Comments on: The Bootstrapper’s Guide to SEO Consulting

By: Dustin

Dustin — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 02:14:23 +0000

Thanks for writing. I’m 3-months into being a freelance SEO after a decade of working in-house for large sites. It’s a bit scary, but very freeing. Enjoying it thus far.
.-= Dustin recently posted: New Seattle SEO Consultant On The Block =-.

By: m a r c o

m a r c o — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 15:25:30 +0000

Awesome post. I am in a similar boat. I’m a web designer who was “pushed” over the cliff… Unlike you I haven’t seen many opportunities for employment (here in South Florida employers want to hire a designer that can do SEO and programming, and pay as a junior designer). I am determined to make it work, and am pretty confident that I will. Like you mention in your post, I have partnered with 2 other guys that used to work with me and are on the same boat: an SEO guy, and a web developer / webmaster. I’m working harder than ever (in my pajamas), and luckily have been able to pick up some clients…

Thank you for all the tools you recommend, I will definitely check them out.

By: Bonnie

Bonnie — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 12:22:37 +0000

Some good ideas Mike. I started typing theses and insurance forms about 20 years ago and I have a small document management service now and database programming consultancy. I’ve kept busy all these years even though I always worried that I would have to go out and get a job one day. Hang in there – when you are good at what you do, you generally succeed.

Your Juju says I have bad feed errors but I get your blog email regularly?

By: Gary SEO

Gary SEO — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 05:41:01 +0000

Having recently been pushed off that cliff, your post really comes in handy and provides some great insight. The operations aspects of going it alone can be more daunting then the actual work. I figure to be successful I need to be very efficient with my processes and time especially since I would be wearing so many more hats. You certainly confirmed that and provided some resources I was not familiar with to help handle them..thanks!

By: Chris Kennedy

Chris Kennedy — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 02:24:21 +0000

My friend is a bootstrapping SEO starter. He has quite a ways to go. I’ll share this guide with him, because it is very hard to get started, but that’s the name of the bootstrapping game thanks.

By: MikeTek

MikeTek — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 23:53:23 +0000

In reply to Site Optimizer Mike.

@Mike Look around at 99designs.com – a lot of the active designers there are quite reliable and fast (they’re used to churning out high-quality work consistently). And you get to check out their stuff first.
.-= MikeTek recently posted: How to Demonstrate the Value of SEO to Clients & Managers =-.

By: Tushin

Tushin — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 18:38:13 +0000

Great article. Just went through a similar experience post layoff. Shrugged off some offers and went it on my own. The part about charging groceries, etc. was dead on. There is light at the end of the tunnel…just have to take the plunge. Whether chosen or forced. Thanks for the great resources, also.

By: HighPoint SEO

HighPoint SEO — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 18:24:03 +0000

Love this post. Our situation was similar to yours in timing (started Oct 2008) and the fact that we jumped in head first, without any guarantees of success.

Fortunately we had some great clients that helped us to showcase our work, and the referral business kept us growing.

I’m also extremely pleased that we’ve been able to grow our business without spending $1 on outbound marketing. We’re a true example of how SEO can be the foundation for a successful business.

I think all of your tips on automation and partnering are right on. The automation side of things has been the most crucial step in our plans to scale our growth, and the partnering has been the best way to handle requests that are outside of our core knowledge set. Expandable workforce is the way to go – stay lean and use JIT principles for production needs.

Cheers to anyone who has the cajones to start a new SEO business and stick it out to the end. Wishing you the best in your efforts!
.-= HighPoint SEO recently posted: HighPoint SEO is Under Construction =-.

By: Site Optimizer Mike

Site Optimizer Mike — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 15:38:36 +0000

Great post. I’ve been in the same situation for a couple of years also on the PPC and Optimization side, working freelance for a bunch of companies, and use almost all the apps you mentioned above.

The most difficult thing for me has been finding those partners, getting designers who are reliable for instance has been a major headache. Any tips on this side?