Why you should sell SEO and copywriting

17 Apr

When I started out as a freelance web designer I knew that Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and professional copywriting are important, but as I was still new to the business, my focus was on getting work; my goal, whenever I drafted a quote, was to propose the cheapest possible option that would allow me to create a professional-looking site without underselling myself. I didn’t have the skills or the contacts to offer SEO or copywriting so it was something I avoided.

Now, however, I’ve changed my ways. I know how important it is these days for a website to be findable, and once found, to make a good first impression, otherwise the cost of building the website in the first place is wasted. I’m no longer satisfied with creating a professional-looking website only to let it disappear like a grain of sand in a windstorm or to see it degrade with sloppy copy written by the client. I have taught myself SEO and I have a business relationship with a friend who is very adept at writing for the web.

Here’s why you should sell SEO and copywriting with every website proposal:

No matter how good the design is, bad copy will make a bad impression which will reflect badly on you, the designer
Good copy that incorporates the site’s optimal keywords will enhance its SEO
The more “white hat” SEO out there, the more search engines will begin to ignore black hat practices such as link farming
A site that ranks well in search engines, which attracts more visitors, can only be good for your reputation as the designer
If all professional web designers suggest and offer SEO and copywriting/editing to their clients, it will help broaden the distinction between professional web designers and bosses’ nephews who know how to use Dreamweaver and that can only be good for all web designers
It will make the Internet a more pleasurable place to be!