You listened to the pitch and really believed that the guys you hired had their fingers on the pulse of the Internet. They promised that they were going to raise your ratings in the Search Engine Results, and that you were going to see higher profits because of it.
Now they have your company’s money, and you know that whenever you do a search you can’t find your website until you click back three or four result pages. What you do have is a handful of spammy links, and virtually no measurable Web presence.
This is not the place to rant about Internet ethics, or Black Hat vs. White Hat tactics. The fact is that your money is gone, but your business still needs its web presence optimized to rise above the competition.
That is why I am going to help you to NOT make the same mistake in the future by giving you some questions to ask BEFORE you hire another SEO expert.
1. Can You Tell Me Exactly What You Will Do To Boost My Rankings and Traffic?
You wouldn’t let the garage start work on your car unless they told you exactly what they were going to do to it. You should expect the same for your website and your reputation.
A good SEO company will be up front with you about exactly what they will be doing on your behalf. A less reputable company may try to put up a smoke screen, claiming that their methods involve “Trade Secrets”. Don’t buy it.
The fact is that there is only one secret to successful SEO. All the information that is needed to succeed in SEO is published on the Internet. The secret to making it work is lots and lots of dedicated and detail oriented work.
2. What Is Your Typical ROI For A Customer Similar To My Business?
You are probably wary of claims by now, so look for solid information. It is easier to take an SEO professional seriously who tells you: “In the first sixty days, we generated six laser eye surgery patients at $2000 each, thirty qualified leads that have scheduled an in-office consultation, and fifty-two email newsletter sign-ups.”
Much better than “We increased their traffic 100%!”
3. Do I Retain Total Control And Access To All Of The Accounts Created For My Business?
The total SEO package you sign up for should include profiles on business websites like GooglePlus, Yahoo!, Bing, YellowPages.com and others. It is very important that YOU remain in control of who has access to these accounts.
Naturally, both you and your SEO Consultant expect your relationship to go smoothly, but anything can happen. Should things go sour, if the only access to these accounts is in the consultant’s hands. Not just the work done to that point, but your very reputation may be held hostage.
4. If I Cancel My Services, Will You Remove All Of The Work Completed During My Contract?
Just like maintaining control of your business directory accounts, you don’t want to be feel extorted to continue paying for services if you are dissatisfied. Ensure that your company owns the content created on your behalf, and that you have complete access and control of everything on your site.
Hopefully, when the contract is complete you will be happy enough with the results that you will want to renew. You should not feel forced to renew the contract simply to maintain your website.
5. How Much Involvement And Input Will You Need From Me?
You should be wary of an SEO, or any marketer, who simply states “We’ll take it from here”, and gives the impression that they don’t need, or want, your input. You are hiring the consultant for their expertise, but remember that the message you are hiring them to craft is YOURS.
An efficient SEO Company probably has some tactics ready to deploy, but they can only be effective if they have your input so the message will meet your specific business needs.
6. What Techniques are Considered Spammy?
Reputable SEO workers are able to achieve high rankings for their clients using established, legitimate techniques. This approach will yield consistent, long lasting results, but it is a time consuming process. There are a number of SEOs out there who engage in “spammy” techniques that give remarkable results, the results come at a price.
The search engines may give a spammy site a high ranking for a short period, but when they realize that they have been tricked, they will punish the site.
You don’t want to do business with an SEO who uses these spammy techniques, but it is important that they recognize them. That way they know not to use the techniques by accident, and they will be able to beat the spammers at their own game.
7. How Do You Measure The Effectiveness of an SEO Campaign?
You measure the success of your business by how well it meets the goals you set for it. Your SEO should have the same accountability. The only way you can track this is by tracking measurable factors, such as increased search engine ranking, proof of traffic increase, and measurements of visitor actions like sales, phone calls, email sign-ups and more.
8. How Will You Communicate With Me and Whom Will I Communicate With?
As a customer you have a right to expect to be able to communicate with your SEO expert. Further, you should be able to get in touch with the actual manager of your project, not an outsourcer, receptionist, or anyone who is not 100% knowledgeable about your project. This is expertise that you are paying for, you deserve expert communication.
9. Can You Show Me Some Real, Representative Results You’ve Achieved For Similar Businesses?
If the SEO marketer you are dealing with is able to show proof of past success, it will help boost confidence they can do the same for you. If they cannot show that proof, how will you know what you are getting for your money?
10. Can You Give Me A List Of References I Can Contact Personally And View Online?
Would you trust your business to an employee without checking his references before hiring? It may seem like a formality, but it may yield important information.
11. What Is The Most Common Reason Customers Decide Not To Renew With You?
Even the best companies will have lost some customers over the years. Clients may change their online strategies, or their cousin Fred may have just gotten into the SEO business, or the client itself may have gone out of business. In your own business you have learned that a lost customer is more than a lost opportunity, it is a lesson learned. A record of less than 100% customer retention should not be a red flag. The red flag should come up if the SEO Specialist is less than forthcoming or defensive about why customers choose to discontinue their services.
12. What Sets Your SEO Company Apart?
If you receive a pat answer to this question like “We can get you ranked in the #1 spot for EVERY one of your keywords by tomorrow”, be afraid, very afraid. The company is probably more interested in your money than their performance.
What you need to hear is what they have accomplished for businesses similar to yours, and how they will be able achieve even more for you. If you take the time to investigate these twelve questions, you will find the right SEO company for your business to work with.
We would like to add a free thirteenth question. Does the company offer a Free Half Hour Consultation with one of their marketing experts? We hope that you will follow the links here and schedule your Free Consultation with Seattle SEO Consultant‘s own Chad Morgan.