Search Engine Optimization Agreement:

 

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Overview

RankOne Marketing will provide a variety of custom tailored SEO services for the Client with the
purpose of increasing targeted web traffic to your website through organic search results in major search engines. The scope of work is detailed below.

Keyword Research

Identify the specific words and phrases used by your prospective clients and customers to find the products and services you offer.

Here are the primary criteria we’ll be using:

• Existing Rankings: identify any terms you are currently ranking for, and if they meet the criteria below, work to push them to the top of page 1.

• Searcher Intent: terms that represent individuals actively searching for what you offer – i.e. “motivated buyers”.

• Search Volume: terms that get searched for enough on a monthly basis that they will produce a meaningful amount of traffic to your site once we hit page 1.

• Competition: terms we can realistically expect to rank for in a 3, 6 or 12 or 24 month time frame. The end result will be a list of the highest ROI terms your website could possibly rank for.

On-Site Optimization

Identify the best pages on your website to rank for each of these terms and “optimize” them; the purpose

of which is to ensure that each page is relevant to its intended term and valuable to its intended audience. Here are the primary optimizations we’ll be making:

• Title Tags: write unique and descriptive title tags that incorporate our target search terms for each page we intend to rank. The title tag is the blue “headline” that appears for your site in the search results and is one of the most important on-site factors search engines consider when determining what a page is about.

• Meta Descriptions: meta descriptions appear as the sub-text below your headline in search results. While no longer considered a ranking factor directly, they are used to give searchers a glimpse of what the page is about and encourage click-thrus to the site (which can impact your rankings).

• Heading Tags: HTML header tags help break the content of the page into sections and let search engines know more about what each section of content is about. They are defined by the text that appears between the <h1></h1> – <h6></h6> tags within the page document.

• Page Content: incorporate our target search terms into their intended landing pages in a way that is natural and useful to your site visitors. Ensure that each page is as relevant and valuable to a user’s search query as possible.

• Image Alt Text: short descriptive text used in the code behind important images and pictures throughout the site. Useful for visitors who have images blocked, and provides further information to search engines as to what each page is about.

• Internal Link Structure: go through each page on the site and link descriptive words and phrases to relevant pages on the site. Helps guide visitors and search engines through your site and serves as another indicator of relevance.

• Sitemaps: XML and HTML sitemaps will be reviewed (or created) to ensure both search engines and users can locate all of the important pages on your website with ease.

• Google Webmaster Tools: a thorough audit will be conducted to check for any issues that may be impacting user experience and/or hindering your search engine rankings. Examples include crawling or indexing issues, warnings- penalties or errors, page load speed, mobile experience, and more.

The end result will be a website that is fully optimized and ready to rank for the most profitable terms in your industry and creates the best user experience for your visitors.

Off-Site Link Building

Identify the most relevant and authoritative websites in your industry and earn a link back to your website from theirs.

Here are the primary criteria we’ll be using:

• Relevant: websites whose audiences consist of your prospective clients and customers.

• Authoritative: websites with a strong reputation for providing value to a target market and receive increasing amounts of traffic, backlinks, and social engagement.

• Traffic Potential: websites that have the ability to send qualified referral traffic to your site. In other words, websites who provide value above and beyond a backlink for ranking purposes. In most cases, this will be a result of the criteria above.

• Human Element: websites that are actively maintained by human beings. In almost all cases, the links we build will involve direct contact with an individual person.

Content Consultation & Promotion

We will advise you and your team on how to create new content for your website and blog that will maximize the results of our SEO campaign, gain additional exposure for your business, and further establish you as a leader in your industry.

Here are the primary services this will include:

• Keyword Research: using the criteria above (searcher intent, search volume, and competition) we will provide specific topic ideas for you to write about.

• Content Creation: once a piece of content has been written by you or our team, we will optimize it for one or more target search terms from the research above.  You will be required to approve any content our writers create under your name prior to publishing.

• Content Optimization: once a piece of content has been written by you or your team, we will optimize it for one or more target search terms from the research above.

• Formatting: format the content in a way that increases readability and “shareability” (i.e. the likelihood that the content will get shared). This will include things like headlines / sub-headlines, numbers and bullets, font styling and more.

• Promotion: promote certain pieces of content to websites that meet the criteria in the Off-Site Link Building section above.

Reporting, Analysis & Growth

A monthly performance report will be provided to you for the purpose of clearly identifying your website rankings growth, traffic volumes and relative domain indexes.

Here are the primary metrics and insights we’ll be including:

• Rankings: the exact position within the search results that each of your target terms are ranking for, month over month.

• Traffic: the total traffic to your site, as well as the total organic traffic to your site (i.e. traffic specifically from search results), month over month.

• KPIs: (optional) these could include things such as bounce rate, time on site, pages per visit, contact form submissions, newsletter subscriptions, etc.

• Opportunities: ideas and insights for campaign improvement. These may include things such as new keyword suggestions, further optimizations to on-site components, business and networking opportunities, and more.

Service Summary

Keyword Research (included)

On-Site Optimization (included)

Off-Site Link-Building (included)

Content Consultation & Promotion (included)

Reporting, Analysis & Growth (included)

Authorization to Commence Work

Cubicle Concepts wishes to retain RankOne Marketing for Search Engine Optimization services. The following terms shall govern certain activities conducted by RankOne Marketing that will commence on the date of SEO Package purchase.

1. Payment Terms

Client agrees to pay RankOne Marketing for all services rendered by RankOne Marketing in accordance with this agreement. Services will commence upon receipt of payment. Please note that on-page optimization efforts typically require two to six weeks, depending on the size of the campaign. This time is considered part of the overall term. Payments will be due and charged automatically each month.

2. Agreement & Termination

This Agreement is for a period of months stated in the purchased package, beginning at the start date, after which point the Agreement will roll into a 6 month auto renewing contract that may be cancelled after each 6 month term.  Client shall be financially responsible for each monthly billing sum up until the contract comes to full term.

3. Payment Terms & Schedule

SEO Package amount due on each monthly automatic billing for the entire length of the Agreement.  Any late or returned payments are subject to a 3% per month late payment penalty fee.

4. Process

RankOne Marketing will provide the following services:

A. Keyword Research

B. On-Site Optimization

C. Off-Site Link Building

D. Content Consultation, Creation & Promotion

E. Reporting, Analysis & Growth

5. Logistics

FTP Access is recommended. With the exception of database driven websites, it is suggested that the Client allows RankOne Marketing direct access to its website (via FTP). However, if the Client prefers, all updated web files may be delivered via email directly to the Client’s IT webmaster. Client agrees to be responsible for all fees incurred by their webmaster to complete the uploading process.

Backups: Client agrees to be responsible for having a separate copy of their website before releasing FTP access and will not hold RankOne Marketing liable for any unlikely or incidental issues caused to the Client’s website.

Future redesigns. Client agrees to notify RankOne Marketing of any major changes or redesigns to the website, which may affect the optimization efforts made by RankOne Marketing. If such changes are excessive, RankOne Marketing will quote the Client on the estimated hours at a rate of $125 per hour to provide necessary re- optimization to previously completed websites.

6. Warranties / Guarantees*

For our Standard SEO Packages, RankOne Marketing does not make any representation or warranty of any kind, whether express or implied, including without limitation any warranty of merchantability. Because RankOne Marketing has no control over the individual search engines, RankOne Marketing is unable to guarantee a specific increase in rankings, traffic or sales. However, based on typical results of services provided by RankOne Marketing, the majority of clients choose to renew and/or upgrade upon completion of their term.

For Custom Guaranteed* SEO Packages, RankOne Marketing provides the client with Guaranteed* Page 1 of Google® Search Engine Results Page ranking by the end of the full term the Custom SEO Package stipulates.  The term must be paid in full and run its natural course for the Guarantee to apply.  The Guarantee* applies for the specific Guaranteed* keywords stipulated in the Custom SEO Package only.  The definition of the Guarantee* is as follows: RankOne Marketing shall continue its SEO efforts at the same level equivalent of the Custom SEO Package up to the equivalence of the original term at the expense of RankOne Marketing and not the client until Google® Page 1 Search Results are attained or the original term equivalence expires.  The Guarantee* is based on competitive analysis and market conditions provided in the initial on-boarding package; substantial changes to the marketplace and competitive scope would require an increase in the monthly Custom Package.  If such an instance arises, the client will be immediately notified and can at that point either choose to maintain the same level of package, but forfeit the Guarantee*, upgrade to the level required for the new marketplace and keep the Guarantee*, or elect early termination of the current Term and Agreement.

7. General Release of Liability

In no event shall RankOne Marketing be liable for any special, exemplary, indirect, incidental, consequential or punitive damages of any kind or nature (including, without limitation, lost business or lost profits etc., or lost records or data, whether or not the possibility of such damages was disclosed or is reasonably foreseeable by such party, and whether in an action based on contract, warranty, tort or otherwise. Client agrees that for and in return for sufficient, good and valuable consideration for Website development services provided herein, the receipt and sufficiency of which is hereby acknowledged, do hereby release and forever discharge RankOne Marketing, their agents, employees, successors and assigns, and their respective heirs, personal representatives, affiliates, successors and assigns, and any and all persons, firms or corporations liable or who might be claimed to be liable, whether or not herein named, none of whom admit any liability to the undersigned, but all expressly denying liability, from any and all actions, causes of action, lawsuits, claims and demands which I now have or may hereafter have, arising out of or in any way relating to any and all injuries and damages of any and every kind, to both person and property, and also any and all injuries and damages that may develop in the future, as a result of or in any way relating to the following: website development services, programming services, technical writing services, and any consulting that is related in any way to the business activities of the Client.  The Client further agrees that foregoing the above, RankOne Marketing’s legal and financial exposure is limited to any unused portion of the Clients SEO Packages term.

It is understood and agreed that this release of liability is made in full and complete settlement and satisfaction of the aforesaid actions, causes of action, claims and demands; that this release contains the entire agreement between the parties; and that the terms of this Agreement are contractual and not merely a recital. Furthermore, this release shall be binding upon the undersigned and his/her respective heirs, executors, administrators, personal representatives, successors and assigns.

Non-Infringement: It is the Client’s responsibility to verify that all graphics, trademarks and/or text that RankOne Marketing inserts within the Client’s website, press releases, text links, directory listings, etc is legally owned by the Client, or that the Client has received permission from the rightful owner(s) to use. Client will hold harmless, protect, and defend RankOne Marketing and its employees from any liability or suit arising from improper use of such elements.

8. Choice of Law

Any dispute arising from this Agreement, including, without limitation, a breach of this Agreement, shall be governed by the laws of Illinois. Client and RankOne Marketing agree to submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of and consent to exclusive venue in the General District of Chicago, IL.

9. Confidentiality

During the performance of services, it may be necessary for either party to disclose or make available to the other certain confidential information or materials which are not generally known in the relevant trade or industry. Each party agrees that it will maintain the confidentiality of all Confidential Information of the other party, and shall not use or disclose the Confidential Information of the other for any purpose, except for the services to be performed hereunder. However, neither party shall be required to keep confidential any data or information which is or becomes publicly available without fault on the part of the receiving party, is already in the receiving party’s possession prior to receipt from the other party, is independently developed by the receiving party outside the scope of this letter and without reference to the Confidential Information of the other party, or is rightfully obtained from third parties.