If you’re like me, you receive a LOT of spam email everyday. And I receive, at least, one of these unsolicited emails offering SEO services every week.

The irony is the person directly states in their email (see below) they reviewd our site, yet somehow failed to notice we offer search optimization services. Really?

If you’re a business owner looking to bring more targeted traffic to your site, please DO NOT hire anyone who sends you an email like this.

Do your due diligence regarding SEO service providers. Look at their services, pricing, guarantee’s (by the way, no one can guarantee you a #1 ranking in Goggle) and make sure you ask for testimonials and case studies. SEO services are not inexpensive — it takes a lot of time. So make sure you’re not wasting money on scammers.

Please do not fall for these lame email pitches for SEO services.

Here’s the full email I received (identifying details have been redacted).

Hello, my name is (fill in the blank) and I am an internet marketing specialist.
 

I was looking at websites under the keyword advertising agency and came across your site YourSiteName.com.
 

I see that you’re ranked #X on page X in google. I am not sure if you are aware of why you are ranked this low but more importantly how easily correctable this is. There is no reason you cannot have a top three ranking for any keyword which is important to you based on your site structure and content.
 

You have a very nice site. You need significantly more one way anchor text backlinks. If you are interested I can help you with this… I am talking about getting you ranked for ALL your keywords.
 

Adding new backlinks on a steady and consistent basis from high PR quality websites is what produces the rankings you are looking for YourSiteName.com. The right kind of links are very critical in getting top ranking…. and I can hand deliver these quality links to you.
 

My partners and I own 1000’s of websites and offer private linking to hundreds of website owners just like yourself. I did not send this email out to very many people but I am currently reaching out to a list of your ‘keyword competitors’ as well. But I do favor your website because I can see your website monetizing the targeted website traffic this can deliver. I have your contact info as: phone #[REDACTED]. Is it ok if I give you a call? If so, just hit reply and give me the green light to call you for free consultation.
 

I have a very simple way to prove that what I do works and it is risk free for you to try. Nothing beats seeing the results with your own eyes. Is it ok if I give you a call? I would love to pursue this further over the phone with you or should I go somewhere else?
 

Sincerely, [REDACTED] Senior Executive [REDACTED].com
 

P.S – I am talking about keywords that produce the right kind of traffic… Traffic that delivers leads, sales and profits. Because getting a ranking that does not generate leads and sales is worthless. Is it Ok to give you a call? If so, just hit reply and tell me specifically who to ask for when I call and what time of day is best to reach that person.

If you’d like to stop receiving SEO spam emails, here’s a good how-to article to remove them using email filtering in cPanel.

This article was originally published on our Posterous account on May 11, 2009. And six years later, I’m still getting these emails, and the above advice still holds true.