Few businesses have the in-house skills or knowledge to craft their own SEO optimized content. However, with a wide range of SEO specialists out there, you always have a wide range of options to help develop and put into action an effective SEO strategy. But with new agencies appearing all the time, in any major town or city you may have to pick from a dozen or more services, so how do you hire the right one?
Beware of Extravagant Promises
In narrowing down your choice of SEO agency, start with those you can easily dismiss. When contacting a few agencies regarding your business and campaign, look out for ‘guarantees’ of getting #1 in the rankings and other similar promises. There is no magic solution to SEO, and anyone pushing this line is one to avoid. Similarly, those spammy emails you get from agencies every so often, ignore them too.
Ask about their strategy
A good SEO agency will be open and transparent in what they do, and let you know how they intend to boost your SERPS and the kind of results they expect. Beware of any that claim to have a special relationship with Google, or who avoid discussing what it is they plan to do.
Do Your Research
It’s worth spending some time looking into your shortlist, see what previous clients say about them, check out what employees say on Glassdoor or similar, you’ll get a much clearer understanding of the kind of people you will be dealing with. This is important, because they will in effect be representing your brand, and you will need to work closely with them.
Know what you want
Which brings us on to you. It’s a collaborative process, and you need to have a clear picture of what you wish to achieve. So, prepare your plan and be clear about the target demographics, whether you want local or broader targeting, everything you need. The more precise you are, the more it helps the agency.
Know what you are getting
Finally, when you have found a team who deliver the right kind of performance and so on, you need to make sure that you know what you are going to get for your money. A detailed program, noting SEO tasks, reporting and so forth should be provided in writing before work commences, so you know what should be happening and have a reference to understand if progress is being made.
Due diligence is essential, but beyond that, knowing what you want and tying down the agency to written schedules of work will make the entire process much smoother and deliver the results you need.
