Overview
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is about more than just search engines. Good SEO practices are proven to increase the overall user experience and the usability of a website.
For this reasons companies need to be extremely careful when they choose an SEO agency. The right SEO agency can often be the difference between success and failure for some companies. The process involved with determining which SEO agency is suited to your unique needs can be tedious and time-consuming. The guide below will guide you through the process involved with choosing the best agency for your company.
Define your unique SEO Goals
Before you can consider the services that an SEO agency offers, you need to understand what your company’s goals are. This way, you can align the offering of the SEO agency with your needs. Begin with a digital marketing analysis to determine whether you can adjust your existing SEO strategy, or whether you need to create a new strategy. It is also crucial to consider some of the following:
- Your target market and potential customers
- A realistic budget
- Whether business partners will be affected
- Existing marketing strategies
- How it can affect your product sales and several others
Request SEO Case Studies and Client Examples
One of the easiest ways to filter through different SEO companies is to evaluate their case studies and the websites that they have optimised.
You will be looking for examples that are current and updated, showing recent progress. Consider examples and studies that are closely related to your own goals and objectives.
Look at the specialities and services of the SEO Agency
Before you hire an SEO service provider, you need to familiarise yourself with their specialities and services. You can enquire whether they specialise in a single service, location, or industry, or a mix of all.
You can also enquire whether they offer services other than SEO and identify the SEO techniques that they use. Some companies may not be able to provide you with all the information that you require due to confidentiality clauses, but they can provide proof of their work.
Professional SEO companies will track and measure their campaign results closely, allowing them to refine their strategies to ensure that they can achieve the best possible results. Some SEO metrics that are typically tracked include:
- Leads as well as sales
- Organic traffic
- Organic search and organic search ranking
- Overnight rankings
- Search engine rankings
- Keyword rankings
- Bounce rate
- Organic click-through rate or CTR
- Average page loading time, and others
Be clear about the Budget
Consider your SEO budget and how much you are willing to spend on effective SEO. A non-competitive low-cost SEO provider offering local services can be more cost-effective while aggressively competitive strategies can cost thousands. Each of these can be used to achieve different purposes as each will feature a different approach to SEO.
Make sure that you can maintain your SEO strategy long-term and that you can implement effective strategies that will be worth the money you pay, especially in pursuing ongoing progress that will support your unique business model.
Avoid companies that make it seem like a magical solution
The process involved with optimising a website and generating organic traffic and organic rankings can be a tedious, labour-intensive, and complex process. This often leads to misconceptions about what SEO truly entails and what it sets out to achieve. When you search for the ideal SEO partner, there are several things to look out for, and the following red flag is one of them.
When people try to sell their services by claiming that they have mystical insight into the algorithms of Google, or they can increase your SEO overnight, it is safe to say that such firms are not legitimate.
Good SEO involves a deep understanding of the inner workings of search engines, constant modifications, and great attention to detail. An experienced SEO agency will always be realistic and will not try to sell a scam.
Familiarise yourself with the characteristics that make a good SEO Agency
Despite your unique SEO needs, you will find that there are hundreds of SEO experts offering their
services.
Some characteristics to look out for that signals a reliable SEO firm include:
- There is a defined process to execute SEO strategies, a direct plan of action, effective communication plan, and their primary goal is transparent
- There is an experienced team of specialists and SEO professionals
- The SEO firm is a reputable company with an impressive client portfolio
- There are real customer testimonials and online reviews from current clients
- The SEO firm has industry-specific leadership
- The company culture is transparent
- Their SEO costs are transparent
Also Read: Five digital skills you will need in the next five years
