Finding and choosing the right SEO company is important.
It can also be a daunting task.
However, scrutinizing SEO agencies and consultants is essential.
The stakes are high. In most cases, SEO determines the success or failure of a business.
Your SEO agency should make sure that:
- easy to handle.
- Provides real value for your business.
- consistent.
- Industry savvy.
- within your budget.
Choose the right SEO agency and your business could start generating more traffic and revenue than ever before.
Choosing the wrong SEO agency can lead to failure.
We’re talking wasted money, penalties, and countless lost opportunities (rankings, traffic, revenue, etc.).
While there are many honest and reputable SEO companies out there, there are still some scammers and rogue agencies looking to exploit businesses you don’t know about.
SEO company horror show
As head of an SEO agency, I’ve seen success stories. It’s always great to see our clients grow and succeed. Because it helps us take pride in our work and show what SEO can do for our business.
But I’ve also heard some scary stories.
One of the frustrating aspects of being an agency is hearing from companies who are wary and frustrated by the bad experiences they’ve had with unreliable SEO agencies.
When I talk to such clients, there seems to be a common crescendo that brings them to an unfortunate breaking point, and it goes something like this.
The business decided that SEO was the next step in their growth plans, so they sought out and talked to agencies about their services.
sold by an agent potential We guarantee successful SEO results and what you can achieve for your business.
The business thinks it’s great and takes the agency’s word for it. Eventually, the business signs a deal with her SEO agency and is locked in for an extended period of time.
Fast forward a year or two and some companies find themselves running out of money with little to show or, in some cases, penalties that hurt their online performance.
An insider’s guide to judging SEO firms
It’s not the client’s fault, but what I often learn from hearing these SEO horror stories is that there were ways to prevent it.
Businesses can protect themselves and prevent such sticky situations by asking the right questions on the front end.
Easier said than done if you’re new to SEO and don’t know what to ask your agency.
But this guide will help you with that.
3 Tips for Scrutinizing SEO Companies
The following advice and questions are what businesses should absolutely consider and ask when scrutinizing an SEO agency from a behind-the-scenes perspective of a real SEO agency.
Tip 1: Create a list of criteria
Setting some standards up front will encourage you to think critically about your expectations, prevent you from going blind, and keep you in control of what you want.
Consider something like this:
- budget.
- Desired contract period.
- Whether you want a local service provider or you don’t mind a remote agency.
- Reporting frequency.
- Other potential deal breakers.
Tip 2: Talk to 3 Different SEO Firms
It’s wise to consult with at least three SEO providers before making a decision.
Not only is this generally a good idea in knowing all your options, but it also helps open up the bargaining potential for prices, services, and terms and conditions.
Tip 3: Create a list of interview questions
You can prevent most of the SEO horror stories by asking the right questions before signing a contract.
Be prepared to ask questions of each agency you consult so you can later compare the responses and have enough information to guide your decisions.
32 questions to ask an SEO company
An honest and reputable company will be happy to answer your questions and address your SEO concerns and concerns.
Notice how receptive they are to providing answers.
Most importantly, never sign a deal with an SEO agency without first asking the following questions:
- Can you guarantee that my site will rank high?
- Start with this question as it is a quick way to weed out shady SEO agencies. A legitimate SEO will never guarantee a top ranking position to a client because they know there are no guarantees in SEO.
- How do you handle penalized sites?
- Has your agency ever deviated from Google’s best practices?
- Has your agency ever purchased links?
- How do you build links and what kind of links do you build?
- How many links can I build in a month or contract period?
- How much on-page, off-page, and technical work can you expect to do, and what specific work do you do for each?
- What tools do you use to achieve results and perform SEO services?
- Would you like to edit and/or optimize existing content on my site?
- Is there any work or content outsourced? If so, who does it?
- How does your team handle content strategy and development?
- What specific content will be created on my site?
- How do you plan to optimize that content?
- Do you have examples of work you’ve done in similar businesses?
- Successful SEOs are quick to provide case studies and examples of other businesses they’ve helped, so if you answer “it’s confidential” or “I won’t share the results of other clients” be careful.
- When, on average, do clients start to see results?
- How many active client accounts do you have?
- How many people on your team are working on them?
- When an agency has 500 active client accounts and only 30 people on their team, they may sacrifice quality or outsource some of their work.
- Do you work with companies that you consider competitors?
- This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but if a direct competitor hires the same SEO firm and has a bigger budget, it can become a problem.
- How often do you conduct site audits?
- What specific metrics do you track and report?
- How do you handle account reporting and tracking?
- How often will I receive reports and updates, and how will they be communicated to me?
- Ideal answers to these questions include information about conversions, rankings, traffic, campaigns, and outreach updates. Most agencies provide clients with access to reporting software so they can view dashboards with trackable metrics.
- How many people can access our website?
- What measures are taken to ensure the security of our website?
- Are there any plans to make any changes to the structure, web design or coding of our website and if so, is it handled in-house or outsourced?
- Who do I contact if I have questions or concerns?
- Can I meet the person working on my account?
- What do I need at my end?
- How much time per month do you need from our side?
- Can you itemize your pricing packages by specific services and hours spent on each task?
- What makes us different from other SEO agencies?
- Overall, what results can I expect from my website?
Conclusion
Lack of preparation leaves you vulnerable to dishonest and shady SEO providers.
Do your research and preparation ahead of time so that when you find the right SEO firm, you can easily identify it.
From there, the SEO firm will help determine the best strategy to address your business needs.
