At the start of any new business venture, we imagine outpacing our rivals, blazing a trail of success, and seizing every opportunity with ferocity. 

Still, only a select few are able to secure the spotlight. Bruce Clay Inc. (BCI), an SEO agency founded by Bruce Clay in 1996, stands tall amongst the accomplished few.

Let's dive deeper into its recipe for a soaring business.

The Origins of Bruce Clay Inc.

With a degree in math and computer science, an MBA in his back pocket, and experience leading Silicon Valley firms, Clay already had a rich background in business and technology.

With the introduction of the internet to the public sector in the 90s, Clay dove deeper to understand how to market a business online. 

He saw a future where the key to being discovered by customers would be unlocking the online presence. And if a business weren't visible in the digital world, it would be invisible in the real world.

So Clay experimented by creating HTML web pages and making changes to them to study the impact on search engine results.

He saw an opportunity to put businesses in the public eye through website ranking on search engines. This inspired him to create Bruce Clay Inc. At the start, Clay worked as a one-man venture.

As one of the first practitioners of SEO, Clay popularized the term "search engine optimization" and revolutionized the industry with his innovative techniques. Today, BCI is a sought-after SEO agency composed of technical SEO experts guided by Clay's experience at the helm.

The company offers one-of-a-kind website audits and SEO services, tackling issues at the core and ensuring long-term fixes that yield better search engine rankings.

Hiring Experts

Pioneering over an industry also comes with great responsibility. Clay's unwavering commitment to being a top-shelf SEO provider means delivering the best results possible.

In order to do that, the agency only hires experts in their fields with no less than ten years of experience.

Clay notes that this is unusual for an SEO agency. "Most hire people with a couple of years of experience if that, then falsely give them inflated titles of 'Senior Analyst,' 'SEO Managers,' or another honorary title, and assign them to your projects."

With a team of experts on staff, the agency differentiates itself from its opponents. 

This "expert-only policy" guarantees the client's problems are solved from the grassroots level. A few superficial changes leading to temporary visibility on top search results are not BCI's goal.

BCI aims to implement SEO strategies that provide stable and long-term results. 

The focus stays on beating the competition in the search results with an eye on the ever-changing Google algorithm. This is what puts the client's website in the top search results despite competition in the millions.

Creating SEO Tools and Training

BCI is committed to furthering business success, and aside from providing SEO services, the agency also helps businesses through valuable resources like SEO software and SEO training. 

Back in the 90s, Clay created his first SEO diagnostic tool. That tool would be the first of its kind in what would later become SEOToolSet—BCI's proprietary software. 

The SEOToolSet is a suite of 40 powerful SEO tools that enable businesses to perform expert-level SEO analysis on their websites.

In addition to software, BCI also offers a popular SEO training solution led by Clay himself.

The training course is available in a virtual format with live access to Clay on a monthly basis, plus many other learning resources—all on a membership website.

The training is based on Clay's world-renowned, long-standing SEO training course that has trained more than 5,000 students in a dedicated classroom in Southern California and at top digital marketing conferences across the US. 

To date, Clay has given SEO training material to his clients so they can learn as they implement the latest SEO on their websites.

The Legacy Continues

Every step BCI acquired has added to the ladder of success that Clay began climbing three decades ago.

Talking about his aspirations regarding BCI, Clay summed it up in a small sentence, "Be the best, but not the biggest."

This sentiment is enough for his valued customers to know that their business is well taken care of and that BCI's legacy will live on for years.

To know more about what sets BCI apart, visit its LinkedIn page.