appears further up search engine lists. This generates a greater volume of traffic leading to more sales and / or advertising revenues.

One way of generating such advertising revenue is through link building. The principle is that a person reading an article on a specific subject will be a good target market for related products and services. So an article about improving your golf swing might contain links through to stores selling golfing equipment. The website’s owner receives either a small income based on the number of clicks through to a particular website or a commission if a product is sold to a customer ‘introduced’ via their website. Services such as web outsourcing and programs like Google Adsense have made this very easy to do, so that the idea is used by companies and bloggers alike.

On the face of it, SEO is a cheap form of marketing but needs considerable project planning to implement effectively. Most established businesses will have subject specific literature which can easily be uploaded to their website. However, as more and more businesses embrace this form of marketing the fight to the top of the search engine results has become much more intense. Because of this demand a market has developed for competent authors who are able to write thoughtfully and intelligently on a variety of subjects, scattering their articles liberally with targeted keywords and phrases.

These freelance writers provide their outsourcing services online. Providers advertise jobs through freelancing websites. Job descriptions usually contain details such as the length and number of articles required, keywords, budget and timescale. Using this information, writers quote and the job is delegated to the preferred candidate.

When businesses and freelance writers engage in this way, communication is often electronic only. One of the roles of freelancing websites like ScriptLance, Freelancer~GAF, RentACoder and Elance is to provide a platform to assist providers and writers to forge successful relationships. Outsource service providers can therefore display details of their abilities, provide their education and experience and even sit specially formulated tests. However, there is rarely any proper substitute for actual performance and so most freelancing websites allow providers and writers to rate one another once a particular assignment has been completed.

The rating system is probably the most frequently used indicator in forming business relationships with outsource services and it operates in a similar way to the one used by eBay. Parties are able to rate each other through a variety of different factors such as strength of communication, clarity of instructions, ability to work to deadlines, quality of work and promptness of payment. Over time, providers and writers accrue a rating which is displayed against their jobs or bids. Since past behavior is considered to be such a good indicator of future performance, parties are able to enter agreements with a certain confidence and expectation when it comes to web outsourcing.