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We all love contests because they are fun, we can learn lots of interesting things from them, we can prove our expertise in a certain field and not only, we can earn some prizes the organisers are usually offering. This is not different at all when it comes to SEO competitions while only the best can reach the top 3. If you are looking to join one of the first 2011 UK SEO contests than WebmasterServe, a popular UK SEO Forum might be the perfect choice for this.
The SEO contest from WebmasterServe is due to start on 12th February and registration is opened from anyone that wants to participate and prove their skills. There are several cash prizes offered for winners, including a £1,000 prize for number one contestant but it is not the cash price that will attract competitors but the knowledge gained and also the fact that they can prove their experience in SEO might worth way much than money.
The UK SEO Contest will run over a period of 3 months and the keyword that competitors will have to rank is to be announced right before the contest kicks-off. On 11th May at exactly 12:00 midnight the winner will be announced based on Google.co.uk ranking, but the top contestants can be followed on a leaderboard from the forum.
As with any other competition, there are some strict guidelines that need to be followed, we should remind here:
- All SEOs that want to participate to UK Seo Contest must register to WebmasterServe forum
- Only English websites/pages accepted
- Only white hat SEO techniques, anyone using black hat methods will be disqualified, and other few enumerated on WebmasterServe forum
This UK Seo Contest is a great way to win some money and prove to yourself and other folks that you are one of the best SEO guys around so why not participating to 2011’s first SEO Contest and try to demonstrate you are the best?
Whether one is creating a blog or a ecommerce site, choosing a website designer that has the expertise and the appropriate skills for doing this job could become a difficult task if some points are not « checked ». There are lots of voices over the Internet that praise the web designers they worked with but even more the ones that blame their choice.
For being in the first category and choosing the right web designer available to do the work, here are some top notch tips anyone should take into consideration.
1. Not just one quote
Always ask for more quotes, best numbers would be around five quotes. This is not a fixed number though, there are lots of possibilities not a single quote to satisfy your needs, and by this I mean not agreeing with their rates or with the response promptitude. Choosing a web designer by comparing their quotes could be a great start into developing the website.
2. Is he good ?
Just searching on Google for « best website designer » and getting quotes from top 5 firms will definitely not get you in touch with the best ones available, and this is what are referrals for. Ask around, maybe there are friends or someone from your family that worked with a great web designer that would definitely be recommended. It then will be an easier task from choosing between the ones that were referred.
3. Search for online testimonials
When we are talking about testimonials we definitely do not mean testimonials on their website while they can be biased. There are hundreds of review sites where one could find important information about someone’s previous work. Moreover, asking the web designer to provide some contact of their previous customers for asking how they managed to do the work would be a great move. That’s how they will understand you mean serious business and you are not the person to play with.
4. Portfolio – a must !
Almost any web designer that sells his services on a personal website has a place for previous work, samples of websites he worked on or links to website they designed. If you cannot find this information on their website, always ask them to provide a portfolio, only after you see examples of their past work you can choose what suits your needs. No one wants a beginner to work on an ecommerce website for example unless it is part of the family/friends circle or sells his work as cheap as it gets.
5. Search for ongoing support
There are three types of web designers : the ones that do not provide any kind of support after website completion ; the ones that will happily provide support with no extra-charge and the ones that ask for a recurring fee, on a monthly paid basis. You definitely want to stick with the second category and it is a best move to talk about this issue before getting into business with the chosen web designer.
6. Can he satisfy your needs ?
Always look for a web designer with expertise in many fields, maybe one is looking for some features a certain web designer cannot provide, it is always best to know the answers before he starts the work. Sometimes his portfolio will answer all the questions…
7. Always sign papers !
There is no need for some fancy contracts but never assign a web designer to a work without signing a contract that clearly specify all the points you agreed upon. This is a win-win situation while disputes can occur when no one is expecting its, but having a signed agreement will definitely answer all the future answers. Have you come across a website designer that do not want to sign a contract ? Skip ! Search for another one that you share the same vision and ideas with.