When it comes to SEO, associations face a few different considerations from the regular business organization crowd. Because they’re typically nonprofits, they need to show members the value of the SEO investment, while also keeping from raising dues as much as possible. (Well, okay, companies also need to show value to the shareholders and try to keep from raising prices, too…)

And with Internet penetration at what feels like 100% of the population, even farmers and the organizations they belong to are feeling the need for Google love.

For the Alpaca Owners and Breeders Association (AOBA), search engine optimization had become a clear necessity: Its members were already turning to other organizations for SEO and online marketing help. Offering these services could help increase the association’s value to its members and strengthen its membership base for the long term. In addition, ensuring its web properties ranked above other competing organizations and for-profit entities would help bolster and reinforce its position as the primary association for the industry.

Bill Edmunds, a veteran of association management, recently wrote about his experience working with SEO Advantage while part of the leadership at AOBA in an article titled A Race to the Top: Search Engine Optimization for Associations.

Recently published by the Tennessee Society of Association Directors, the article details the systematic process AOBA used to find the right SEO company. Edmunds also outlines the planned steps for optimization, including setup of a revenue generating product that could offer more value to members than what was currently available on the market. This new product is also designed to help cover the costs of implementation, so the costs of taking on a major SEO project don’t have to be passed along to members.

Read the article to and see how this association took on the high tech aspects of SEO without burdening themselves or their constituents: PDF of the article