Blue Array SEO

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of acquisition on the marketing side at Simply Business, an insurance comparison platform for the small business market in the U.K. and now in the U.S.

What challenge were you trying to address with Blue Array SEO?

The consumers we’re attempting to target look up generic keywords for the types of insurance we sell — predominantly public liability insurance, business insurance, professional indemnity insurance, and other variations of those offerings. It’s a very a competitive landscape. We want to ensure we’re ranking as strongly as possible on those keywords, as well as still develop our ranking in related categories.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We retain Blue Array on an ongoing basis for a certain amount of monthly support for the continual refinement of our SEO strategy, as well as the development of new initiatives. For example, in our most recent strategic initiative with them, they developed SEO strategies to launch our new insurance website for small businesses in the U.S.

A key element in our ongoing SEO strategy is understanding the demand on our website for the different types of insurance coverage by trade industry. If we note a certain amount of demand in a particular area, we’ll supply Blue Array with keywords, and they’ll research that organic market to determine the size of opportunity and competitiveness of individual keywords. That allows us to prioritize keywords and build out content surrounding them to maximize our site optimization.

What is the team composition? 

We regularly communicate with three members of their team, including our account manager and Simon Schnieders [Founder, Blue Array SEO].

How did you come to work with Blue Array SEO?

My director worked with them while at another job, and she built a good relationship with them. She decided to partner with them again for Simply Business’ efforts.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in January 2016, and the engagement is ongoing.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Our sales are up 21% and our visitor traffic is up 100% in triple figures.

How did Blue Array SEO perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re very responsive to our requirements. We’re able to access staff at all levels of the agency. For instance, we have a good relationship with Simon. He’s always available for direct questions. Our account manager is also very responsive.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re flexible in that they recommend a wide-range of initiatives for us to choose from. The initiatives vary in resource and risk requirements. For example, one initiative recommendation we’re considering at the moment is developing communities and directories on the site to create user-generated content, which is a different twist from general content development strategies.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, nothing comes to mind.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Take the time to speak directly with them to ensure they understand your objectives and expectations. They can take you in a lot of different directions, so make sure you have a clear vision of what you want, so they can recommend options that will get you the best outcome.