Online marketing begins with search engine optimization, and SEO begins with skillful web design. When you set out to hire a contractor or to design a strategy in any one of these areas, it is decidedly helpful for you to have all three factors in mind, alongside social media marketing and other web services.

Such services are increasingly unified under the same umbrella, and the best online marketing team you can hope to hire is one that can fill many roles. If you already have a functioning website, it may not be especially important for these professionals to be able to design a site from scratch. But if you want to get the best return on your investment in an SEO company, that company ought to be able to perform some essential web development tasks.

An article at Forbes recently illustrated this point by discussing “SEO-friendly website design.” The article includes several specific aspects of web design that can influence search engine rankings virtually from the moment the site goes live.

Admittedly, it is not absolutely necessary for your web design company to be truly expert in SEO. But as the Forbes article notes, that company should at least be aware of its limitations and capable of designing only the framework of a site, so that it can be easily adjusted after the fact in line with the best principles of SEO.

The article is correct in observing that web design experts are not always SEO people, but it bears noting that in today’s market place, it’s becoming increasingly feasible to find one company that serves both roles, and others besides. This is true across the United States, but it is especially true in major IT hubs like Charlotte, NC.

Consequently, if you are looking for online marketing services in Charlotte, you would do well to work with local contractors, unless you have a compelling reason to stick with someone from outside the area. Apart from having the clear advantage of being able to communicate directly with your web design and online marketing professionals, this will give you access to a considerably deeper and broader talent pool. That, in turn, may save you from the added hassle of having to deal with one contractor for web design, one for SEO, and so on.

If, however, your choice of web design company is somehow limited, it is still important to keep in mind that there is significant overlap among different web services. With the help of articles like the one at Forbes and at blogs like this one, you can outfit yourself with the knowledge that at least allows you to vet prospective web design and SEO professionals, and to check their work.

Web services are increasingly complicated, but as the market continues to grow it also becomes increasingly easy to find the resources that allow you to address multiple aspects of web development at once. Those who recognize this before starting their online marketing campaign may have a considerable advantage over those who unknowingly allow their different web service providers to work against each other.