my mum had a call from top page marketing and has parted with 400 quid to get up google rankings. I dont really get SEO so was wondering if she has wasted her money (didnt consult me first..grr)? They want passwords to my server to get into her site so figured I'd ask here first?

url is:

www.stressmanagementcounselling.com

 

cheers

t.c.

how did she pay? credit card? I'd see about getting it refunded so you can check them out.

googling they seem legit.....don't take my word for it though but they have a robust defence here to some claims that they are someone else that is dodgy(?) http://phoneowner.info/Number.aspx/01642913558/4

Looks very spammy to me, they can't even code sematic HTML.

 

They're definately using black hat tactics, look at http://www.orbisdigital.co.uk/ and you'll find a ton of hidden text.

 

Get your money back before they butcher your mum's site...

Surely they don't need access to your server to change the site? They could just have ftp details?

 

I have been bitten by this a few years ago before I got into web design. Sadly, in a lot of cases, it is a scam.

 

Best thing to do, is to ask for a refund asap. There should be some form of terms and conditions.

cheers for the fast response and link, I didnt manage to google anything about them?

Dont like their site (tables)... hardly reassuring.

Looks like this is the package she's signed up to:

http://www.toppagemarketing.co.uk/servicesSuper.html

looks like:

google analytics (got)

google places (got)

adwords, keywords

automatic monthly submission- ...didnt .net magazine include GSA auto web submitter this month which does the same thing?

 

Also I dont know how to set a password for one particular domain as it is an add on domain as I dont want anyone messing in my server.

 

Ive looked at commerce law and it looks like there is a 7 day cooling off period.

So my question is should she bin them and if so is there a better option for her SEO?

 

cheers

t.c.

Just looked at their site......don't rate their "SEO" efforts.

Yes - bin it! if you're not sure - get a refund and you can do your research in the meantime.

 

There's lots of people on here that can help you with SEO, plus there's a few good sites. Ideally, you want to concentrate on on-page SEO which is adding meta data to the site, and ensuring the copy on the site is optimised for a few keywords & phrases.

 

I'm no expert though, but there's a dedicated area on this forum for it.

 

Please get your mum her money back.

yes, Google threw up some interesting sites they'd added their 'optimised by' message.

 

for £400 I'd bin them and at least look at other options/attempts.

sorry mrsminkie your reply came through while I was typing my last response.

I upload via FTP using dreamweaver so if I give them FTP login, password, FTP address and folder details they cant mess with my other sites? Excuse me I a bit of a noob and dont concern myself too much with all this stuff.

I'm gonna see if she can get her money back tomorrow though I imagine it will be tricky.

 

cheers

t.c.

sorry mrsminkie your reply came through while I was typing my last response.

I upload via FTP using dreamweaver so if I give them FTP login, password, FTP address and folder details they cant mess with my other sites? Excuse me I a bit of a noob and dont concern myself too much with all this stuff.

I'm gonna see if she can get her money back tomorrow though I imagine it will be tricky.

@ Blue Dreamer

BTW have sold my house in Oundle so am now a permanent resident in Pitsford.

 

cheers

t.c.

 

It's ok - I've got itchy fingers today. If you give someone the FTP details for one site, then surely it can't affect any others. However, I really would just get the refund - SEO is something you can do yourself.

 

When did your mum actually part with her money, and what Terms (if any) were discussed?

they phoned her up...got her off yellow pages...told her the same sorta stuff I told her about SEO except I said I dont have the knowledge to do it and obviously they do...bla,bla,bla. I imagine she paid them last week as she mailed me about it friday...no idea what terms were discussed? obviously they told her they would get her on google page 1 for keywords I suggested.

I dont really know what hiden text is but I recall reading it is frowned upon by Google etc.

 

thanks ever so much for your prompt responses, I'm sick of seeing friends getting stiched up by chancers lately!

How did she pay? Sometimes you can cancel the payment. There should be some terms and conditions....

do distance selling rules apply?

probably debit card

here are t&c's from their site:

http://www.toppagemarketing.co.uk/tac.html

dunno bout distance selling rules, think 7 day period refers to doorstep selling which I assumed was same thing

obviously they told her they would get her on google page 1 for keywords I suggested.

No-one can guarantee that

 

I dont really know what hiden text is but I recall reading it is frowned upon by Google etc.

This link explains it all - http://www.google.com/support/webmasters/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=66353

 

Google have produced their own guide to how to "optimise" a site, well worth downloading and doing it yourself - http://www.google.com/webmasters/docs/search-engine-optimization-starter-guide.pdf

Thanks as I guess if I do get her money back I will be somewhat responsible for her SEO.

Any other suggestions on better ways to spend her 400 quid?

 

cheers

t.c.

Thanks as I guess if I do get her money back I will be somewhat responsible for her SEO.

Any other suggestions on better ways to spend her 400 quid?

 

cheers

t.c.

 

There are a couple of good members on this forum who offer quality SEO services. I would ask Charliesaidthat or S3 Web Design. They have always seems very informative, have great blogs and very nice people.

maybe a bigger monitor for you to work on lol

errrr...dont geddit??? Not cos of my bad spelling izit?

no, if there's £400 going you could get her to invest in something for you to use

funny as I was just planning on buying a bigger monitor as current one is too small

probably debit card

here are t&c's from their site:

http://www.toppagemarketing.co.uk/tac.html

 

These terms and conditions are extremely poor. They don't even make much sense.

 

They mention a refund policy and a specification. Do you have any form of specification for the service? It implies that one is needed to form the 'contract'.

funny as I was just planning on buying a bigger monitor as current one is too small

 

cool and they are really very useful for SEO work. fact. lol

dunno bout distance selling rules, think 7 day period refers to doorstep selling which I assumed was same thing

 

If its for your mums business then its a business to business transaction and I'm pretty sure they don't come under that law.

 

 

Why all the hate against SEOs?? And why all the hate against people making a living?

where's the hate?

The hate is with everyone saying get your money back, but with no proof that what they do doesn't work.

I was saying get the money back and look at options rather than applying for something via a cold call over the phone. Not hate, just sense.

Out of interest, what where the keywords your mum wants her site to found on Google for?

 

I guess 'stress management counselling', but anything else?

 

The only reason I ask is because that phrase is going to be almost impossible to beat without a lot of work and a good few years.

 

The site at number one is over 3 years old, with a PR4 and quite a few backlinks. Whilst your mums site is much newer!

actually keywords are 'counselling cambridge' as these were the ones I assumed most potential clients would google

originally site was not meant to be SEO'ed or wouldve gone for a more SEO friendly name.

If I thought they would do a good job then I'd be happy for her to use them, but the fact that they cold called her (from a yellow pages entry) didnt sound great to start with, told her they worked with google, were doing as special discount and concentrating on her type of business in certain areas...the usual bull****.

Their site also hardly filled me with confidence. I'm a noob but can see its poor.

Most people in her business are 'one man and his dog' outfits who have used a cheap design service for their sites and dont know much about all things internet so I imagine are easy targets for these people.

They offor a 30 day money back guarantee but with the proviso :-

*Please Note - The guarantee becomes void & null if we don’t receive your FTP Details (Access to your website) within 7 working days.

Depends, they may want to make background changes to how say a CMS generates content or to add url rewriting for example. SEO companies asking for ftp details is quite common.

 

The post above says they were asking for access to the server, not ftp.

actually keywords are 'counselling cambridge' as these were the ones I assumed most potential clients would google

originally site was not meant to be SEO'ed or wouldve gone for a more SEO friendly name.

If I thought they would do a good job then I'd be happy for her to use them, but the fact that they cold called her (from a yellow pages entry) didnt sound great to start with, told her they worked with google, were doing as special discount and concentrating on her type of business in certain areas...the usual bull****.

Their site also hardly filled me with confidence. I'm a noob but can see its poor.

Most people in her business are 'one man and his dog' outfits who have used a cheap design service for their sites and dont know much about all things internet so I imagine are easy targets for these people.

They offor a 30 day money back guarantee but with the proviso :-

*Please Note - The guarantee becomes void & null if we don’t receive your FTP Details (Access to your website) within 7 working days.

 

That's why I was asking you when your mum paid - have you requested a refund yet? Or a schedule?

They offor a 30 day money back guarantee but with the proviso :-

*Please Note - The guarantee becomes void & null if we don't receive your FTP Details (Access to your website) within 7 working days.

I'm no lawyer but I'll bet my boots that's totally against the law. I'd suggest contacting Trading Standards over a statement like that.

found this review:

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps/user?uid=111240752969020448933&hl=en&gl=GB

nice. not defending them but those sort of reviews can be posted by anyone, even competitors.

 

as others have said their guarantee statement is bad. I'd get on the refund NOW path straight away and see what they say. Then look at the Trading Standards route or talking to your bank.

she has already asked for a refund and contacted bank but transaction already authorised.

has already had 2 replys:

 

"Gill as a company we are still willing to carry out the work for you and google have validated you and its all set up for you

and business to business sales there is no cool off period.

Also by law you hosting company have to give you ftp to access your site as its your site and you pay for them to host."

 

and later:

 

"Just had a email from a company asking who we are as your son has left a coment about us, as we can tell your son is the host to your site and when I sold you this product you told me you could get the details very easy as its your son who did the site for you.

All we want to do is get the site onto google and get you the business you need from your site."

 

hmmmmm......

hmmm, so if they are using B2B then where is their contract?

Interesting article at http://www.w24.co.uk/

more on this outfit http://phoneowner.info/Number.aspx/01642913558/4

If I adhere to their terms and conditions i.e. give them access to the site via FTP is it possible I would them be able to get refund according to their terms? (not ideal but site has no traffic so no great loss, just dont imagine they'll stick to their end of the bargain)?

If I own the site and not her will it make a difference?

I'll give trading standards a go plus the missus works for a law firm so she'll have a chat with the relevant solicitor.

 

Many thanks for all your help so far!