Coweta Fayette Real Estate & Newnan Homes for sale blog by Richard Weisser of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers

Richard, I agree, it's scary how many of those scams are out there. It's also sad that we have to be so careful these days...

We get solicitations like everybody else in our industry. Some callers try proving how quickly a page will come up in a search by giving us keywords that "NOBODY" would ever punch-in when searching for homes in our area, like maybe "house" and "firehydrant," or whatever. What a pain. I usually tell them that we're getting out of the business and moving to a foreign country when they won't take "no" for an answer.

I agree. Everyone should do their research and their due diligence. Any company who creates roadblocks in your search should be automatically disqualified as a contender for your business.

These days? We've always had to be careful; there have been "snake oil salesmen" selling "wonder elixers" since the old days of migrating peddlers. It's actually safer now since we have the internet to check people out.

You are right Richard. Calls, emails from folks assuming you are on page 90 and I think your average AR posters do a pretty good job with what we learn here.

LOL re: page 90...someone called me once to "warn me" that no buyers would find me because I ranked on page (not 90 but it was far back) for "Albuquerque Real Estate".  I was like...I'm surprised I rank at all for ABQ, since I'm in northeast PA.....LOL.  (I got ranked because I'm on an ABQ agent's blogroll.  lol)

Kristen...

We really do! Thanks for the comment.

Mark...

I hate to hear the words "are you near a computer!" THX

Lisa...

That was very well stated. Thanks for jumping in!

Karen Rice is funny.  And, Karen Rice is right.  Snake oil peddlers have been with us forever.

It seems like if they were on the first page of Google, they would be shouting it from the rooftops, not hiding their name.

Smells like a scam.

Richard,

I do the same thing when they call. I google SEO search terms and tell them the results. They never quite know what to say.

One of them told me that SEO terms are very competitive. Like real estate isn't.

Rich

I would respond by asking them if they would like you to help them!  Of course then they really have your email and they will rack up the spam.  Oh well, recycle bin!

Real estate, mortgage, Web hosting/SEO -- these are some of the toughest areas on the web! 

If you can make the 1st page for <your city real estate> and other similar terms using your qualifier, you're in great shape.  Most SEO pros just want to take our money!

LOL I like the excuse about telling them we're getting out of the business and moving out of the country! Too funny - might try it.

Richard...I am meeting with one of the scam companies I blogged about.  Not going to sign, but I am sure going to work the info out of him.  He had better be ready for the grill, cause the fire is hot.

Richard,

When their emails arrive: (Outlook) click ACTION, click JUNK EMAIL, click To BLOCKED SENDER LIST. When their phone call arrives they get lucky because my attention span with them is tripled to 6.5 seconds. "Oh yes I got your email and am planning to Google you. I'm sure to find you and write some business, click."

 Bill

I shake my head at the thought of people spending hundreds or even thousands for crappy SEO service. I'm sure there are plenty of "spammers/scammers"

WOW, you know I use an SEO company... but they didn't find me... I got a referral from someone using them and called them.  I've had great results and the price is very affordable.  BUT I just went and tried to find them via a Google search and no luck.  Now I'm wondering.

LOL. I got a stupid phone call this weekend from one of those companies that promised to get me on page 1 of a Google search. Only she didn't even realize that what she thought was my home page was in fact a deep link in my site. She had found a page I created for the city of Port Orange, when in fact, my home page is for Daytona Beach. I just happen to have another domain name pointed at that page. But I don't even have the DNS info changed! The domain is just pointed there. Can you say "DUH!?"  >.<

I'm laughing out loud at that one. 

I'm thinking that many of them must be going out of business or my name is on their "don't waste your time" list.

I'm getting fewer and fewer cold calls from them and no e-mail. 

Thank goodness.

This should be a teaching moment for all real estate folks who have a web site.  I've looked at many when searching for referral agents only to be unable to find a phone number or e-mail content until an interior page. 

How can you benefit from a web site if folks can't contact you???

Thank you to ActiveRain for making me free of those SEO vendors...Who need them when you have AR on your side...

I laugh at the ones who say their company has a special relatioinship with Google and Yahoo that allows them to put any page on the top of the first page of results.  All they do is have an Adwords account just like anyone else in the world can have.  Anyone can buy their way onto the first page. 

I'm so tired of these SEO companies, I don't even take the time to call them on their bluffs anymore.

I think the SEO companies are falling by the wayside..fewer and fewer of them are in business compared to just a couple of years ago.  I agree with you - if you can do what you say, then prove it.   Back up your words with reliable information and references.

What's sad is there are people out there that take the bait and run.  And some of those people are our friends.  Thanks for the info.

Research shows that 75%+ of the clicks in Google go the top 5 organic links and top 2 paid links.  It's not enough to be on the first page really.

Richard, what usually happens to e-mails like that is that they end up in the junk mail folder, where they get permanently banned from my in-box. Simple solution to a pesky problem.

What is suprising is that many believe the hype, and will invest in these promotions, What is the missing ingredient is that even if you get to be on page one that does not mean you are assured to get a ton of business.

Hi Richard, they are just hoping to reach at least one person that will fall for it. It's a red flag when you can't find them on Google because these days, you can find anything and anyone most times.

Richard:

Yes, that phrase, "Are you near a computer?" usually means you are going to have a huge hunk of your time consumed by someone trying to sell you their service. And, the fees charged are often out of proportion with reality.  We need to very careful about these types of companies.

LOL, here is the good news, Richard and all of you; SEO is dying: any minute now, it will be the value of your site and whether people stay there and are satisfied with the content that will dictate rankings.

Oh yea, why should you belive me, HMMM?  Proof:  It is at the bottom of my profile here at Activerain.  Richard is correct, do not buy from anyone who cannot prove it.  Just type 'interntet advertising consultant' into Google, there are about 19,000,000 of them. ;-)

Richard, I think these people troll Active Rain.  I got the very same email this morning.  Kind of makes you wonder, huh?

Hopefully these types of SEO scams / shady business practices will be gone soon enough. Unfortunately I think there will be another internet scam right behind it.

So many fall for it, they prey on the weak.

Talk is cheap - I'd like to see an offer where they didn't aske to be paid until results were achieved - just like WE work!

Alot of people pay for SEO but no-one is going to care more about your website than you. You can do almost all the SEO methods yourself. Yeah, it takes time and results don't happen overnight. But, you will get quite an education along the way.

I have received plenty of those calls and emails lately, due to creating a new website.  Like you I ask them to prove, and they quickly get off my phone.

I really hate the paid placement companies that promise to get us on page one. It is always presented as if it is something completely new and exclusive, when we bring up the fact that we do our own SEO in house and are doing very well with it they get all huffy. 

I really hate the paid placement companies that promise to get us on page one. It is always presented as if it is something completely new and exclusive, when we bring up the fact that we do our own SEO in house and are doing very well with it they get all huffy. 

I have received several phone calls lately. They won't let me off the phone and they pressure to respond now, won't give me contact info to follow up later, saying that if I don't give them an answer, they have to call the next person because they are only providing one spot. Pretty insulting in my mind that they think agents who handle legal contracts everyday would fall for this - very low.

Those emails obviously work. Otherwise they would quit sending them. It's just like the lottery winning emails from England and the multimillionnaire relative's death in Nigeria. Few people, especially those will scams, keep doing things that don't get results.

There are some legitimate SEO vendors.  I have talked with realtors who swear by them.  They get their business however by referral.  They do not need to spam realtors.  In fact the best of these companies limit how many people they work with in an area because they want to be able to gaurantee their leads.

Richard,

I think everyone who owns a URL gets that spam.

They do not have to provide proof if they send out enough emails.

The banished princes who need our help to recover their $20,000,000 in frozen funds have proven that if you send enough spam someone will respond!

SEO companies are some of the biggest scams out there.  I had a client who had hired someone to do SEO on his site, and he called me to see what I thought of their price.

In less than ten minutes, I discovered: The company had been in business for 6 weeks.  THEIR own website was on page one of Google as a "pay per click" ad - they couldn't even rank their own website!  They had no satisfied clients that they could refer to as customers.  It was easy to figure that one out!

1)  Check and see if THEIR website appears in a high ranking spot for a legitimate search search term (a term that people would actually search for, not something esoteric and NOT the name of their company - that's an easy one to accomplish!).  If they can't do the same thing for themselves, why would you expect anything more for your business?

2)  Ask for specific names of clients.  Google that client and see if THEY come up ranking well for realistic search terms for their industry.  Call that client and see what their actual experience has been. Again, searching for the company name or some bizarre, esoteric search term ("Tenby Street condo for sale") is not what you want - anyone can make that happen without much effort. 

3)  See how long this company has been in business.  (Check the WHOIS on their domain name).

Most importantly, understand that Google is the #1 search engine, and is undergoing some MAJOR algorithm changes this year in regards to how sites are ranked, including personalized search (everyone sees DIFFERENT search results based on their own personal search history), analyzing page loading times, real time search (utilizing social media sites), and much more that will affect how YOUR site gets ranked.  Not to mention that more and more people are getting their information thru social media sites instead of through traditional search.  

Google's MAIN objective is to foil any type of manipulation of search results - most especially from SEO companies.  SEO companies (an increasingly "social media guru companies) are fast becoming the snake oil salesman of the internet.

Be careful. 

You only recieved one of those emails?  And the guy couln't provide any metrics for what he was cliaming?  NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!  Tell me it's not soooooooo!  LOL :-)

I love the ones who call me everday of the week asking if I want to be on page 1 of Google for my search terms. I already am on page 1 for almost 10 terms. Do your homework before you call me...as for the spam seo, I get a lot of that too and just put them on "iggy"...lol

Good research, Richard!  I find it hard to "buy" into the claims of most companies.  I think we need to watch every marketing dollar and only use proven companies.

Most SEO companies are hurting pretty bad right now along with a lot of real estate companies but there sales pitches haven't changed for a long time...

Hey, People!,

Sit back and ask yourself, why am I the special person selected for this? I sit and marvel at all the former tremendously successful people that out of the goodness of their heart are going to help me. Afterall they made sooo much money in their career they just want to help others. Pardon me if I sound like a skeptic...

When you are fishing the bait is important...Looks like they were looking for a less experienced fish!

Richard:  A very good point.  They want to improve your SEO, but have not even done so for themselves.  So sad.

Richard - I got a call while driving to an appointment. This guy wanted me to give out my credit card # over the phone. I told him I was Driving (bluetooth through the stereo). This guy wanted me to pull over because the offer was only good for that instant else he would go on to the next "deserving agent"  He found me on Active Rain just like many others. Must be an easy site to troll

So scary out there!  With any kind of online "shopping", whether it be for goods or services, personal or business, if the company name and contact number is not listed, I run fast!

I am so happy to hear they are dying off! I was one of the weak gullible ones that was pretty easy to take advantage of. Steep learning curve.

Active Rain was where I learned everything about SEO's and I am having so much success I can't believe it! Not just page rank, but actual calls turning into sales!

YAY Active Rain !

I wish I had a nickel for every Google pitch I have received. I would be retired by now.

I had a  funny call the other day. First, I had a long distance call on my voicemail saying there was something wrong with the link to my website. When I called back (I was alredy suspicious) he was trying to sell me "search engine placement", stating it was different from SEO in that it was cheaper and more effective. After hearing him ramble on about how important it was for my business, I quickly Googled  "search engine placement" and found that the company he was representing was no where to be found! When I aked him why HIS company wasn't on the first page of Google, he stammered and said, "That's not how we get our clients".  I respondd by saying, "And I don't get mine that way either", and hung up.

Believe it or not, he still tried to call me back to make the sale, saying he has never been asked that in all his years of doing this. At least he tried to save face.

The Moral: NEVER buy anything over the phone unless you reearch it first. Just because we are salespeople, we are not immune.

Richard- I love to tell them: when you can get me higher than the #1 spot on Page one on Google for the keywords that I have researched I will pay you all day long, LOL! Then I say- perhaps you would be interested in me doing an SEO webinar for your company and train you how to really do SEO:) I love to switch up the sales approach back on them:) 

I coach agents to ask questions- What agents are currently using your system and how is it working for them, then talk to those agents. Whenever any agent wants me to coach them, I always tell them to first talk to those I am coaching or have coached. That way they can find out if we are a match. When people read about what they should be doing in their marketing- always ask the writer- how is that working for you? Katerina

I always ask "#1 on Google for What?" Shoot - I can make you #1 for underwater barbecuing but how will that help your business?

Scammers!  I love screwing with them when I get them on the phone.  I have called a few internet ads or post and it so funny how they are like we just need your credit card and we can get the product right out or some other dumb comment.  It feels good to unload on someone like this after all the crap we put up with.  Try it sometime!  LOL!!

If I'm in a mood - I will play with them and get their company information and then I start doing searches for them under the key words I think where I should find the company. Some try to insist I use only the words they give me and I mix them up just a little and tell the solicitor what came up using a different search engine. But, most of the time I hang up and block their number. Email always gets reported as spam.

These emails (or phonecalls) are the Real Estate equivalent of the Nigerian Letter aren't they?

I made it a practice never to pay for SEO.  Doing what you are doing here will take care of it for you.

There are so many scams, it's just irritating.  It's almost to the point where the legitimate ones fall victim to be grouped as spam. 

Richard - I love it when a firm says they will get me on the main page of Google with their SEO techniques because so many times they are blasting that same email to every agent in my market.  

That is funny. I wonder if it was an oversight or just a scam. If their services were that good and effective, they wouldn't need to find clients via the phone. Wouldn't their clients find them via the internet?

It's a spray and pray campaign.   Send as many spam emails as possible and there are probably going to be at least a couple of people who respond and work with the company.

Hello Richar,

We can't be too careful these days. There is spam everywhere. I rarely fall prey to these kinds of things....but there are those that do, unfortunately. 

Patricia/Seacoast NH

SEO shenanigans. They are probably buying sponsored links for a single, obscure term and making a profit on the pay per click differential. I've spent my last dime on these places- I do far better on my own. 

How about this one?  I got one of these unsolicited pitched via email through a website I have for another business I own.  Same thing, will put my website on the first page of google.  Goofy thing is, if they actually punched in my website, they would have seen it is already on the first page of google, the first listing in fact.  Clearly, like junk mail, my address is just on a list that is getting blasted by internet marketers.

About 18 months ago I got taken by MagicYellow.com

Fortunately I managed to recover my $450 investment, but I learned a good lesson.

Stay away for theses SEO businesses!

These companies keep trying but will not get my business.  I believe the only way these folks know our contact info is to FIND us on Google.

Once again, the power of networking.  We all know somebody who knows somebody.  We don't need to take a chance on random emails.

Don't you just love it when these same SEO companies call you from a blocked number? My thought is that if you want to do business with me, at least announce yourself right away.

Great job with this post Richard. Congrats on the feature! 

Richard my thoughts are if you are making so much money then why you want to sell the secret to me.  Their must be some gullible people that fall for it.

i feel the same way about lead generation companies....i pay them a fee and get a guaranteed live person with a phone and email...YEP the are "alive" but not interested in buying anything, 'cept maybe another six pack and some smokes....

But i had to pay for that lead...because the contract states we guarantee u a phone number  and email...screwed again

I also have had phone calls to be put on the first page. One time I actually sat at the computer as they did thier spiel and then told them to search our city for real estate and see if they can find me. They did find me at number 3 but they still did not give up. Now I just tell them I am on the first page. So annoying. But that makes me think of how to communicate with people I have never met before also.

Richard - Google actually frowns on those websites that employ the tactics used by these SEO companies. And, Google uses over 200 criteria for determining page rank.

What Google looks for primarily is relevant, fresh and localized content, content that is optimized for the keywords you choose, and linking from other sites.

You don't need the services of an SEO company. I found that the best way to get youself up in the top 10 for your relevant keywords is to blog effectively here on ActiveRain.

You're much better off developing SEO just by posting blogs here on ActiveRain.

SEO spam targeted at Realtors is on the rise. Spammers must get good ROI because most Realtors don't understand the web but they do want to use it to get leads. My site is on the first page (1st 10 results) of Google and I get a lot of these emails. And guess where they fiind me.. Thank God, we have smart filters in GoogleApps.

Richard, Too funny!  We actually got a mailer recently touting some great service or other, there was no phone number or email address.  My husband and I had a great chuckle over that one. 

My all time favorite is when these companies visit your website and tell you your meta-keyword tags need to be updated and by a simple update they can get you to show up #1 on Google.  Let's be honest:

1.  Google doesn't use the keywords meta-tag in their search algorithm.  They've said so themselves.

2.  I'm not sure about 2009 yet, but in 2008 Google mad over 450 changes to the way they index websites. 

Do you really think you can trick them by having certain keywords on your website?  The answer is no.  No you cant.  What you can do is write amazing content that actually is about the keywords you're trying to show up for and get quality link-backs from other people because the content is so amazing.  SEO is a science, and to do so effectively takes lots of time and committment to be effective.  Thanks for the post.

I had one guy call me and tell me he could get me to the top of Google for my name! What good does that do me in the first place?  And if he had bothered to look - I AM at the top of Google for my name. In fact there are several pages of Google devoted to me when you type in my name.  It helps that I have a strange name.  If I were "Mary Jones" it might be a different issue - but STILL - please get real folks.

I'm with Bob Haywood - I think they are trolling ActiveRain because since I have been posting more I am getting some of the weirdest emails ever.  Nice post, and great reminder to those out there who don't know....run! run! as fast as you can!

There are so many scams out there these days. I get calls too and I am usually very cautious.

You bet! And I always challenge all these folks that come by and say 'use us' because blah, blah, blah.  Well prove it!  OR I want a complete refund if my business doesn't increase by the 150% stated amount.  Never any answers & I've saved alot of money that way!

Hi Richard,  Way too many spammy emails asking us to buy a product or service.  The bad part is that the legit providers have to compete with this crap.  

Most of the SEO solicitations I get tell me they can get me on the first page of Google.  Duh!  They obviously haven't even tried searching the keywords in my title as I am already on the first page of Google!  Plus other keywords that I have optimized for. 

It's just a mass spam-mail and they don't check who you are or where you are.  I'm ready to press the spam button until I realize they used my contact form from the website.

Richard, At least they only email you---they CALL me constantly!  I'm glad you checked it out, I never did.

The pitch is sleazy.  Although I want my web site to be at the top I have also learned getting my blog to the top is more important.

Seems like I am getting more and more of these kinds of emails.  THere might be some legitmate ones but I delete them all.

Whenever someone claims to be an SEO expert, I always Google them as well - now, usually I actually HAVE the name of the company!!!  I haven't personally seen any of these but I'll be alert.

It is pretty amazing. I was handed an expensive "just listed" card a few days ago, and the agent forget to put their name or phone number on it. Who ya gonna call? . . . ghost agent, I guess.

I know....and it's so tough to know who to trust with SEO. It's very expensive and no guarantees even if the person you hire is fantastic. It can be your market which is tough. So how do you know what to do. I think it's almost better to figure it out yourself...and then do it. Ugh

When I get phone calls from these solicitors, it really throws them off when I tell them I already have more business than I can handle, but I'm sure a less experienced and less successful agent will appreciate their call.  And then I thank them for calling me.  When I get an email solicitation, I simply hit "delete". 

Richard:

Everyday, emails pour in and phone calls go on all day with companies trying to sell me something.  It is really hard to discern the trash from the actual good stuff.  Sometimes word of mouth is the only thing that can pique my interest anymore. 

Wendy

It is hard to imagine a better SEO enhancement than the one we are on right here. My father-in-law, a former Tucson broker, used to say "Money talks and BS walks!"  and spam is just the polite term for more BS!

I get tons of offers from companies that promise the world when it comes to SEO and I get the feeling that many of them don't know much more if they know as much as I do.

I actually had someone call me telling me that they could get me to the top of Google and the people they helped. I decided to call those people and not one had ever heard of them. When they called back, I called them on it and they hung up on me.

Hi Richard. I receive many phone calls asking me if I want their service. Looking them up... nice. ~ Lana

There are people more naive than I am and I worry because every day there are multiple scams.  One wrong click and your life can be upside down!

Richare, There are many people who will fall for a scam without so much as a second thought.