• Search Engine People, Tuesday, April 1, 2008 12 PM

Getting mom-and-pop shops to understand the value of search marketing isn't that hard, since the general knowledge of Internet usage (and search activity) is much more widespread. Still, search pros may end up coming to an impasse when it gets down to negotiating contract terms. As guest Search Engine People blogger Stephen notes, it's a market whose "needs and wants are often out of alignment with realistic expectations and pricing."

To move the relationship along, Stephen suggests stepping back from the "packaged deal" model that could include on-site optimization, link building, analytics tracking and content creation, in favor of a more piecemeal offering. "My experiences with small business owners has shown the truth isn't so much that they won't or can't pay, but rather they can't afford to pay for everything all at once. An approach other than an all inclusive package with associated pricing is often necessary."

Also, focusing on one particular project, be it plugging a hole in the shopping cart process, fixing duplicate content issues, or just helping them get their blog set up and optimized is a way to show them that what you're posing actually works and is cost-effective. "''Mom and Pop' may balk at paying several thousand dollars right away for services they still aren't sure will work, but they will often accept a series of smaller fees for smaller projects," Stephen says.

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