You know, back in 1999/2000 there wasn't really a great deal of web designers (not compared to todays standards), then from 2002 I seen a massive influx in web designers offering full sites for stupid amounts like 100 quid.
I can understand the thinking of a not so savvy SBO and thinking it's a bargain but the reality is, most of the sites these types of people made were absolute s**t. Then of course by the time the client had paid and stuff it was already too late to do anything which resulted the SBO shelling out more money to get the site done right.
I'll never forget I had a client come to me once and asked me how much I charged for SEO/SEM work and he stood there as if he seen a ghost. I told him he will get what he pays for and more.
He proceeded to tell me about a company that offers SEO, with web design and hosting at 4,000 quid per month so I told him if that's what he wants to do then go and do it.
He showed me their site and what keywords they got their clients ranked for. When I looked at the keywords I was totally stunned because they were phrases like "My money eats yellow Bananas".
This company even told their clients that the higher your PageRank, the higher up in the search engines you will be placed. I tried to educate him but he wouldn't listen so in the end I told him good luck.
He came back to me a month later and begged me to sort out the abortion of a job this company done so I agreed to look at his site and see what I could do.
I was amazed at some of the back links. This guy was a lawyer in the west end of London and he was getting link from adult video sites, random Indian sites etc etc.
They even charged him 5,000 quid for 5000 back links, all of which were of no relevance to his site at all.
Best part about it is, they build his site using a free template and charged him for it.
Now, as for web designers and SEO, I have always seen it as one of them touchy subjects because a web designers idea of SEO is not always the idea of a professional SEO.
I know you can't know everything but a willing to listen and learn will carry you far.
I probably went way of topic but hey, to many people get screwed over by design houses and so called SEO companies these days.
/rant over
KP