How to spot (and avoid!) these 3 SEO scams

How many scammy SEO calls have you gotten this WEEK?

We’ve been discussing SEO scams in our Market Your Wellness Biz Monthly Membership meetups…they’re annoying, yeah, but when you’re not totally sure if you’re doing SEO right, they’re also anxiety-inducing.

…Is the call really a scam?

…Or is it something you should pay attention to?

And ultimately, how do you know you have all your SEO bases covered?

In this week’s newsletter, we’re breaking down the top SEO scams so you can feel secure in your know-how and confidently delete that scammy, spammy voicemail or ignore those solicitous SEO emails.

 

1. Your Google listing is improperly verified

I’d been hearing about this spam call from our MYWB members for months before (lucky me!) I finally got one myself.

This SEO scam claims that your Google listing isn’t properly verified. And, for a fee, this company can solve the problem.

NOPE.

 

Your Google Business Profile (circled in red, above) is a free service (emphasis on FREE) provided by Google that allows you to officially list your business on the search engine.

It’s a good idea to set up your profile even if your business is fully digital. People are familiar with this listing…it provides easy access to your website (great for SEO) and business details, allows customers to leave reviews, and gives an “official” vibe to your practice.

It is fairly easy to verify your business yourself, and once verified, your listing shows up on Google…no other action is needed, despite what an SEO scammer might claim.

If you need help getting your business listed, click here to read through Google’s FAQs.

 

2. Your site requires a sitemap submission to Google

As with many scams, this one draws on a kernel of truth to trick you into thinking you need to pay out for a service.

But the reality is that 99% of practitioners don’t need to submit a sitemap to Google.

Is your site built on WordPress or Squarespace?

Congratulations, your sitemap has automatically been submitted!

If your site was a custom build, you MIGHT (maaaybe) need to submit a sitemap. So, how do you know for sure? 

 

Perform a quick site search to ensure your site is listed on Google by typing “site:yoursite.com” into the Google search bar.

For example, a site search for The LaFont Agency would look like this….site:thelafontagency.com

Does your site and all the pages on your site appear in this search?

If not, one solution (just one, and not even the primary solution) is to submit a sitemap to Google.

While submitting a sitemap isn’t particularly difficult, you might want to hire out to get the job done. But the most trustworthy agency is NOT the one spamming you with sitemap deals.

 

3. SEO upsell

You get your site built by an agency or web developer…everything looks good…you’re ready to rock your practice.

But then you get an email from the builder saying that, for an extra charge, they will optimize your site, a super important step to ensure it’s easily found on Google.

The only thing is that in all your time of planning the site, you’ve never had this discussion with the developer. The email comes out of nowhere. And now you’re scared your site will be lost on Google if you don’t pay up.

This might simply be a poor business practice. But most likely, it’s a scam.

There are agencies that offer SEO services (to be clear, our agency is NOT one of these…we teach you how to optimize your site yourself). But a reputable agency will discuss these options with you upfront as part of your web development or as a standalone service. They won’t spring an SEO offer on you at the end of your site build.

The reality is that optimizing a site takes a good bit of (worthwhile) time and energy. It requires specific content, appropriate backlinks, and some technical tweaks. Unless an agency is transparent about its SEO expertise and the exact steps it will take to optimize your site, don’t bite. Scammers prey on insecurity and lack of SEO knowledge to sell shady (and sometimes very expensive) services that are subpar or, in the worst cases, nonexistent.

 

Get more practical SEO knowledge at our next free webinar!

Our goal is to empower you to understand SEO and take the scary out of what can feel like an overwhelming topic.

Click here to join our free webinar for easy-to-implement SEO knowledge and get your site in front of tons of new patients!