Open Letter to the Jason Gambert Fanboys & the SEO Standards Crowd

Dear People Who Want Other People to Tell Them How to Run Your Business,

You all know how I feel about SEO standards, and lord knows I know how all you all feel. But here’s the deal – you people are dragging me down.

Especially you Jason Gambert fanboys.

Most of the SEO Standards crowd are, for the most part, polite. Sure, some of the conversation has gotten heated, but hey, passionate debate does that and it’s been heated on both sides. But all you all need to police the Gambert fanboys. It’s kind of like keeping your own in check. They’re coming in here and making clowns of themselves and making you people look a little silly. And I think it’s all one dude. But whatever. Just don’t let the vocal minority become your mouthpiece is what I’m getting at.

Next, all you all are gonna’ screw this collection of SEO industry junk up! People are going to start coming here expecting to learn something! I don’t need that kind of shit! That’s way too much pressure! I gave you people my own set of SEO Standards – either follow them or don’t. And I’m guessing you all are in the “don’t” column as I have yet to see any friggin’ silver! And hey, I’m not even strong arming you like Gambert is!

Now I’m going to be serious for a moment. I hear a lot of people demanding friggin’ SEO standards to legitimize the industy, to make us appear to be more than service providers. I read people worrying about others getting scammed and fretting over making “legitimate” search marketers look different than their “black hat” brethren and sisterthen (I know, I know, it isn’t a friggin’ word. Deal with it.). The fact of the matter is that as long as people refuse to do the due diligence research before entering into a partnership with a company, people are going to get scammed. SEO standards will not help these people. Furthermore, just because there are guidelines and badges saying a company is approved, that doesn’t mean that company will not scam anyone; it does not mean that the client won’t feel scammed; it doesn’t mean that the approved company has any ethics. It simply means they paid their money, perhaps signed something and maybe took a test. And if you want SEO standards just so you look better, then you need to hire public relations. There’s a lot more to being a “professional” than simply having standards and guidelines. In the end, SEO standards may just be giving those that are causing all the hand-wringing a way to to look legitimate while screwing over a client.

The bottom line is you can only trust yourself to do what’s right. Spell out what you feel is appropriate and live by it.

Sincerely,

SEO Hack