
I decided to start a Search Engine Optimisation company, but with a big difference, I am only interested in staying small and in promoting websites which are about Whitby in North Yorkshire, England. Usually SEO companies being Internet-based are happy to work with customers from any part of the world, but I decided not to go down that route for very definite reasons.
Firstly, having been in business all my life I realised that quite often people feel more confident if they know they can meet the person they’re dealing with in the flesh and can see eye to eye. There's always more confidence when you can read body language.
So even though usually Internet companies are quick to point out they can work globally, my clientele base will only be for little old Whitby town.
Secondly, being a one-man band Search Engine Optimisation Company means that I do not have copious amounts of free time which I can lavish on numerous customers. I have undertaken some successful Search Engine Optimisation campaigns for myself and other people. This has led me to the conclusion that it really helps if you like the subject you're dealing with and also have some personal knowledge which, if I focus on Whitby, will be a big fat yes to both of the above counts. I know Whitby town extremely well because I have an old cottage there, love the place, and also still find it a pleasure to work for any businesses which require my skills.
I also own a holiday cottage in the town, I do realise firsthand the importance of SEO and having your website well ranked on search engines. It literally makes the difference between success and failure if you try to market your accommodation independently on the Internet.
Most holiday accommodation is run through large holiday letting agencies, which tend to dominate the search engine rankings because obviously they have the budget to spend. This especially means for small independent holiday accommodation owners they can be pushed further back, where unfortunately not so many potential customers are surfing.
In my example I own a small old Fisherman’s cottage which can sleep only up to 6 people, but with my SEO skills I managed to keep my website on page one of Google for all the relevant key terms. This means my cottage is almost 100% booked out 52 weeks of the year, and entirely booked from my free organic listings on search engines like Google.
Okay that's great for me but I'm always slightly amazed when you find an independent owner of a hotel or guesthouse, which can sleep many more people than my cottage, that has a website that is not optimised and appears further back in the search engine ranking. Quite often these larger holiday accommodation premises are never full to capacity, so always have the potential to make more money if the customers are available. So what's the point in having your website say on page 30 of Google, where virtually no customers are surfing! To my mind it's obvious that it's worth the time and money to make sure your website is as prominent as possible, so that your hotel is as full as possible. Anyway there go the words of a very small and very full holiday accommodation owner.
Thank you Alan Davidson
Old Fishermans cottage near the harbour
Whitby Holiday CottageWhitby Website for tourist information, calendar of events and news
WhitbyLabels: Engine, Optimisation, Search, SEO, Whitby