There's a movement from some within the search marketing industry to push for performance based search engine marketing services. While this type of model can be a great choice, it has lots of hurdles that need to be overcome first. (Skip straight to: "Pay for Performance Pricing Models for Search Engine Optimization" by Stoney deGeyter.)

Pay for performance models often give start-up firms a chance to attract good SEM talent without spending all of their start-up cash retaining a firm. It also gives a skilled SEM a chance to earn far more income than they would from a simple retainer contract. That said, there are some pitfalls.

Having taken on this type of project myself, I know that there are some serious issues that must be worked out between the client and consultant. Issues of what constitutes performance, who has access and control of the site and tracking records, and how long the revenue share will last are only the start of the concerns.

Stoney deGeyter takes on some of these issues in today's article: "Pay for Performance Pricing Models for Search Engine Optimization."