affordable vs. cheap SEO Sydney cover image

Cheap SEO Sydney might seem like your ticket to the top of Google for a fraction of the price. Before you pull the trigger with cheap SEO services, take a moment to consider the difference between cheap and affordable search engine optimisation.

If you’re considering cheap SEO services for your Sydney business, take a second to find out the important differences between affordable and cheap SEO in Sydney.

‘Cheap’ and ‘Affordable’ aren’t so different as adjectives; they both are used to describe low costs and a potential to save money. However, when it comes to marketing, the two words used to describe products and services couldn’t be further apart in meaning.

In the context of SEO services, there is an enormously important distinction between cheap and affordable SEO in Sydney.

What is Cheap SEO?

Cheap SEO refers to services in which the quality is compromised. Often referred to as “churn and burn SEO” these SEO companies rely on hundreds (or thousands) of accounts that pay a small monthly retainer in return for a low output. Cheap SEO companies aren’t worried about losing clients. In most cases, they’ve got a long list of business owners who are looking for the ‘cheapest and the best’ SEO without really understanding the consequences of their corner-cutting, black hat SEO techniques.

Affordable SEO Sydney refers to a standard of quality at a competitive price. Affordable SEO Sydney delivers high-quality SEO services followed by the book, for a reasonable amount of money.

Cheap SEO goes beyond the price of the service. Cheap SEO extends to the quality of the SEO work and the strategies used to achieve SEO results.

Initially, the costs of cheap Sydney SEO services will be lower than those of affordable Sydney SEO.

However, in the long-run, cheap SEO will come with nasty consequences that will end up costing your Sydney business hundreds or even thousands of dollars.

addordable vs. cheap seo Pro's and Cons List

How Much Should SEO in Sydney Cost?

Let’s start by breaking down what it actually means for Sydney SEO to be “cheap”.

Cheap SEO is when a Sydney SEO consultant or agency offer search engine optimisation for a ridiculously low price. To put a number on it, anything under $500 a month should be treated with caution. Most reputable SEO agencies will charge a minimum monthly retainer for an SEO campaign, or, in some cases, do project work that costs $100-150 per-hour

Cheap SEO opens the door to allow for spammy and untrustworthy SEO agencies that can cause harm to your business, your reputation, search engine visibility and your overall online presence.

The reality is, while SEO prices in Sydney can be hugely inconsistent, those offering you services below the average price are usually operating on a high-client volume, high-turnover basis with little regard for delivering tangible results.

The reality is, while SEO prices in Sydney can be hugely inconsistent, it’s important to understand what you’re signing up for.

Cheap SEO companies rely on a high-volume of low-cost accounts that are given little (or no) attention each month. Cheap SEO companies spend the majority of their time onboarding new clients, but very little time servicing them and delivering on the promises that won them the account to begin with.

cheap SEO packages to look out for

The Blueprint for Cheap SEO Services

1. Low Quality

With cheap SEO services, there is no room for high-quality work. People offering cheap SEO in Sydney obviously don’t put any value on their work, hence it being offered at such a low price. If a company can afford to sell their services for so little, they can’t afford to put the necessary time and effort into providing high quality services, or they have little or no experience in the industry. Cheap SEO services are never high-quality SEO services.

2. Black Hat Techniques

The tactics used by Cheap Sydney SEO companies are known for being shady. SEO strategies that are deliberately deceitful, manipulative and sneaky, are black hat SEO techniques. Cheap SEO relies on fast and sneaky results that are provided by black hat SEO.

Legitimate SEO success takes months of strategic work to acquire. Black hat SEO goes directly against Google guidelines in order to achieve quicker and sneaky results. Truthfully, cheap SEO is almost always reliant on Black hat SEO tactics that will almost certainly get you into trouble.

3. Google Penalties

While the initial cost of cheap Sydney SEO is low, the services can end up costing your business thousands. Cheap SEO is all about cutting corners and cheating the system with black hat techniques. Once Google catches wind of your website being directly linked with these methods, they will consequentially penalise your website.

Getting your website and company reputation back on track after a Google penalty can sometimes take years and will often be very expensive. The best way to avoid a penalty? Steer clear of cheap SEO Sydney companies using black hat practices.

4. One-Size-Fits-All SEO Campaign

Cheap SEO will not allow for a personalised and tailored SEO campaign. Low quality services have no regard for the business, it’s goals, and what it may individually require in order to see results.

Every business in Sydney is different, and therefore, every SEO campaign needs to be entirely unique. Cheap SEO services use cookie cutter techniques that do not allow for disparities in companies. While their methods might be ok for one or two businesses, SEO campaigns are much more effective when appropriately tailored.

5. Grand Promises

Cheap SEO companies will make promises they can’t keep. There is no shortage of low-cost SEO companies that claim to be the best, most experiences, and most trustworthy.

A reputable SEO company will not guarantee you a number 1 ranking position or a 400% increase in traffic – that would just be irresponsible. If you come across an SEO deal that seems too good to be true, that’s exactly what it is.

6. Short Lived

Sometimes cheap SEO Sydney companies will provide a website with traffic and high rankings. The problem is, these results are almost always short-lived.

Quality SEO is a sustainable solution that will continue to improve and enhance a website. As opposed to cheap SEO, wherein they will use black hat tactics to skyrocket traffic from bots, that will last just 24 hours before coming crashing down.

7. Churn and Burn

A method commonly used by cheap, shady SEO companies is the churn and burn practice. This is when an agency will offer a crazy SEO deal to onboard as many clients as possible, while paying each client little or no attention. They will continue to get as many clients as possible while ignoring each SEO campaign until the client cancels.

Unfortunately, the churn and burn method is extremely common in the low-cost SEO industry. It’s the risk you run when you engage with cheap SEO.

What the Google Penguin update means for websites

Here’s the deal, SEO requires a large amount of time, planning, attention, and resources to do correctly. If you’re expecting to be able to pay less for Sydney SEO than any other marketing strategy, you’re asking for trouble. In order for SEO to make a positive impact, an expert needs time create a customised SEO strategy that targets lucrative, revenue-driving traffic for your business. It is possible however, for Sydney SEO to be affordable.

What is “Affordable” Sydney SEO?

Affordable, on the other hand, implies that there are low costs involved, but a measure of quality is still maintained. SEO services that are affordable will cost more than cheap SEO Sydney services, but still be reasonably priced. It is entirely possible to find SEO services in Sydney that are high quality and won’t break the bank.

The benefits of working with an affordable Sydney SEO company include:

1. High-Quality

Affordable SEO does not mean a compromise on quality. There are plenty of reputable Sydney SEO companies that offer reasonably priced SEO services. This standard of quality means you can rest assured knowing more time, work, and effort will be going into your SEO campaign.

Working with a trustworthy company will allow for increased visibility, high quality content creation, meaningful backlinks, improved organic traffic and more conversions. All of this can be achieved by choosing affordable SEO providers in Sydney.

2. White Hat Methods

White hat SEO refers to the strict following of Google’s guidelines to achieve SEO success. Non-compliance with the guidelines set by Google is great cause for a penalty. When it comes to good SEO, compliance matters.

Opting for affordable Sydney SEO over cheap SEO means benefitting from white hat SEO methods as reputable companies will avoid black hat tactics at all costs. Affordable companies will work with the rules to ensure your business stays in Google’s good books.

what is white hat SEO?

3. Tailored Campaign

Customisation of an SEO campaign is crucial to the success of SEO strategies. An affordable and reputable Sydney SEO company will take the time to personalise and tailor an SEO campaign around the needs and requirements of each business. Paying a little bit more than cheap SEO will allow for more time spent nurturing the campaign to meet the business goals.

4. Realistic Goals

Affordable SEO will allow for a consultant to be honest with you and effectively communicate what is realistic and what is unreasonable with your budget.

A Sydney company offering affordable SEO will not make ridiculous promises and guarantee Google rankings. They will however, set realistic goals for your business that they can achieve with strategic optimisation.

5. Long-Term Strategies

Good SEO takes time, but the payoff will be high. Affordable SEO services allow for long-term strategies that will continue to help the business grow, even after the campaign has finished.

The difference between cheap and affordable SEO will be the sustainability of the results. While cheap SEO can provide quick and fast traffic, it is short lived. Affordable SEO means relying on high quality SEO solutions that are long-term driven and will continue to keep on giving.

6. Measurable Results

Working with a legitimate Sydney SEO company that offers affordable services will provide your business with measurable results. Cheap SEO companies do not have the time or resources to be able to work with tools to analyse an SEO campaign. Engaging with a reputable company will mean having access to analytics and data measurements that you can track the progress of the campaign with.

7. High Return on Investment (ROI)

The main difference between cheap SEO and affordable SEO will be the return on investment. Cheap SEO offers little or no return on investment, as the quality of work is always dismal, short-term, and it uses tactics that go against Google’s guidelines.

Affordable SEO opens up the door to good Sydney SEO at a reasonable price. This allows for a standard of work to be sustained, without compromising quality. The long-term work being put into good SEO will see that overtime; ROI will completely overtake initial investment.

difference between cheap SEO and sustainable SEO

Final Thoughts

It is entirely possible for a small business to get affordable and effective SEO services in Sydney. All it takes is an increased awareness into the difference between cheap SEO services and affordable SEO services.

There is no shortage of Sydney SEO companies looking to make a quick buck. The key to deciphering the good from the bad is educating yourself and thoroughly screening any prospective agencies.

Forget large promises and low prices, consider the importance of your website and who’s hands you want it in. The question you really need to consider is; how much are you willing to invest in your business? Because that’s what SEO is: an investment.