What You Should Know Before Hiring an SEO Agency
More and more businesses are investing in search engine optimization (SEO) to maximize their online success in marketing.
In fact, a study has shown that more than 1.3 million businesses, website publishers, and nonprofits around the US benefit from using Google’s advertising solutions.
SEO has definitely changed the landscape of marketing in a fascinating way with thousands of SEO agencies vying for top rankings on search engine results pages (SERPs).
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What Does an SEO Company Actually Do?
SEO companies get leads and customers for all types of businesses. They optimize search engines or perfect a website so that it gets unpaid or “organic” traffic from search engines like Google, Yahoo, Bing, and the like. SEO services aim to increase your online presence so that your potential customers will find you when they search.
With a successful SEO strategy from an SEO company, you will expect results like an increase in inquiry through phone calls, emails and communication media provided on the website, more customers, more web traffic, and increased profit.
Common SEO services include:
- Marketing services: Local SEO, Ecommerce SEO, Voice SEO
- SEO Audit
- Competitor Analysis
- Custom Strategy
- Keyword research and analysis
- Website construction and development
- Off-page Optimization
- On-page optimization
- Monthly Reports
- Progressive Optimization
All of these services aim for recognizing the potential in a business website to make it perform better through advanced and successful strategies.
An excellent SEO agency will optimize a site on an ongoing or continuous basis finding ways to improve and enhance it to allow the business to earn more. With this position, SEO companies work as an extension of a business in achieving its goals and mission in meeting the needs of its customers.
Questions to Ask Before You Hire an SEO Agency
So many SEO agencies claim they are the best and the experts in the industry, so how can you distinguish who walks the talk? What will you look for in an SEO agency so that you will make a wise decision in finding a capable SEO partner that will be worth your investment?
Here are a list of questions to help you determine if hiring an SEO company is worth the investment:
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Can you do SEO yourself? Do I have enough time for performing SEO myself?
SEO itself requires a lot of time and as a business owner, you will have to decide the best way to divvy up your already hectic schedule. It may be wise to hire an SEO to assist you in your marketing strategies with an SEO campaign to increase your traffic.
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Can you afford to spend money on SEO?
Google’s paid search results are filled with SEO service options that cost a few hundred dollars a month. But SEO that is a few hundred dollars isn’t going to be effective according to BusinessCollective.
Quality SEO which will cost more upfront will prevent low-quality SEO service that will take a lot of money and time to clean up. As a business owner, you will end up spending less money in the long run if you invest in quality SEO services.
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Do you have a worthwhile product or service that can really sell?
No matter how grand or perfect an SEO technique or marketing strategy is, no SEO agency can magically make a bad product or service sell. Make sure that you do not have holes in your business that need to be fixed outside the boundaries of the best SEO services.
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Which do you specifically want to rank on?
The best SEO company would focus on ROI instead of just ranking number one for keywords which does not lead to an increase in profit. Even though SEO deals with keyword research and other measurables, ROI is still the most important number because that’s what business is all about.
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Do you use other digital marketing strategies?
Many companies do not only invest in SEO to maximize online success. You can use SEO to complement other internet marketing tactics that can lead to bigger and better results for your business.
An SEO consultant should also advise and help you with implementing additional sources of traffic so that you can create multiple streams of traffic. Spread the risk by never putting all your eggs in one basket. You can pull in traffic from other channels like email marketing and social media marketing.
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Do you want to use SEO as a long-term strategy for generating Revenue?
Maximize the ROI of your SEO by partnering with an SEO agency that can customize a marketing strategy for you with unique and tailored SEO techniques specifically for your business that they can manage in the long run.
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Will the SEO agency guarantee specific results?
An SEO company that promises a specific ranking or traffic level is doing something shady. Professional SEO services work with you to forecast general scenarios from the budget and strategy that you presented, along with your present competition.
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How long will it take to generate results?
SEO takes time so if you are looking for a quick fix, remember that there is no quick fix regardless of what you hired an SEO agency to do. Achieving a solid ranking and getting returns may take three to six months or even more.
What’s important is you have deliverables that tell you changes are taking place, links are being built, content is being produced, and so on that should lead to incremental growth in qualified traffic and conversions.
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Has the SEO agency worked on projects like you before?
If an SEO agency has produced demonstrable returns in the same niche as yours, you are assured that they can handle your project to get the same or even better results. Learn how well your company is a fit with an SEO agency and vice-versa.
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How does the SEO company implement changes and report on them?
Clearly stating and communicating changes and recommendations throughout the implementation of the SEO process is important as you move forward. Key metrics that SEO companies measure and updates on your website that contribute to and measure success should be reported with a reasonable level of detail and clarity.
Do Not Get Ripped Off
Do your due diligence, research, be smart, take your time, and contemplate. Know for sure that you hire the right SEO Marketing agency for your business. Make an informed decision and don’t flush your money down the drain by being ripped off with a lame SEO company that does not deliver.
An SEO company that knows what they’re doing will be remarkably open and friendly as you ask them questions about their SEO techniques and processes. If you have this kind of relationship with them, you are on your way to SEO success.
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