There are many reputable companies that are both knowledgeable and ethical in marketing SEO (Search Engine Optimization) strategies and services, but there are also a significant number of companies out there that will take advantage of buyers that are expecting honest value for their investment, but getting nothing in return. Case in point: after a major redesign, our client was extremely happy with the site, particularly with the enhanced administration capabilities which allowed them to keep the site content updated and fresh without incurring outside costs. And while it had improved significantly in search engine rankings, they still felt compelled to entertain a proposal from a well-known interactive company to optimize their site for search engines. I'll admit the proposal was impressive, lots of buzz words, IT lingo and statistics. The price tag was also impressive, about $30,000. Without our knowledge, the client signed up. In a spirit of cooperation, we asked the client to share the proposal with us so we could see what aspects we had, perhaps, missed when we redesigned the site. We discovered that the search engine gurus failed to let our client know that everything they were recommending was already part of the administration of the site; the client was  just not using it yet. Once we brought this to the attention of the internet company, they acknowledged that they couldn't add anything to their site to improve SEO. They agreed to reallocate the $30,000 to online advertising and Pay-Per-Click services. Be smart, beware and get the big picture on SEO.