I recently came across a document which highlighted a SEO strategy for a major UK based company. Now for legal reasons I can’t mention which company it is but they are huge in the UK and their industry is insurance.

Now I work on many clients but primarily the insurance sector, which is highly competitive and very lucrative if the rankings are achieved. Most of the clients I manage SEO for have achieved top 10 positions for their keywords but there are always a handful of websites that always sit on top, no matter what.

I have of course researched my competitors thoroughly, which everyone in SEO should do, looking at their design, backlinks, content, IP locations etc. At first glance all these elements look pretty standard, not much out of the ordinary – so it was a nice treat to see how these “top dogs” have managed this.

A huge network of at least 100 websites has been created; some websites date back to 1999 so this method has been used for a long time, and has really only started working perfectly for the last 12-18 months. Each of these websites is very high quality, most of them ranking in the top 5/10 for each niche. The niches aren’t limited to one or two either, they are quite varied.

The network is made up by at least 15 different IP addresses, each providing between 4-20 websites on each, the more important websites being hosted on IP’s with the least amount of websites or even on their own.

Paid links have been commonly used on most of these websites which has added to their individual values, but here’s the sneaky part. If a new website is added to this network (which probably pays an enormous amount of $$$) then no links are bought directly, instead the related sites on the network get the links they then link to the “new site”. This means with these high quality sites only having 2-4 outgoing links, the juice is massive!

Now I know that most companies have sub departments with additional websites but this method is taking it to the next level. Literally millions of $$$ have been spent on this network but for this one particular insurance company, that price must have been recovered in a few weeks.

It’s just worth noting that even “trusted” brands that have been around for many years might not always play nice when it comes to rankings and strategies.

Firstly a brief definition on what an SEO lemming is;

“An SEO lemming is a human being whose nature it is to believe another human being because they sound like they know what they are talking about. In doing this you will be influenced in to doing anything without realising it. You may find yourself digging a hole with your bare hands for no apparent reason, building a bridge, parting with huge sums of cash to appear on the first page of Google – or if you’re really unlucky you will notice a number appear above your head and proceed counting down.”

How to avoid becoming an SEO lemming?

1. If you receive an email from an “SEO Company” with their “analysis” of your website, right click and mark as spam – exposure to such material can lead to SEO lemming symptoms.
2. If you are approached by anyone in regards to SEO without asking to be, just mention you know what an SEO lemming is and don’t want to become one!
3. You want to invest in SEO, that’s excellent news – read some trusted SEO blogs on the basics so you know what to avoid. Simply type “seo blog” in Google and choose the websites on the left of the page with a white background.
4. Understand this – SEO is a long term strategy that requires investment. If you are after a “quick fix” then unfortunately you are already under the influence and you’re an SEO lemming – watch out if you find your hair turning green.
5. If you submit a tender and you are approached by SEO companies, check their websites out. If you see any of the following phrases, please avoid;

a. Top 10 or your money back
b. Guaranteed first page
c. Only $xxx to get on Google
d. We have been around since time began
e. SEO lemmings are cool

I am already an SEO lemming – what can I do?

1. The first stage of recovery is to acknowledge you are an SEO lemming – well done!
2. If you are showing symptoms at an early stage, there is still time for you – please revert to point 3 in the section above for a minimum of 2 weeks with lots of rest.
3. If you are going to part with cash make sure you talk to the guys and question them about their SEO methods. It’s advisable that you have a sit down with the companies – this will combat most SEO lemming judgements.
4. Use your common sense, if you can remember what that is. If it sounds quick and easy it’s expensive and useless.
5. You can try denying the fact that you are an SEO lemming, this might make you feel better temporarily but this is not a long term solution.

On a side note – if you would like to play the original game:
http://www.elizium.nu/scripts/lemmings/