If you’ve landed on this article, you probably already know why SEO is a good idea.
That’s great!
However, as you search for a good SEO company, you’ll find that you have so. many. options.
So much so that you might scratch your head wondering,
“How do I choose an SEO company?”
If that’s you, you’ve come to the right place.
Today, we’re taking a look at six questions you NEED to ask when looking for the best SEO company.
We’ll also give you some tips and tricks to help you ensure you end up with the best SEO for your company.
Before we dive into what you should ask when calling your potential SEO agency, let’s first go over some helpful tips.
To choose the right SEO company, it’s a good idea to:
The BEST tip we can give you as you look for an SEO company is to learn the SEO basics yourself.
If you know how and why SEO works for your business, your job of choosing the right SEO firm will be 10x easier.
Because here’s the thing:
There are plenty of SEO companies out there who provide bogus services. With a basic understanding of SEO, you can sniff these out before you give them your money.
Search engine optimization can get complex. Anyone that doesn’t at least know the basics can easily get tricked by fancy technical terms.
Today, many SEO agencies charge big money and do very little – while other SEO agencies use damaging practices. So do some research.
If you’re looking for a guide, Ahrefs has one that’s very helpful for beginners.
Furthermore, knowing how SEO works will help you set realistic expectations and spot empty promises.
Some so-called SEO experts might promise to rank your business #1 for every single keyword you go after.
But, if you know anything about search engine optimization, you know that that just isn’t possible.
When you’re hiring an SEO company, you’re starting a long relationship with them.
Proper SEO takes three to six months to show results (and may take even longer depending on your industry).
This means that once you choose an SEO company, you’re in with them for quite a while.
So choose an SEO company that you are happy working with.
The best SEO company is one that not only delivers results but one where you can freely discuss how your business is doing together.
Talk over the phone with your potential SEO provider. Get to know them, and tell them about yourself as well.
Your SEO agency is not just an SEO agency. It is also your SEO partner.
So get to know them!
And find ways that you can both boost your business online together.
We’ve already mentioned this, but it’s so important, we must repeat it:
Have realistic expectations from your SEO company.
When hiring an SEO company, you’re not going to get instant results.
Don’t fire them out if they can’t get your page to rank #1 in one month.
Search engine optimization is a very tricky business, and even the best SEO efforts won’t boost your business immediately.
Having realistic expectations also keeps you from falling into scams.
People sometimes promise FAST results.
And here’s the thing:
They can actually deliver on their promise.
However, they are using sneaky practices that can get your website penalized. These are known as black-hat techniques, and search engines greatly frown upon these.
Also, after the initial jump in search engines, your business website will eventually crash.
So set realistic expectations for your SEO services!
And be careful when hiring an SEO agency. Here’s how you can sniff out the shady ones:
With those three tips, you’ll have a much better time finding the right SEO company.
But let’s take things a step further.
As you call your potential SEO company, here are six things you should ask them.
With these six questions, you can separate bad SEO companies from good ones.
And, you’ll also choose the right SEO company for your business.
What questions, you ask?
Let’s have a look.
All SEO companies provide SEO services (duh).
But not all SEO services are the same.
You see, SEO has so many branches.
Here are the big ones:
Furthermore, SEO services can even include things like website design.
A good SEO company should provide all of the above (sometimes you can exclude local SEO).
It’s so helpful to understand SEO basics so that you’ll know what those five branches are and how they work.
Some SEO agencies may promise you full SEO, but all they provide is content marketing.
Knowing how SEO works is also important since your business may need local SEO – which uses a different set of strategies.
So learn a bit more about SEO!
And when you’re on a call with your potential SEO company, you’ll be able to ask them what they provide and know if they are worth your time and money.
When choosing an SEO company, make SURE you’re working with a white hat company.
What’s white hat?
White hat SEO is the term for practices that conform to major search engines’ terms and conditions like Google.
In the offline world, these would be known as legal practices, while black hat practices would be illegal practices.
Choosing a company that provides 100% white hat services is critical.
Remember, a search engine optimization company uses your business name.
If you’re caught doing shady things online, it can be terrible for you.
Also, if Google or other search engines catch your website using black hat techniques, they can severely punish you and drop you down in rankings.
This will make it nearly impossible for anyone to find you online.
Finally, black hat techniques don’t work.
Yes, some black hat SEO experts may shoot you up the SERPs fast. But it won’t be long before your website comes crashing down.
That’s why you MUST choose a white hat SEO company.
Don’t get tempted with promises of fast results – real SEO takes time.
Search engine optimization is different for every business.
That’s why some SEO companies brand themselves as experts in a particular industry.
If it’s true, then that’d be a great company to work with (given that they specialize in your industry).
However, many times, these agencies only say they specialize in your type of business to attract people. They don’t actually know anything specific about it.
That’s why you should ask.
Ask your potential SEO company whether they understand how your industry works or if they are just going to use the same SEO template they use for everyone else.
But here’s the thing:
Even if the SEO agency doesn’t know your industry inside-out, it’s okay!
All you need is an agency that is willing to take the time to understand your needs and desires fully.
Again, some people will use a general template for every business.
Avoid these.
Find one who talks to you and explains how they will do SEO for your business specifically.
This is critical since there is no one-size-fits-all approach. You don’t want a company that just wants to grab your money and doesn’t care to learn more about your business.
All SEO companies tell you they can boost your rank.
However, only good ones will take the time to discuss your KPIs and send you reports on them regularly.
Again, the more you know, the better.
There are dozens of metrics to track in SEO, but not all of them will be important for you.
Once you know what exactly you’re going for – whether that be organic traffic, ranking for a particular keyword, leads, or sales – you can discuss with your potential provider if they can give you what you expect.
It’s always the same principles again and again. Not all businesses have the same digital marketing needs, and not all companies need to track the same KPIs.
By asking what you can expect to receive, you can weed out SEO companies that are only concerned with the numbers – not the actual results.
If someone is charging you thousands of dollars, it’s only wise to be skeptical.
That’s why another great question to ask when choosing an SEO company is what they’ve accomplished for their previous clients.
Good SEO companies will be delighted when you ask this.
They’ll then go into all the details of how they got so-and-so’s website this much traffic or how they brought thousands of leads to so-and-so’s website.
They have the experience, and it’ll show.
But be careful!
EVERYBODY will claim to have the experience, and everybody can make up stories.
That’s why you should also do some digging yourself.
Find reviews or case studies from genuine customers. Or get in touch with other companies who’ve worked with this particular company.
Remember, you do NOT want to end up with a bad SEO company.
It’ll take months before you realize nothing is working, and by then, you’ll lose a lot of cash.
So find reviews on review websites. You can also find reviews for some companies on Google.
Of course, pricing.
Pricing is something that is always very tricky.
There is no regulatory body on this, so people can charge as high or as low as they want.
And all we have when it comes to pricing is a rule of thumb:
Don’t trust SEO services that charge less than $500 a month.
Especially if they make BIG promises to you.
Why?
Because they’re either:
How do we know?
Well, after years in this industry, we know there is absolutely NO WAY a company will profit from doing comprehensive SEO work on your website while charging less than $500.
If they do small tasks, sure.
If they make small promises, then they’re probably telling the truth.
But if they say they can meet all your KPIs for a small fee, run away.
Another rule of thumb is that choosing an SEO company for small and medium-sized businesses will cost around $1,500 – $3,000 a month, depending on your business.
It may get even higher than that if you have big goals for your website.
This is the pricing that most fair companies charge for their services.
Finally, the last rule of thumb is that businesses in competitive industries have to pay more for better results.
It’s common sense.
If your website is battling two others for the top spot, winning won’t be that difficult.
But if you’re fighting 100?
You’re never going to make it unless you splurge on an SEO and digital marketing plan.
Yes, there are thousands of SEO companies out there.
And when you start looking for them, LOTS of them will pitch you their services – which can get extremely confusing for you.
But don’t worry.
Ask them these six questions!
You can separate the good from the bad, the right fit from the wrong fit with these.
So remember these six questions when you go looking for the perfect SEO company for your business.
Good luck!
Want a good SEO agency that can give you the desired answers for all six questions? Contact us today and found out how we can smash your goals for your website together!