The purpose of this page is to make clear why nobody can guarantee a top search engine placement. If they do, ask for a no cure no pay !
 
If you want to find out why i'm making that statement, then please read on.
When you are convinced that only ethical SEO is the best solution to achieve long term results, then i invite you to check out

Most other major search engines include a PFI policy, however this does not include a guaranteed top search engine placement. When paying for inclusion, the only guarantee you get is that the URL will be indexed.
Only when using PPC services (pay per click) one can buy a top search engine placement. In most cases, your site will feature in a sponsored results section. You pay ! And when a competitor takes your top position, then you simply start paying more.
Our SEO service is NOT in favour of this kind of expensive and often temporary website promotion campaigns and we will advise them only if your website can not be optimized... or redesigned.

Search engine placement is calculated by an algorithm and links from other websites

Google's algorithm to calculate the search engine placement for pages in the returned results consists of more than 100 parameters.
Every other respectable search engine will also use those so called 'on-the-page' factors to rank pages based on their content and design.
It would be very easy for anyone to get a top search engine placement if we would know all the factors involved, however no search engine offers anything more than some general guidelines about malpractices to avoid (spam), and a few common tips.
Furthermore, it is important to know that every search engine uses its own and thus other algorithm. Those algorithms are subject to changes, -sometimes minor changes, sometimes more profound- to maintain a high degree of relevance in the results.
Every change in the algorithm can affect the search engine placement of your website.
SEO is no mathematical science, there are no axiomas and definitions. To obtain top search engine placement for a site we have to optimize by experience. By studying the placement of existing Web sites, we can learn a lot to deliver good results, but offering guaranteed top search engine placement ? No, nobody can give that kind of SEO guarantee.

Besides the 'on-the-page' factors there are also off-page factors, such as links from other websites, that need to be considered for a top search engine placement.
One might measure the value of a website by calculating the number of links pointing to it ("backlinks"). The more links pointing to a page, the more important this page becomes. The higher the value of the linking page, the more valuable the links it contains will be.
Google uses this kind of measurement in pagerank^TM. However, it's not that easy to find out the value of every link. The calculation of 'Pagerank' is one of the most guarded secrets.
Studies and expertise may shed some light on the algorithms but nobody knows all parameters.
Also note that FFA links (Free for All) and guestbook entries might be ignored. The same is true for links from other website which are completely off-topic because search engines are evolving towards a Topic Sensitive Pagerank (TSPR). This is one of the major reasons why services who claim to submit your website to 100000+ search engines, are a complete waste of money !
It sure is a fact that 'older' websites, established websites, usually have more incoming links, thus usually a higher pagerank.
It's not easy for a new website to achieve the same number of quality links on short notice and this is another reason why SEO can not offer a guaranteed top search engine placement.

What SEO guarantee is acceptable ?

Lots of valuable guarantees can be offered :
  - an overall higher search engine placement
  - increased visibility
  - Easy navigation for search engine spiders allowing indexation
  - Better usability and more traffic
      ...

BEWARE if website submission or SEO services guarantee a top search engine placement. Some optimizers believe in their insight and experience and offer a "no cure, no pay" seo guarantee which could be good.
However, it's all about business -nobody likes working without being paid- and keeping in mind that nobody can guarantee a top search engine placement, you better be sure you're not trapped by unethical seo services, spam and doorway pages that might jeapordise your website investment. What could appear to be excellent results, could sooner or later get your website penalised or banned by a search engine. Carefully inspect the all details about the 'no cure, no pay" SEO guarantee. You should also check when the SEO guarantee expires !
 
Let it also be obvious that it's easy to get a high search engine placement or even a #1 search engine placement for weird keywords or word combinations that nobody ever searches for.
Read more on targetting a high search engine ranking for the right keyword.