Why Not to Outsource Your SEO and Content to Cheap Overseas Providers

As a small business owner, you will no doubt understand the importance of creating a realistic balance between professionalism, competitiveness, and cost-savings when it comes to your digital presence. This means that the decisions you make regarding your SEO and website content need to be very carefully considered, in order to get excellent service without wasting precious resources in the process.

Outsourcing content overseas

Quality content (together with trust) is ‘king’ these days – even Google says it is! You need content that is professional, well written, and helpful to users. If the content of your site is poor, it is more likely to be demoted in search engine rankings, no matter how clever your use of keywords. Quality issues such as plagiarism, poor use of English, and even unsubstantiated claims are not likely to be looked upon favourably by search engines nor by your site visitors!

This can make outsourcing your content to overseas writers who do not have English as their first language problematic. While you might save money when paying for articles and other content, it can end up costing you more in the long run if you need to have work rewritten or replaced due to these issues.

Overseas outsourcing of SEO services

When it comes to SEO services, you might be able to find cheap providers from overseas countries. However, the risks of this practice include poor communication, and misunderstandings about your business and SEO needs – not only due to the language issue, but also as a result of being from different cultures / countries and not being able to meet in person. You also run the risk that an overseas provider has not kept up with recent SEO developments, or is involved in ‘Black Hat’ shortcuts, such as keyword stuffing, hidden text, and link schemes, which are likely to be penalised by Google.

Other issues

Using overseas services can mean you have less control over the process than you otherwise might. Operating in different time zones means that that your service providers are likely to be sleeping while you are working, which can make urgent matters problematic. In addition, sending payments overseas carries a level of risk, which you may prefer to avoid.

It’s also important that you get ongoing support regarding site content and SEO. If you want your site to rate well, your content needs to be continually updated with fresh articles, blog posts, videos and so on. And with content and SEO being so closely intertwined, you also want to know that your service provider is able to provide continual support for any SEO questions and needs you have. A local provider is likely to be more contactable and available than an overseas one for these services.

The importance of quality

As indicated above, quality is possibly the most important issue these days when it comes to websites. Quality content and good optimisation of your site is paramount when it comes to getting good results. According to Google, White Hat SEO helps make a site more usable and compelling, and increases its profile on the web – which in turn can translate to greater numbers of people visiting and linking to the site. White Hat SEO techniques involve aiming your site at a human audience rather than at search engines, and acting in an ethical manner in your online practices – especially through avoiding those dodgy Black Hat tricks!

So why shouldn’t you outsource your content and SEO to cheap overseas providers? Because while there may well be overseas providers that do give good quality service, by using local providers you reduce the risk of language barriers, misunderstandings, time difference problems, and of spending more money in the long-run. Also, by using local providers, you should also be afforded more control over the whole process when it comes to your small business website content and optimisation.