Meet Hyder Ali Zaman, Digital Marketing Strategist

Hyder Ali Zaman is a highly accomplished and experienced internet marketing professional with a successful track record extending 13+ years. His ability has helped startups grow into successful business enterprises, drive online marketing strategy in sync with the offline marketing tactics, deliver SEO results, cost effectively manage SEM / PPC / FB Ad campaigns, and use non-traditional yet highly effective organic (SEO) traffic driving techniques to help organizations become successful in any highly competitive online industry in any region of the world.

Learn more by visiting http://www.hyderalizaman.com/ as well as Hyder Ali Zaman's profile on LinkedIn.

1. How did you first become aware of SEO?

I was one of the earliest adopters of the internet and the World Wide Web, not only in Pakistan but globally. Back in those days, people did not know much about the internet. However, to me I could see the potential of the internet to actually change the world. I came to know about SEO through my own interest in the internet. For me, SEO has always been a passion to help online businesses succeed. And I strongly believe that when you work for passion, money automatically follows.

2. In the years you have worked in the industry, how have things changed when it comes to improving a site's search engine rank?

Yes, a lot, to say the least. Those old shoddy tricks up the sleeves of the so-called SEO experts to get you to the first page of Google do not work anymore. Google and other search engines have evolved a great deal. In the coming years, you will see a lot of people complaining that SEO is not working (many are already doing it). It is the SEO they know that is not working. Look, SEO is a patience-driven, watch and act kind of endeavor where you keep on adjusting to the changing dynamics. SEOs who are trying to get quick results will not see any success. Areas in which you particularly need to focus in the future include natural link building, social media marketing, blogging, guest posts, and relevant content marketing strategies. Niche-oriented focus would greatly help improve your site's rankings. SEO has finally become something which would only reward people who are willing to work hard and know what it actually means to be an SEO expert.

3. What are some common mistakes you see businesses making with their websites?

Here is my top list of mistakes online businesses really make.

a. They think onsite SEO is just a hoax and they do not really need to think about it much.

b. They spend so much money on paid advertisements, but eventually they run out of money. They should diversify and think about SEO and other ways of generating traffic online.

c. A lot of businesses do not pay any heed to social media marketing when it actually makes a lot of difference. Paid social media advertisement is good, but you also need to find a way to generate leads through other regular updates as well.

d. Old online businesses established for years think that mobile responsiveness is not for them. Google has already penalized such websites, and we are going to see more of that happening.

e. Content does not just mean rewriting everything which is already there. Instead it gives online businesses a way to connect with their customers.

4. What are some of your own best practices?

Here are some of the most important things for me in terms of SEO.

1. Content Marketing
2. Affiliate Marketing
3. SEM & SEO
4. Social Media Marketing
5. Guest Blogging
6. Onsite SEO (deep enough to identify and resolve onsite issues)
7. Offsite SEO
8. Work on domain authority and increase website's authenticity.
9. Evolve my overall SEO strategy in light of the changes recommended by Google and other search engines.
10. Diversify and rely on multiple sources of traffic.

5. What else would you like readers to know about you and your work?

Well, whomever you choose to work with, make sure they are worth their money. Do not work with anyone who does not understand everything and has not been proactively following SEO from the start.

I strongly believe in living up to my clients' expectations, and my work speaks for what I have done in the past. I have successfully helped many startups getting from zero sales to thousands of USDs or even more in revenues per month. I am passionate about my client's website and take every step to ensure that their interests are watched. No matter which SEO expert you wish to work with, always remember that experience has no shortcut. I do not promise my clients to deliver quick results but meaningful results where they can actually see the return on their investments.

Feel free to get in touch with me via email should you have any questions or need SEO consultation for your online business.

Thanks, Hyder Ali!

Meet Asif Zamir, Toronto Business Consultant

Asif Zamir lives in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and started working to help support his family when he was around six years old. By the time he was a teenager, he had worked for several companies and also been self-employed. Over time, he began working as a consultant to help businesses succeed, with an emphasis on new, small businesses in the startup stage. He devotes much of his time to ministry and philanthropic work.

Learn more about Asif by visiting AsifZamir.com.

1. When, as a young man, did you realize that you wanted to go into business for yourself?

When I was young, around age 6, I would sell candy door to door, and people would buy from me because I was cute. I liked the freedom of managing my finances and setting a schedule. At age 15, I dropped out of high school and started my own business consulting company. To be honest, I didn't have much of a choice; I had to drop out of high school and start a business because I was dirt poor for the majority of my life, and we were struggling to get by financially. So I took a chance at doing something more with my life than just getting by. It's not like traditional jobs were paying big money to teens back then, so I needed to start a business to have a shot at real money.

2. How do you choose the business ventures that you want to pursue?

When I was young and dumb; even 8 years ago it was all about the money, and that gave me nothing but heartache and stress. Now I think about my happiness and my relationship with the client. I'd like to make money, lots of money, but I'd also like to build a friendship. I'd like my client to reach or surpass their goal, but I'd also like to enjoy the entire process. If I can gain a friend, that's ideal, and if we can both make a lot of money, that's even more ideal.

3. What's your advice to other people who want to be self-employed but aren't sure where to invest their time and money?

My honest advice is to not be self-employed. Honestly, it's a lot of hard work before you reach your goals, usually 10 years. Most people can't handle this, and it destroys their marriage and self-esteem. If you understand this fact and still want to do it, have a vision for the long term. I see so many people fail because they think, "I'll start a business today and be successful tomorrow, and if not, then I'll quit!" And those people always fail every time. But people who have a vision for 10-20-30 years always succeed. Always. Take a look at any success story: the person worked for many years to achieve what they wanted. Go ahead and read 100 success stories online, and you'll see that it usually averages out to more than 10 years of hard work. People who think it takes a few weeks or months are mentally insane. Go ahead and invest in your education. If you're going into a business, know everything about that business. When I was 15, I read every book available in the library and bookstore. I find if people won't even read a book on a subject, they aren't really interested.

4. How do you find time to do all the philanthropic work that you do?

That's where my life gets tough. Typically people want financial freedom for the purpose of gaining time, and so I've gained time, and now I use up all my time by giving it away. It's tough for me to balance it out because everyone wants an hour, or a hundred people want ten minutes, and I'm learning to say no to a lot of people and a lot of invites. I try my best to take it as it comes to me. A few days ago I had a relaxing evening planned for myself but instead spent it visiting someone in the hospital who specifically requested my visit. I won't get another relaxing evening in for a while, but I'm trying my best to keep my life balanced; like I said it's a struggle for me.

5. What projects are you currently working on, both business and charitable endeavors?

I'm working on one of the most interesting business ideas ever with a lady who wanted to run errands for strangers. She's very rich now and has a full staff. I helped her set up her website, and draw up a plan and structure, and most importantly I helped her set realistic goals and gain her first 250 clients and hire her first employees. Gosh, she's basically more successful than me now. She charges anywhere from $50-$200/hour to do any errand for you. She's been asked to wait at a person's house for the cable man, to pretend to be a friend to an executive at a dinner, and everything in between; usually it's dropping off dry cleaning and picking up groceries, things along those lines. She makes a fortune, and I really enjoy this project; I'll be sad when my contract is finished.

I'm also participating in a beta-stage project which involves having churchwomen go to the streets, and paying prostitutes to attend church services so that they can connect with God, people, and social workers who will help them get out of the sex industry permanently. The project has been mostly successful, and I find that it's sustainable. Changing one life each week, helping one person at a time, it really adds up. Actually this one lady, she was really young when we met her in downtown Toronto years back, and she's graduated college now and you would never tell she worked the streets. She's brilliant and she's reaching her life goals.

Thanks, Asif!