Guarantees are great. The problem is that, in the SEO world, they’re an illusion. Here are just a couple of reasons why they are and why you should run the other way when offered one.

Everybody loves a guarantee. Businesses are often built on one. How many ads do you see on television where the guy, usually screaming at the screen like he won the lottery, throws in the word ‘Guaranteed’ every few seconds? Why do they do it? Because it sells.

Guarantees are great. Often they’re the mark of a business that truly backs up what they say. Unfortunately, that’s not something you can go by 100% of the time. If you don’t believe me, wade into the murky world of unethical SEOs. What is one of their strongest come-ons? An SEO Guarantee. Here’s how it usually goes.

The Google 1st Page Come-On

"You’ll be on the 1st page of Google in 1 Month! Guaranteed!" And they do back it up. The catch: not all Google pages are created equal, including the 1st pages. The trick to it is simple. They select a keyphrase that is very specific to fit you. Something like "[Your Business Name] Widgets". So, for example, if your company is Acme and you supply magicians, they might get you to #1 for ‘Acme Magic Wands’.

Ladies and Gentlemen, if you’re not on the 1st page of Google for your own business name, you either have a very generic name [like Best Hammers] or you have big, big problems with your search engine friendliness. Google automatically ranks you toward the top for your own business name. There’s no skill needed.

Method #2 – The Industry Keyphrase That’s Never Used

Another trick used is to rank you for a keyphrase that sounds good, but no one uses when searching. Because it’s a keyphrase that produces no traffic, nobody is targeting it, so it’s an easy place to rank.

As an example, the above company might get to the 1st page for ‘Left-Handed Hammers’. Big deal. You’ll never see a profit from that keyphrase. But your SEO company will because the got you to the 1st page of Google for it – just as they promised.

Don’t confuse rankings with profitability.

Anyone guaranteeing rankings is either very inexperienced or they’re not thinking of your best interests. Just their own. Ranking in Google for competitive markets is difficult. It takes time and effort.

Don’t be fooled by SEO guarantees – it’s one more instance of something that sounds too good to be true. And what do they say about those things? It’s good advice, especially in the world of search engines and online marketing.