RSS Feeds :: Search Geeks - Forums > SEO : Topics : State of Washington Sues SEO Firm Search Engine Optimization, Marketing, Tools and Toys http://www.searchgeeks.org en-gb Sat, 25 Oct 2008 09:02:34 -0500 Thu, 09 Sep 2010 18:26:19 -0500 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss MSSTI v0.0.1 - (C) 2008 leviatan21 - http://www.mssti.com/ Copyright : (c) RSS Feeds :: Search Geeks - Sat, 25 Oct 2008 09:02:34 -0500 searchgeeksorg@gmail.com (Search Geeks) RSS Feeds :: Search Geeks - Forums > SEO : Topics : State of Washington Sues SEO Firm http://www.searchgeeks.org/styles/prosilver/imageset/site_logo.gif http://www.searchgeeks.org 60 Re: State of Washington Sues SEO Firm http://www.searchgeeks.org/post231.html#p231
Sorry I didn't see your post till today...

Always have your clients sign an agreement before you start work. Here are a couple of samples:

"http://www.seo-scoop.com/2005/08/22/sample-seo-contract/" rel="nofollow" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;"" rel="nofollow

"http://www.seomoz.org/ugc/seo-contract-template-a-verbal-contract-isnt-worth-the-paper-its-written-on" rel="nofollow" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;"" rel="nofollow

Statistics : Posted by maruschka • on Fri Nov 14, 2008 7:09 pm • Replies 6 • Views 138

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Sorry I didn't see your post till today...

Always have your clients sign an agreement before you start work. Here are a couple of samples:

"http://www.seo-scoop.com/2005/08/22/sample-seo-contract/" rel="nofollow" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;"" rel="nofollow

"http://www.seomoz.org/ugc/seo-contract-template-a-verbal-contract-isnt-worth-the-paper-its-written-on" rel="nofollow" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;"" rel="nofollow]]> 2009-01-06T21:24:38-06:00 http://www.searchgeeks.org/post231.html#p231 Re: State of Washington Sues SEO Firm http://www.searchgeeks.org/post196.html#p196
maruschka wrote:Every technique I use or recommend for customers is white hat, and I consider myself to be a very patient, ethical person who doesn't overpromise. I'd hate to have the state come after me because of some irrational, angry customers.


Maruschka, this is something that troubles me, because I also try to practice good SEO techniques, but clients always expect miracles. They are always disappointed that they don't get bigger and faster results even though I never purposely increase their expectations.

Is there a guide like a template that can show me how to write a contract to set expectations by the client and to also protect myself?

Statistics : Posted by barty • on Fri Nov 14, 2008 7:09 pm • Replies 6 • Views 138

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maruschka wrote:Every technique I use or recommend for customers is white hat, and I consider myself to be a very patient, ethical person who doesn't overpromise. I'd hate to have the state come after me because of some irrational, angry customers.


Maruschka, this is something that troubles me, because I also try to practice good SEO techniques, but clients always expect miracles. They are always disappointed that they don't get bigger and faster results even though I never purposely increase their expectations.

Is there a guide like a template that can show me how to write a contract to set expectations by the client and to also protect myself?]]> 2008-12-30T06:40:20-06:00 http://www.searchgeeks.org/post196.html#p196 Re: State of Washington Sues SEO Firm http://www.searchgeeks.org/post167.html#p167

...sorry, not exceptionally appropriate, but I've been dying to use it somewhere. :1:

Statistics : Posted by Steven • on Fri Nov 14, 2008 7:09 pm • Replies 6 • Views 138

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...sorry, not exceptionally appropriate, but I've been dying to use it somewhere. :1:]]> 2008-11-30T08:26:32-06:00 http://www.searchgeeks.org/post167.html#p167 Re: State of Washington Sues SEO Firm http://www.searchgeeks.org/post130.html#p130
This is entertaining... from Ripoff Report. Haha!

p.s. Hey Ripoff Report, your website needs some SEO!

Statistics : Posted by maruschka • on Fri Nov 14, 2008 7:09 pm • Replies 6 • Views 138

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This is entertaining... from Ripoff Report. Haha!

p.s. Hey Ripoff Report, your website needs some SEO!]]> 2008-11-14T16:24:22-06:00 http://www.searchgeeks.org/post130.html#p130 Re: State of Washington Sues SEO Firm http://www.searchgeeks.org/post129.html#p129
To your point, maybe they weren't doing their job very well. But, it will be interesting to hear what the clients thought they were getting vs what was sold to them. I've heard sales people try to sell SEO before... and it usually involves a great deal of misunderstanding and over-promising.

Statistics : Posted by Steven • on Fri Nov 14, 2008 7:09 pm • Replies 6 • Views 138

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To your point, maybe they weren't doing their job very well. But, it will be interesting to hear what the clients thought they were getting vs what was sold to them. I've heard sales people try to sell SEO before... and it usually involves a great deal of misunderstanding and over-promising.]]> 2008-11-14T15:58:47-06:00 http://www.searchgeeks.org/post129.html#p129 Re: State of Washington Sues SEO Firm http://www.searchgeeks.org/post126.html#p126
I'm not saying the company shouldn't be sued, I'm just surprised that it's the state that is suing them. I could see a class action lawsuit, or individual lawsuits by customers who were ripped off, but what is the state's interest in this?

I don't know anything about this SEO company, and they may deserve all of the criticism they're getting, but I've had some tense conversations with unhappy customers who refused to have any patience at all with organic SEO efforts, claiming that what we did "just isn't working" and they're not getting any new customers. This is after the entire process has been explained and the customer signed an agreement that spelled it all out in detail. With some businesses, they either didn't implement the things we recommended or sometimes they had someone else make changes to their site that invalidated what we did. And sometimes, especially with new sites, they jus...

Statistics : Posted by maruschka • on Fri Nov 14, 2008 7:09 pm • Replies 6 • Views 138

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I'm not saying the company shouldn't be sued, I'm just surprised that it's the state that is suing them. I could see a class action lawsuit, or individual lawsuits by customers who were ripped off, but what is the state's interest in this?

I don't know anything about this SEO company, and they may deserve all of the criticism they're getting, but I've had some tense conversations with unhappy customers who refused to have any patience at all with organic SEO efforts, claiming that what we did "just isn't working" and they're not getting any new customers. This is after the entire process has been explained and the customer signed an agreement that spelled it all out in detail. With some businesses, they either didn't implement the things we recommended or sometimes they had someone else make changes to their site that invalidated what we did. And sometimes, especially with new sites, they jus...]]> 2008-11-14T14:47:09-06:00 http://www.searchgeeks.org/post126.html#p126 State of Washington Sues SEO Firm http://www.searchgeeks.org/post125.html#p125
These are the kinds of charges that can send a company's customers fleeing ... and certainly should if they're proven to be true.

The State of Washington has filed suit (.pdf) against a Redmond-based search engine optimization and Web services outfit that has done business under the names Visible.net, Captures.com and WebMarketingSource.com. In essence, the state attorney general contends that these entities have ripped off their mostly mom-and-pop clientele through a pattern of unfulfilled performance promises and financial shenanigans. While the clients may be on the smaller end of the spectrum, they have been forking over real money, with initial startup charges ranging from $3,750 to $9,750, plus a monthly fee of $40 to $100.

The attorney general has charged the company and its owner, Gilbert Walker, with:

* Misrepresenting th
...

Statistics : Posted by Steven • on Fri Nov 14, 2008 7:09 pm • Replies 6 • Views 138

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These are the kinds of charges that can send a company's customers fleeing ... and certainly should if they're proven to be true.

The State of Washington has filed suit (.pdf) against a Redmond-based search engine optimization and Web services outfit that has done business under the names Visible.net, Captures.com and WebMarketingSource.com. In essence, the state attorney general contends that these entities have ripped off their mostly mom-and-pop clientele through a pattern of unfulfilled performance promises and financial shenanigans. While the clients may be on the smaller end of the spectrum, they have been forking over real money, with initial startup charges ranging from $3,750 to $9,750, plus a monthly fee of $40 to $100.

The attorney general has charged the company and its owner, Gilbert Walker, with:

* Misrepresenting th
...]]> 2008-11-14T13:09:05-06:00 http://www.searchgeeks.org/post125.html#p125