Hiring an SEO Agency – Questions to Ask
Type SEO into your favourite search engine and you will be presented with hundreds of companies promising to take your site to the top of the rankings, but is it as straightforward as that? Unfortunately not, the way search engines present content to online users means that the right kind of SEO agency is more important than ever.
Those who aren’t fully knowledgeable about SEO may be left a little bewildered as to how to choose the right kind of SEO agency. Fortunately, there are some questions you can ask to help ease your mind.
Does The SEO Agency Follow Google’s Best Practices?
Google has really upped its game when it comes to SEO, and there are a number of rules in place that help decide as to whether a website should be listed within its results or not. As such, it’s important that any SEO agency is fully aware of these practices, and knows how to stay on Google’s good side, or the end result could be a website that ranks even lower than it did initially.
Are There Any Examples of the Agency’s Reporting?
An SEO agency may well tell you what’s been done, but many people will want to see physical evidence of this. A reputable SEO agency should have no concerns in supply you with reports that detail exactly what work has been carried out in relation to your site.
Can The SEO Agency Guarantee Rankings?
This is something of a trick question, as no reputable SEO agency will guarantee that they can rank you at number one on Google. If it does, then it’s probably best to source a solution elsewhere.
Does the Service Include Local SEO
While not required by every business, it’s certainly a question worth asking if you do require Local SEO. Some may include it as part of the service, others may deal with it for an additional fee. In either event, enquiries should be made as to what work will be carried out in relation to Local SEO.
Does the Agency Have Any Link Building and Content Examples?
Content and backlinks are still an integral part of SEO, but only if they are done in the right way. Posting numerous backlinks to site with little or no authority will do very little for your rankings. Similarly, content stuffed with keywords will provide no value for your business or to your customers.
Enquire about how the SEO agency goes about building links, and ask for an example of content being produced. If quality content isn’t being produced, then it is unlikely that your site will rank. The same goes for referring sites with no authority.
Overall, it’s a case of the SEO agency explaining to you clearly as to how they will be optimising your site. If you do have any concerns, ensure that you voice them at the start, as it may be too late further down the line.
High-quality SEO should leave your website in a robust position in relation to rankings while still conforming with the rules and regulations set out by search engines such as Google and Bing.