How do you define scope of SEO?

I have to admit that I really liked this query. “How do you define scope of SEO”? I am sure that has something to do with writing a search engine optimization proposal, and I cannot offer any detailed advice on how to write a statement of scope (because it outlines the services you provide, with the potential benefits those services can provide) for a proposal.

But search engine optimization in general does have scope and that scope can be fairly easily defined (all aspects of which have been discussed in numerous ways for many years).

Search engine optimization entails a few basic processes (which, when refined, become the practices and trade secrets we all rely upon to achieve our search optimization effect).

The first process is keyword research. Now, people conduct keyword research for a variety of reasons, utilize different tools, and even employ more than one methodology. I’ve used several methodologies for keyword research. With some clients I have literally interviewed them about their business, industry, customers, and the jargon they use. I’ve had to devote a fair amount of time to learning about the core industry just so I know what its peculiar terms and expressions refer to. For example, in the insurance industry “marketing” has nothing to do with identifying potential customers and reaching out to them — it’s all about researching the various underwriters to find a good policy quote.

Search engine optimization has to incorporate a survey of keywords at some level so as to define a query space. If you cannot describe the query space you’re optimizing for, you cannot optimize very well (but you can still optimize for the long tail of search).

Another process is the assessment of assets and resources. You need to list how many Web sites you have to work with and what online resources you believe can or should help with the optimization in some way. I don’t mean “linking resources” but rather ALL resources: Web design, promotional tools, widgets, forums, blogs, services, etc. If someone is out there doing something that can help you optimize a site for a query space, that person is a resource. It has nothing to do with links.

The next process is the site review. In my experience there is no one correct method for performing a site review but certainly you want to offer a very thorough review, outlining what you feel are strengths and weaknesses and proposing changes, additions, or deletions which may help the search engine optimization process. Site reviews are one of the most critical components of search engine optimization. You can stumble along without keyword research but you cannot move without a site review.

Another process is the intervention — essentially the process by which you describe the changes you want to make and make them. Some people include link building in their interventions (oh, let’s face it — for far too many SEOs, it’s all about the links). I exclude link building from the intervention. The intervention is not strictly concerned with on-page factors, but the off-page factors have to be concise, easy-to-define factors. Links are ambiguous. Interventions include fixing directory submissions, expanding content on partner sites, and otherwise dealing with content provided by other sites about the site being optimized.

The link building process — nearly everyone’s favorite in our poor, misprioritizing industry — is where you develop your strategy, evaluate potential resources, and start developing your link profile. The link building process does not have to be time-consuming — it just needs to be efficient. In fact, if you approach link building without being concerned about efficiency, your definition of scope will probably be too broad. There is no perfect number of links for any SEO campaign, but you need to cap it off at some point or the client will expect you to do it endlessly (and really for no good reason).

The evaluation is preliminary to the monitoring process. I would guess many SEOs don’t formally evaluate the work they’ve done prior to monitoring because it’s almost second nature. But you want to go through your checklist, revisit discussion points, and generally follow through on everything you have proposed and/or requested. I try to follow up at least a couple of times before I’m done with an evaluation. Some things the clients just won’t or can’t do for you.

Monitoring is still an important SEO process, although it has taken a philosophical beating in many discussions over the past couple of years. A lot of SEO companies are criticized for billing their clients month after month just for sending ranking reports. I agree that ranking reports are boring but they are a necessary component for monitoring. However, monitoring doesn’t consist just of running automated reports. You have to evaluate the rankings. You have to evaluate the work you did six months ago (allowing for the possibility that some things just need time to age).

If a client campaign stalls out, at some point in the monitoring process you have to issue a call to action — engage the client in new initiatives. That is really what the client should be paying for, your ability to spring into action when the time is right. And the right time is either when something stops working or it becomes apparent that something never did work.

Monitoring also includes advising clients of when their competitors have modified their strategies, or when new competitors appear in the query space. Clients may tell the SEOs about these events first (not a good thing, in my opinion). You have to be ready to reassess the client’s needs at least twice a year. The client is not paying you for ranking reports, the client is paying you for service.

Finally, there is the closure process. SEO campaigns eventually need to be adjusted, either to change the defined query space or just to shut everything down. You can abandon an SEO campaign (and many campaigns are indeed abandoned) but if the relationship ends you need to set aside some time to look at the history of the campaign. What worked? What didn’t work? How can you be sure? What new tools and methods did you develop in the course of executing the campaign?

A closure process tells you where the value resided in the campaign (other than just in the billing fees or paycheck you earned). If your SEO experiences don’t help you improve your knowledge and skills, you’ll stagnate and fall behind the competitive field.

So I submit that the scope of SEO includes a learning process. You cannot afford to stop learning in this field. If you do, your advice will help you coast for a while but eventually you’ll have to stop trying to optimize for search.

And that is how I define the scope of search engine optimization. There are many details I’ve left out but I think these are the processes that are generally employed across the industry.