Not every company can handle search engine optimization on its own, and may choose to outsource such needs instead. This is a perfectly reasonable way of doing things, and spares the client the need of having to front up cash and time to establish their own team. SEO outsourcing providers handle the task the client needs them to for a price, speeding up the process. However, there are times when even the service provider that the client has chosen has to outsource those tasks themselves. This is what is known as white label SEO.
What is this?
White label SEO is normally recognized as a variation on the value added reseller (VAR) distribution model. This means that a company purchases the service package from a small provider and markets these services as their own, with their labels and brand name and reputation. The actual provider is entirely invisible to any clients, and all correspondence and reports are held in the strictest confidentiality. Any communication that the provider has with the client must either pass through the outsourcing companies or have the information and logo of the reseller.
Why do this?
One of the claimed advantages of this is that the relationship with the client lies solely with the reseller. If the SEO outsourcing provider finds that the work being done is not up to the standards of the client, then the company has the option of simply hiring a different vendor’s services. This causes no lapse in the communication between the client and the reseller, since the sub-contracting was not within their association. This also allows medium-sized SEO outsourcing firms to offer their services to larger companies without spending resources on expansion before it is ready to.
Partial expansion
White label SEO is also done by some firms that are looking to expand, but are not yet ready to do so. IT firms that do not initially offer search engine optimization may turn to outsourcing companies to provide those services or act as consultants. This allows a company to build business contacts and clientele for SEO services while biding time to develop their own in-house team. This can also be utilized to handle orders from clients that are simply out of the scope of the reseller’s capacity to provide.
White label SEO practices may seem unusual, but they are legitimate and offer companies a few advantages. It is ultimately no different from standard reseller practices, with the exception that the service provider remains unknown to the client company. It can be a useful tool for an expanding company, increasing revenues and expanding clientele.