Reselling products and services that are delivered by another business is a tricky proposition in any business. Why? Because as a reseller you own the customer relationship and it is at risk if you recommend something that turns out poorly. Anyone who has spent significant time in business knows that trust is the key in many situations. Once lost, it is hard to gain back. One place that many businesses lose credibility is in the inability to deliver. It often amazes me how much credit you get for just doing what you said you were going to do. But over-selling is everywhere.
When you are an SEO reseller, just like reselling anything else, you don't have full control of the delivery. You are leveraging your customer relationship and bringing them an SEO service they will assume is trusted. In a perfect world, the company you are reselling for does a great job and everybody is happy. You collect your commission, the customer get's great service, and all is good.
But if you are reselling for a company that does not have solid delivery, what then? Then your customer relationship is in jeopardy. How do you get around this when shopping for a SEO reseller relationship? We recommend you actually try the SEO service yourself first. Actually sign-up as a customer of the company you are considering reselling for. There is simply no better way to road-test their offering. This will give you front row seats to how they treat their customers. You can learn volumes about their communication and deadline accountability. After you've done this, you will know if you want to recommend the SEO service to any of your customers.