Andy Kuiper

Andy Kuiper is one of the most interesting characters we have at the Hub. He is a former boxing coach & social worker, is presently learning Jiu-Jitsu, and is probably a ninja at some point. If you’d like to find out more about that stuff, feel free to drop by and ask him nicely, just don’t sneak up behind him.

Please tell us who you are and what you do

My name is Andy Kuiper, and I’m a Vancouver SEO Analyst. When someone does a search on the internet, my job is to make sure my client’s pages come up near the top of the search results. Don’t you hate it when you go through all the trouble to make a perfect website, and not one person from your target market can find you when they do a search? I make sure your webpage is ‘relevant’ to Google and other search engines. If you want to get ‘found’, that’s what I do.

Tell us something unique about your company

In 2003 I started my first internet business on a part-time basis. In 2005 I left my position as an Investigator for Children’s Services and began working full time on internet marketing. Initially I worked on my own internet businesses, however as time went on I began taking on friend’s and client’s projects, culminating in my starting a SEO company in 2009. I’m a Certified Bruce Clay SEOToolset Analyst, a SEOMoz Pro member, and a contributing member of WebMasterWorld since 2006.

I enjoy performing SEO audits wherein I seek to find optimization issues and opportunities within small to medium sized websites (1 to 1000 pages). I also enjoy advising on new website development, helping ensure proper optimization fundamentals are implemented. My areas of expertise are local optimization (SEO for organizations and businesses that have an address and phone number in a particular geographical area), landing page optimization (optimizing pages to ensure higher conversions and/or ROI), and on-page optimization (optimizing page content so as to be more relevant to the search engines).

What inspired you to get into this line of work?

One of the businesses I started in 2005 involved the sale of software. At first I didn’t know a thing about SEO, so I used PPC (pay per click) campaigns to generate traffic and sales. I’d had quite a bit of success marketing this way, but over time, CPC (cost per click) rates kept increasing, causing me to look into SEO. I’d spent over $500,000 of my own money on PPC, and while the returns were very good, they would have been much better had I known about SEO sooner. Once I started learning how to professionally optimize, I was hooked.

What do you enjoy the most about what you do?

I really enjoy keeping up to date on SEO changes; the search engines and social media platforms are constantly evolving, and I find keeping up with these changes absolutely fascinating. I also really enjoy analyzing websites for SEO issues and opportunities. I find it similar to an investigation; delving into a website and documenting areas of concern is something I truly enjoy. Each site has it’s own unique challenges and I just love finding aspects that could be changed to ensure greater relevancy for the search engines.

Where do you see your industry going in the next 2 years?

I foresee more SEO attention on local search, user generated reviews, and social media platforms, especially Facebook. It appears Google is focusing quite a bit of it’s resources on local search. They are adding more and more search terms to their local search algorithm as they’re seeking ways to create new revenue streams other than AdWords (PPC). Google is also seeking to add a social aspect to it’s offerings via Hotpot, a review application they hope will keep their users on their properties rather than competing sites like Yelp, Urban Spoon, Trip Adviser, and Facebook. Facebook has been making significant changes as well, as it tries to become more of a solutions provider for local business and consumers, competing with Google to keep users on its own platform. Who knows where all of this will end up… two years is a long time the way things have been shaking up lately.

What made you decide to join The Network Hub?

I joined the network Hub in September 2010 as I found working at my office at home becoming less and less efficient. There were too many distractions, and it lacked the social aspect.

How has the experience been for you?

I really enjoy working out of the network Hub. Its location (for me) is super. Both the #5 and #6 busses stop right across the street so I don’t use a car to get to and from work. The 24 hour access is also a real bonus as I can come and go as I please. Having the camaraderie of the other workers has been fantastic, I was actually quite surprised how well everyone got along. I’ve made a few good friends here and I’ve been able to network in ways that have been extremely helpful. I really think I receive full value for the small amount I pay each month. The owners of the Network Hub are young, energetic and very, very helpful. I can’t recall how may times they have helped me via their incredible connections with meet-up groups and other entrepreneurs in the city.