You Better Pray...

[Elisabeth]

You are not the "SEO firm" (and I'll use that phrase VERY lightly) I just found claiming my work over the last 8 months as your 'successful SEO' results in your SUMMER 2004 newsletter.

Because those rankings didn't come until well after I got done removing invisible gifs to your junky doorway pages, that you put in well over a year ago and never gave the client any return, who came to me desparate for help in a competitive industry, and I did the job as a favor to a friend and because it was clear they had already been hosed once by their SEO/hosting service.

You better hope I don't keep digging up dirt on you. Oops. too late.

be afraid. very afraid. I'll be your worst nightmare come tomorrow morning.

grrr....

i'm generally not a SPAM reporter - and I probably still won't report the company's shoddy techniques to the engines because they aren't a threat that way -

but other people claiming MY Work as their own is something I WILL NOT tolerate.

[seobook]

yipes for someone...

bummer deal for all parties involved

http://www.pirated-sites.com/
perhaps seo-pirated-sites.com is in order?

[projectphp]

Hell hath no fury...

[DianeV]

I hate that, Elizabeth. I've had my entire site copied before. Go get 'em.

[Elisabeth]

Originally Posted by DianeV

I hate that, Elizabeth. I've had my entire site copied before. Go get 'em.

to be clear, they didn't copy a site or optimization done by me - they're claiming the rankings the site has now is due to their "SEO" work done in the far past. (interestingly, the client is not listed on their client list though)

back in the spring i took down their pages and doorway links. site went from a PR3 to a PR5 now.

But flat out copying articles & presentations REALLY gets me too, especially where it's a situation where they just wanted the content, and I would have agreed in exchange for a byline & link, if they had just asked first. common courtesy would have gone much further -
but that's when I just go straight to the DMCA in that case.

[DianeV]

Sorry; I should have clarified that I understood that they were claiming the rankings. I could have been clearer.

Yes, I've found the DMCA extremely helpful. As are web hosts who have been provided with proof.

[Elisabeth]

well, in the interest of dealing with this right away, I was probably going to give them a call directly tomorrow- and demand they take it down immediately on their own will, before any legal steps are taken, usually that's enough to get their interest.

but considering it's their "summer" newsletter, it's been out there longer than I would have liked, meaning they've likely profited in some way from using that example - and it just really gets me that they could be claiming those techniques get clients results.

And I'm wondering if I should really go the direct route this time, not that this is a case where I could really get a retraction/restitution out of them anyway, or if we should also report to the BBB because they are making false claims on their services.

[Incubator]

Hi Elisabeth, sorry to hear about your situation. They obviously do not seem to care since they have sent out an email to at least there client base. in other mediums they should follow up with a re-traction or correction on an immediate new email release at the min. for you. somehow i dont think that is going to happen.

You will probally step into legal here but i would out them on the major forums and then wait for there response while the legal is in process, this kind of crap is another problem in the seo/sem world that needs to be stopped.

I wish you luck, we have been there so i know what your going through

Cheers

WC

[Chris_D]

Elisabeth

Believe me - what comes around - goes around. I had almost exactly the same thing happen just a few weeks ago.....

Bloody funny. Actually - in hindsight - it was too bloody funny.

It took the prospect about 3 nanoseconds to work out who did the work - and who had NFI.

I'm sure that you will be able to leverage this in exactly the same way.....

Cherish it. When you get to slam dunk them - you'll see what I mean!



Chris

[dstew]

Just appalling and disgusting...I can't believe people would actually bethis stupid either. So you put up false claims to get clients. When you do the work and your clients don't see the benefit, what then? Just stupid and disgusting.

[Chris Boggs]

...see the PR 10

It's funny, because I actually went to the same high school as Al Gore...coincidence?

Seriously though, I would actually demand a public apology (on their website).

[bethabernathy]

Did they copy your entire article?