And lastly, here is a video of our last company outing where we got stuck on an island. Enjoy!
It all started when I bought my first blog – God and You (h3sean.com). I offered my last money to God and told Him that I want to just blog for Him – to glorify Him throughout the internet. I bought the domain name, 1 gig worth of hosting and started my first independent WordPress blog.
My SEO Experience
I was going through my On-the-Job Training (OJT) when I stumbled upon SEO – I was hired by a young company in Ortigas (which is now out of business, unfortunately). I was given the task of SEO trainee – too bad that the SEO manager resigned just a week after I got in – leaving all the SEO work to me (there were only 2 of us for the company’s entire SEO stuff). I had an enormous quota which involved blog commenting, forum posting and adding a lot of “friends” in 5 social networks for 5 of our company’s clients – which I’m ashamed to say wasn’t really SEO work. It was honestly horrible and I worked from 6 am in the morning to 12 midnight on some days – and got paid $150 a month for all of it.
In the middle of it all, I was learning more about why I was doing things—why I had such a huge quota, why I had to comment intelligibly on forums and blogs, why the links were so important, etc. Through all of this, I applied everything to my first blog—God and You. And true enough, some of my tests worked. I got my blog to PR 3, then PR 4, and it's still ranking for a wide range of keywords even now.
The Brand Name
SEO Hacker as a website was born in April 2010 – just a few months from my college graduation (I graduated in February 2010) – while I was still working for HP as an SAP support specialist in the San Miguel Building in front of SM Megamall. It was after working hours for me (my shift was 9 am – 6 pm) and I had lots of time to wait for my friend (I was staying at his place during that time) who was assigned to a 3 pm – 12 mn shift. By this time, I was already a bit knowledgeable about SEO because of the strategies I tested out in my God and You blog (h3sean.com).
I bought SEO-Hacker.com (whose name was inspired by a blog I was following then – lifehacker.com) and built it as a ‘knowledge-base’ blog. I simply blogged about the new things I was learning about SEO. I was doubly inspired by Copyblogger.com on how they were posting such great copywriting tutorials and helping out a lot of people become better bloggers. I fashioned SEO Hacker’s style on their generous tips and tricks blog style – and even had my color scheme inspired by their color scheme then.
I worked hard in HP – learning how a services company should provide great services to clients – and the penalty of it if we don’t. I learned to do things in a timely fashion and to work well with a team. I had a lot of time after working hours to read about SEO, practice it, then write about it. Those were the first blog entries of SEO Hacker – needless to say, they’re only around 300 words and don’t make much of an SEO article. Don’t bother looking for them.
How I Started as a Professional
Then someone from our local church invited me to do SEO for him – he was a third party. I told him that I don’t have any professional experience but he insisted. So I went to work – but I was convicted because the website was a gambling website. I then asked God if what I was doing was glorifying to Him and I told God that if it wasn’t – He would take it away. That’s almost $550 worth of monthly income which was more than what I was getting in HP.
God was faithful and He took the project away – leaving me with nothing for half a month. I went to Hong Kong with my dad (it was his graduation gift to me) and I met a girl there whose uncle owned the biggest scuba diving liveaboard fleet in the Philippines. She referred me to her uncle and that was my first major contract. I was gutsy enough to pitch the contract at almost $1,000 and the company agreed. The rest, as they say, is history.
Where We Are Now: By God’s Grace, From One to Many
What started in 2010 as a blog by a solo freelancer with zero business experience has, by God’s grace, grown into one of the most recognized SEO companies in the Philippines. SEO Hacker began with a dream, a prayer, and a single client—Scuba World, paying ₱50,000 a month. That first step opened doors that would eventually lead to relationships with hundreds of brands and a growing legacy in the digital marketing world.
15 Years of Digital Presence
We first went live online on April 12, 2010, and by April 2011, we officially registered as a business. This year marks 15 years since our website and blog launched, and next year, we’ll celebrate 15 years as a registered company—a milestone we never imagined reaching when it all began.
From Freelancer to 70-Person Team
What started as a one-man show has grown into a 70-person team of passionate and purpose-driven professionals. We now serve nearly 100 clients worldwide. Our long-standing relationships with clients such as Roberts AIPMC, Topbest Pest Services, Inc., Reedley International School, Multico Prime Power Inc., Regan Industrial Sales, Inc., ELID, Juan Carlo the Caterer, and countless others are a testament to the trust we've earned and nurtured through the years.
We’re now earning around $2 million annually, and we’re still just getting started.
Growth, Expansion, and Innovation
From humble beginnings, we’ve now grown into a company with approximately $2 million in annual revenue, a satellite office in Bacolod, a front office in Singapore, and a new two-story office in BF Parañaque, which we’re renovating to house our growing team.
But expansion isn’t just about offices and headcount.
We’ve also launched Sigil, a creative agency born from SEO Hacker’s design and storytelling DNA. Sigil specializes in branding, content, video, and campaign development—serving businesses that want more than traffic; they want impact. It’s a sister company that allows us to flex the full range of our creative vision.
We’ve also evolved beyond SEO. As the digital landscape changed, so did we. We now offer SEM, CRM email marketing, and the emerging field of Answer Engine Optimization (AEO)—also called Generative Engine Optimization (GEO). We’re proud to work with notable brands such as Svenson, Facial Care, Hyundai, Shangri-La, CWS Philippines, and Nice Print Photo.
Always Learning, Always Leading
SEO Hacker still ranks #1 for key industry keywords and remains widely recognized as the best SEO company in the Philippines. Our blog, though less frequent than in our early days, continues to share insights that shape how businesses approach search and content. We're working on returning to weekly publishing soon.
Looking ahead, we’re planning to bring back the SEO Summit in 2026—an industry event that brings together thought leaders in SEO and digital marketing. And when we expand our marketing team, we aim to reactivate our Facebook group community, which has always been a distinct part of our brand’s story and mission.
What Lies Ahead
The rise of AI is undeniable. Still, even with all the changes online, SEO remains as powerful as ever, especially in a growing digital market like the Philippines. Google continues to dominate with over 80 billion searches each month, far surpassing newer AI-driven platforms like Perplexity, which only sees around 1.8 billion. SEO is far from dead. In fact, it’s thriving—and we intend to keep leading the way.
We’re also leading in AEO, but we’re keeping our cards close on the strategies that set us apart. Rest assured—we’re building a future where AI and SEO work together, not against each other.
Why We’re Still Here
Looking back, I can say without a doubt that it’s all by God’s grace. Every client, every challenge, every breakthrough—He’s been at the center of it all. Even during financial setbacks, we’ve always received just what we needed: a new client, a new lead, a reason to keep going.
"Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I return. The LORD gave, and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD." – Job 1:21
SEO Hacker was built by faith, grown through grit, and sustained by grace. If you let God into your life and your work, He can do amazing things with what little you have.
If you're interested in becoming part of our journey, check out our SEO job openings. And if you're curious about how it all began, you can read more of my early reflections on my SEO journey.
To God be all the glory.
The Story Behind SEO Hacker
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