First, I want to take a moment to thank each & every member of my Twitterverse and my friends in the search marketing community. I have received an unbelievable outpouring of support and encouragement. You have no idea how much it has meant to me. You wouldn’t let me wallow in self-pity for long and, for that, I am eternally grateful. I’m incredibly touched and you’ve all helped the shock of being fired for the first time in my life wear off a little more quickly. THANK YOU!
Getting Up To Speed
Back in mid-October I was recruited for an in-house SEO position with a small software company here in Jacksonville. It seemed like a great opportunity. The company currently had 24 websites, each of which was desperately in need of optimization.
I knew nothing of the company when I was contacted about the position. The only information I could glean prior to my initial interview was by reviewing the company’s sites and assessing how well they were built and optimized when they were originally launched. The sites were atrocious, at best. I saw a great opportunity to help this company improve its web presense and increase traffic from the organic search results exponentially.
During my first and only interview, which should have been a tip-off that the company and its president weren’t all that they seemed, I shared some of the issues that I had identified during my initial assessment. I was told that they had made a significant investment having a custom CMS created and had complete control over the content.
The company’s president proudly touted the ability of the CMS to publish a single “blog post” across multiple sites with just one click – a practice that I told him during the interview was a very, very bad idea from a Search Engine Optimization standpoint. He nodded in agreement as I explained the problems resulting from duplicate content and ultimately stated, “We will defer everything to you,” – a statement I took at face value and assumed to be true.
The sites themselves were awful, both from the perspective of SEO and user-friendliness. It never dawned on me that anyone who claimed to know anything about SEO had ever spent a moment attempting to optimize them. They broke literally every well-known rule of SEO – from title length to relevancy to keyword spamming to duplicate content. Anyone with even a rudimentary knowledge of SEO would be aware of these on-page best practices and have incorporated them into the sites’ initial development.
I found out during the first week that not only was this “custom CMS” a joke in and of itself, the company that developed it also claimed to be “SEO experts”. They had been charging my new company copious amounts of money for SEO. Not only that, there was an existing contract to provide ongoing SEO services. I was flabbergasted.
This existing SEO contract or attempts at optimization by an outside company were never divulged, nor even eluded to, when I was recruited and hired. This development company and their supposed SEO services can only be described as a scam – as are the services of innumerable companies that claim to provide SEO to their clients. I’ve provided hundreds of hours of SEO consultation to small business owners nationwide and I can identify a scam in no time. They had never even bothered to do basic keyword research, which is the cornerstone of any successful SEO strategy.
In the weeks that followed I was compelled to share with my new boss each and every issue I had uncovered with regard to the limitations of the CMS itself and the flawed SEO strategy that had been employed to that point. Not only were the tactics simply ineffective and futile, many would ultimately result in the domains being removed from Google’s index altogether. I could not in good conscience allow my boss to continue paying these charlatans for services that would provide no return on his investment whatsoever.
I was completely honest about everything. I went so far as to broadcast my situation via Twitter and ask my search marketing colleagues to review the sites in order to make sure I hadn’t missed anything in my assessment. Not only did I inform my boss that I was discussing the matter via Twitter, I even told him that he should expect a significant increase in traffic with “Twitter.com” as the referrer. One of my search marketing colleagues even took it upon himself to create a report that documented many of the issues plaguing the sites – a report that I gladly shared with my boss. At no point was I asked to keep this information confidential or to stop discussing the company’s sites on Twitter.
A Shocking Twist of Events
Upon reviewing the detailed report I crafted documenting the sites’ issues, my boss scheduled a meeting with the development firm. I assumed that meeting would involve discussing the issues I had identified and ultimately result in the SEO contract being cancelled. What reason would there be to keep paying for these services when I had been hired to do SEO for the company? What purpose could continuing to pay for these “SEO services” possibly serve when I had clearly proven that their knowledge and understanding of SEO fell well short of the mark?
No Good Deed Goes Unpunished
Keeping my mouth shut when I knew there were shenanigans going on would have made me as guilty as those actually participating in the shenanigans. For the record, I think I should get some credit for just using the word “shenanigans” twice in one sentence! Instead, I was completely honest and forthcoming about everything. I believe wholeheartedly in transparency and accountability. Sometimes I forget that not everyone shares in that belief.
What happened next came as quite a shock. My boss called to inform me that my services would no longer be required. He explained that my having shared information about his sites using Twitter was a violation of the company’s confidentiality, despite his having known of those conversations from the beginning. As it turns out, employees of the development firm had been following my Twitter updates and somehow used that information to get me fired. Ironically, if they had spent half as much time learning about SEO as they did stalking me online, they might not be such scammers.
Fired…for the first time in my life I had been fired. I was befuddled. I couldn’t imagine a world in which a company would choose to continue working with charlatans and scammers, rather than a person who opted to do the right thing with absolutely nothing to gain by doing so. I could have kept my mouth shut.
I could have continued to allow my new company to be scammed out of untold amounts of money. I could have simply created pages of content, as requested, knowing that it would serve absolutely no purpose and not generate a single sale. I could have continued collecting my paycheck week after week for quite some time. That’s just not me. I’m a “call a horse’s ass a horse’s ass kind of girl”.
When I was fired I was offered a two week severance package. I was thankful for that, being that Christmas was only a few weeks away. I was also concerned about finding another job in this dismal economy. I had left a secure and stable position with one of the largest website design and marketing companies in the country to accept this position. Going back to my old job wasn’t an option – the position had already been filled.
Needless to say, I was up the creek without a paddle. That two week severance package could be the difference between surviving and not. Imagine my dismay when that severance offer was reneged. What kind of person had I been working for? Who could be so despicable? My former boss, as it turns out, was that kind of person…he could be so despicable.
Everything Happens for a Reason
So, to sum things up…I was recruited and hired under false pretenses, suddenly and unexpectedly fired after only a month (just weeks before Christmas) and offered a two week severance that was later reneged. Nice.
I have always been of the belief that everything happens for a reason – everything. I’ve also always believed that Karma is a bitch and she always wins – always. Every situation is either an opportunity to rise or fall. This is just the first time I’ve been blindsided and knocked off the horse.
Well, guess what…I’m back on the horse. This time it’s going to be MY horse. I’ve always wanted to be my own boss, but I’ve always had pretty good jobs that afforded me the opportunity to live comfortably and remain content with that. Screw contentment. I think it’s time for happiness.
A Blessing In Disguise
Had I known what I was walking into initially, I never would have accepted the position. My understanding of the job when I accepted it clearly didn’t coincide with reality. I’m sure I’m not the only person to ever accept a job and find out after starting that it wasn’t at all what he/she thought or was led to believe.
That said, I also wouldn’t have quit my old job had I not been recruited and contracted for the in-house SEO position to begin with. I’d still be sitting at my old job unhappily employed because I “needed a paycheck”. I’d continue using “I don’t have time…” as an excuse to not do what I really want to do – which is work for MYSELF. I intend to never again have to answer to someone who makes WAY too much money to do WAY too little work.
So, What Now?
I’ve picked myself up, dusted myself off and started all over again. I’m updating my blog, SEOAly, and now offer SEO audits and keyword research services to small business owners. My goal is to help small business owners avoid being scammed by SEO charlatans and suffering the same fate as my previous company is bound to. SEOAly is my new venture – the operative word there being “MY”.
Had all of this not happened so close to the holidays…had I not spent nearly $500 on furnishings for a home office and another $400+ setting up hosting & purchasing a premium theme suite so I could expedite the process of launching a WordPress project for the company – which I absorbed the cost of solely because I felt such a sense of empathy toward my previous boss – and had the global economy not recently gone into the crapper, I would actually be relieved.
Lesson Learned
The lesson to be learned here, at least for me, is that sometimes it is better to be happily unemployed than unhappily employed. The job itself would have been a nightmare and I probably would have remained unhappily employed for quite a while. For the first time ever, the only person I have to work for when I wake up tomorrow morning is me. I don’t pay well yet, but at least I’m fair and honest – and I know I have no malicious intent.
Comments
By Matt Webb on December 8th, 2008 at 9:34 pm e
Damn right! Being your own boss is the best thing ever in my opinion. Stay active and keep up the good fight, karma is coming back around for you but only in a good way.
Matt Webbs last blog post..State Of SEO: Grumpy And Delusional
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December 9th, 2008 at 11:04 am
I’m hoping to find out first hand how being my own boss feels. Keep your fingers crossed for me. Good always triumphs over evil…right, Obi-Wan Kenobi?
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The last two sentences should be on your bathroom mirror. Keep a hold of those every day as you get started – they’re the truth! My mom sent me something a couple of months ago that really helped me stay focused:
“There comes a point in your life when you realize who matters, who never did, who won’t anymore…and who always will. So don’t worry about people from your past, there’s a reason why they didn’t make it to your future.”
-Steve
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December 9th, 2008 at 11:01 am
What an awesome quote…that one is going on my favorite quote list right away (no, really…I actually have a list).
The list also includes the e-mail signature I’ve used for several years, which is: “Real integrity is doing the right thing regardless of whether or not anyone will know you did it.”
Thanks again for the pep talk.
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:::applause:::
I’d also like to add: Steve’s Mom is a very wise woman. (-;
Thel
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December 9th, 2008 at 11:05 am
Yep…sounds like it. Wise like you. Where do you think I got this attitude from anyway?
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I couldn’t agree more that “everything happens for a reason” – I too, have gone through hell lately and have literally had my life turned upside down numerous times and the only thing I have kept telling myself is that everything happens for a reason… I find it hard to come to terms with that sometimes but I truly feel that’s how your life pans out sometimes and karma will certainly come around for sure.
Great to hear you are sorting yourself out and not letting it get to you. Hope it all works out for you and you succeed on your sole venture.
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December 9th, 2008 at 11:05 am
Thanks, Geoff.
I hope everything works out for you, too!
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Good luck Ally! The clients you pick up will do great due to your honesty and knowledge. That is my first rule of SEO, be real, be realistic and be honest! I hope you kick ass and take names!
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December 9th, 2008 at 11:06 am
I learned for the very first time in my life that honesty really does come with a price. But it is a price I am willing to pay!
Thanks!
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This is awesome, Aly. I know it seems tough at first, but the rewards are great. I love my 70-90 hour work weeks, almost as much as I love taking care of my family and entertainment like I’ve never been able to before. It’s a lot of work, but man does it feel good.
Plus, you can now punch your boss without those pesky lawyers getting involved.
Josh Garners last blog post..SEO is Not A Fool’s Errand
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December 9th, 2008 at 11:07 am
Can’t wait to join your ranks of the “self-employed”, but don’t forget…if it doesn’t work out as quickly as I hope, you owe me a job! HAHA!!
Thanks, Josh.
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Thanks, all. I just can’t thank you enough for the support, encouragement and pep talks. You guys are awesome…and each of you help to prove that there are honest, trustworthy, good and decent people in the search marketing community.
YOU GUYS ROCK!!
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By jonathanwthomas on December 9th, 2008 at 11:23 am e
Best of luck – I wish I was in your position! Working for myself! One day, maybe. For now, at least I’m happily employed.
New design looks great. Can’t wait to see what you have in the pipeline.
jonathanwthomass last blog post..The New FMLA Regulations: What You Need to Know
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December 9th, 2008 at 5:46 pm
Thanks, Jonathan. Don’t get me wrong…I’d still like to know for sure where my next paycheck is coming from – I’d rather be happily employed by MYSELF (in a best case scenario kind of situation).
Right now I just have to make the best of what I have to work with. Glad you like the design.
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It sounds like you’re doing the right thing and the attitude you have toward the future makes you a great role model for others who are honestly overqualified for their roles.
I haven’t heard anyone talking about an end in sight (or even a slow down) for companies moving their marketing budget to the web so I can’t imagine a better place to make your stand.
Let us know if there is anything that we can do to help!
Eric Werners last blog post..Web Analytics Consulting
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December 10th, 2008 at 2:03 pm
Thanks, Eric! I’ll be sure to keep you posted. You guys will be the first to know once my new venture is officially launched.
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Way to go Aly!! I’m in the same boat as you are and you’re truly an inspiration to me.
I’ll be watching your progress with great interest. Lemme know if there’s *anything* I can ever do to help
Melanie Nathans last blog post..melanienathan: @alainsaffel: I’m in the mood for a tweetup. Any word on when the next one is planned?
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December 11th, 2008 at 1:05 pm
Thanks, Mel! Back at ‘cha! Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help you, as well!
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Aly If you need anything or can be of assistance let me know. You can Tweet me @Bigebiz.
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December 11th, 2008 at 3:30 pm
Thanks, Eric. I’ll keep you posted! Feel free to send me an e-mail at aly@seoaly.com if you have any projects I can work with you on.
I am currently entertaining all offers, particularly those that involve doing SEO audits and providing detailed keyword research services for existing sites.