So long and good luck
Tags: whateva
Well after some soul searching, I’m hanging up the hat and calling it quits on SEO Honolulu. Between the economy going to crap and how my line of work in Hawaii isn’t even recognized/desired, I just can’t muster up a reason to keep trying. I’ve been working a full time job since October of last year, which is good, and I plan on continuing in that capacity for as long as possible. This site will be getting pulled down in a couple of weeks. I will be dropping a new blog in the near future that isn’t SEO related, ya know, just a place to go and blab about life and what have you. I would love it if you could come check it out after it’s up and running… maybe drop by and say hi.
I’ve been losing interest and passion in what I do for a while now to be honest. A number of things have fueled it that are inside the SEO industry, as well as life in general. The biggest thing that has jaded me about this line of work is small business owners themselves wanting professional quality but only willing to pay at sub-amateur rates. That’s been the norm here even before the economy went south. Factor in that over 90% of businesses in Hawaii are small business, my target audience is pretty bleak. After numerous attempts to get some contracts going, the same thing happens after I pass the quote; they vanish and lack the professional courtesy to decline with a reason… hell even to try and negotiate a different price point. They just vanish. Email them, no response. Call them, no call back. Crazy thing is, I was charging (and getting) twice as much back in Oregon doing this line of work.. I came here and had to chop my rates in half, and still that’s too expensive for nearly all of the companies I’ve bidded out on.
Then you got the wanna-be’s and vultures from outside the state underbidding you. Then you got the twitter rockstars running their mouths and acting like morons making you almost ashamed of the irresponsible and idiotic garbage coming out their mouths about SEO. Then you got noobie bloggers acting like they know it all when they clearly DON’T. Then you got the die hard Matt Cutt’s zombies who can’t optimize their way out of a paper bag. Then you got the internal drama in the industry. Then you got the spammers and shady idiots who make the rest of us look like charlatans. Then you got web designers and developers who create a dog of a website, pass it onto the company, the company wants marketing done on it, and the damn site needs to be completely redone because their designer was an absolute idiot about the coding and content placement. Wash, rinse, repeat.
I apologize, I’m not trying to go on the attack, but the point I’m trying to make is that after 8 years of being in this line of work, I’m exhausted. The same issues that plague websites from 8 years ago are still alive and well today. The same FUD and misinformation about what SEO and online marketing is still getting fed to company owners by people inside and outside our own industry daily. I’m tired of fighting for legitimacy and recognition for the work I do and the industry I’m a part of.
For those of you who are going to fight the good fight in this economy and with the obstacles I just mentioned in our line of work, I salute you. When things get better, which they will, you stand to be rewarded for sticking through it all.
As for me, this is where I exit stage right. See ya on the flip side.
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April 9th, 2009 at 9:41 am
If you pull down all your old information, then the idiots have won.
I hate to see sites completely disappear, and all the content vanish without trace.
I hope you’ll reconsider at least that point. So long, and thanks for the fish.
April 9th, 2009 at 10:55 am
They don’t call back because you’re not Hawaiian.
But this is the best damn post I’ve read in while. “Wash, rinse, repeat” – love it!
Mahalo
April 9th, 2009 at 11:17 am
Sorry to hear that man. I wished I could have gotten my referrals to follow up with you, but as you so elegantly stated, they get info from outside the industry and take it as the gospel.
Things are slacking off here too my friend. Good clients are scarce, and clients who let you work your magic for them even more so.
Keep in touch … you know you’re my bud! BTW – coming to Maui on Vakay .. might pop over to the big island for a visit if you are up for it.
ciao! Keep ya head up brotha!
April 9th, 2009 at 11:49 am
Often the best “SEO” posts get the publish button kicked when personal pride is still on the line, but professional gloss-over is not.
Best of luck and wishes. If you’re truly out of the game and find happiness in that outage… then may there come a day when you no longer automatically parse for keyword density when others speak.
April 9th, 2009 at 8:42 pm
Sorry to hear that.
In fact, I am in the same position as you, but in Siberia
Local providers want everything handed to them on a silver platter (i.e., results for new projects, fast, but without a budget) for a janitors salary or they simply want too much from a city of 100k, hoping to pick and choose from local SEO rockstars, which you can count on a few fingers.
What I have found is this:
- I am offering my high-value services (usability and awesome content/links) to everyone who visits my website
- I am going to start working on my own affiliate website
- I have a few people partnered with me, so it makes the road easier
- I have also dabbed on Elance, but it’s tough to be there w/o a portfolio, but it’s getting better. There *are* some nice people there
What I’m saying is diversify your income, find what you do best and what gives the most value to your clients and provide it internationally to US/UK/Aus/NZ companies, possible SEM agencies, too.
I’ve had the blues too, but finding ways to profit helped me. Since you have a full time job, you are in a better position, than me, because I don’t have one and need about $1k to fix my health.
So good luck, there always is a way to make things better.
And yeah, I agree with Ian, you’d rather keep the SEO website to have a straw to grab for, just in case. I’ve abandoned my site for 1.5 years, but now it still keeps sending me clients (or leads, at least).
You can always keep it, if you pay for hosting to have a personal blog, anyway. Combining a SEO and a personal blog wouldn’t hurt that much, too. Just look at Cre8pc.com.
April 10th, 2009 at 3:06 am
I really hope you stay in touch though, cuz I’d really miss seeing you around. I totally understand though. This industry can be a tough one to survive in. Best of luck. I’ll definitely come ’round when you’ve started your personal blog.
April 10th, 2009 at 6:53 am
Good luck with the full time job Matt. I completely hear you when it comes to the shmoes ruining the reputation of us good guys in the industry. I’ll be one of the ones sticking it out…
Reuben
April 10th, 2009 at 11:40 am
While it certainly sounds like a decision you’ve been thinking over for quite a while, I’d urge you not to take the site down. Even if it sits dormant at least you’ll be gaining age etc. That way you can link over to new projects or pick this one back up sometime down the road should you so desire.
In any case, good luck with whatever you put your hand to, and I’ll hopefully see ya on Twitter!
April 15th, 2009 at 12:03 pm
dude… i’m so sorry it went this way for you.
i’e been lurking your stuff for a while now and i gotta say you have a lot of wonderful info – don’t pull it. but if you gotta (believe me, i know about money woes) then xfer the info to your blog (i’m revamping my own).
April 19th, 2009 at 11:46 pm
Sorry to hear that. I totally understand your frustration as SEO is already hard enough to quantify the ROI for. On top of that, Hawaii’s businesses are based on network marketing (word of mouth advertising). Things are changing however, and the small businesses are beginning to focus on their online reputation. Maybe you were just ahead of your time? I’m curious to know what your Hawaii rate was for SEO.
November 22nd, 2009 at 8:21 am
Matt, I have not kept up with local stuff for some time. One thing to consider is you can still target Oregon or sny other area. I honestly only work off referral for the most part as I also work for the TX based company and do marketing and SEO as my side passion (meaning for my own biz not TX company in which that is all I do).
You have great insight and are good at what you do. My suggestion is used the HI timezone to your advantage and reach out to potentials in the early mornings. I work far more people outside of Hawaii than in Hawaii. Just a thought.