How Do I Choose An SEO Agency?

When it comes to choosing which SEO agency that fits your needs and business, it’s essential to know what makes a good SEO agency, and how do I choose an SEO agency?

Actually, getting the right SEO agency is a bit tricky; hundreds, if not thousands of options are out there to choose from. But, you must make the right choice among all of these as you need to pay thousands of dollars, and one wrong decision of yours can be devastating for your business.

However, you don’t have to worry about this, as we have done the research for you and come up with the proven tactics for finding the right SEO agency for your needs. So, let’s explore how to choose an SEO agency.

Why Hire An SEO Agency?

Well, first thing first, why do we need SEO agency?

The straightforward answer to this question is that SEO agencies have the knowledge, expertise, and processes required to establish and expand your business online and help you reach greater heights.

Being in this industry, SEO experts are always up-to-date with the latest trends, changes, updates, and SEO best practices. That means they know what will work for your specific business and what not.

A reputable agency will ensure that your website abides by Google’s best practices, is technically sound, and can offer a better user experience.

This means that considering all these factors, SEO agencies will create an effective and most suitable strategy specifically for your brand to drive the results. Meanwhile, by hiring an SEO agency, instead of learning algorithms and SEO best practices, you can concentrate on running your business

With this in mind, let’s see what results can you expect working with an SEO agency, and how can an SEO agency help companies?

• SEO agencies will develop a long-term customized SEO strategy that fits your business needs and meets your business goal.
• Optimize your website with targeted keywords to get the top ranking for relevant searches.
• Helps in getting ahead of your competitors at the SERP.
• Results in a better user experience and higher website performance.
• Improve brand awareness and build the credibility of your brand.
• Helps in generating qualified traffic to your site as well as promotes higher conversion and sales.
• Improves various aspects of your site, such as mobile-friendliness and speed

How Do I Choose An SEO Agency?

Before hiring an SEO agency, you must consider some factors, for example-

• Determining your business goals and
• Exactly what you are looking to achieve or your desired outcome.

Let me clear this with some examples.

Assume that your goal is to get the top ranking for certain targeted keywords and phrases.

This means you need to create engaging content to reach the set of people and educate them who are searching with those keywords. In that case, you need an SEO agency with expert content developers to help you with building SEO-optimized content and content marketing.

Another example is, let’s say, you have some great content, but still, they are not ranking well. It may be that your competitors have higher domain authority and a powerful link-building strategy. This means that if you need to improve your website’s DA and establish a strong link-building strategy, you will need to hire an SEO agency with link-building expertise.

Now, as you can see, knowing your business goal makes the process much easier as you know exactly what type of SEO agency you need to look for. At this stage, all you need to do is-

• Do proper research online and on social media about different SEO agencies
• Ask for referrals from other businesses, relatives, and friends who have used SEO services.

This way, you can get a shortlist of agencies with expertise and experience.

Now, let’s come to the main topic which is how do I choose an SEO agency?

Well, all the great SEO agencies have some characteristics, and by identifying these, you can easily determine the best suitable company as your business partner.

And the best way to search for agencies with all these characteristics is through their websites. So, here is the list of fundamental traits that you need to look for while choosing an SEO agency.

1. A Defined SEO Execution Process

Typically,  SEO agencies have experience working with numerous clients and with almost all types of industries. So they outline their winning process to show how they deliver results to their potential customers.

Remember, every great company has its own execution processes of its SEO strategies. And this is how you can identify SEO agencies that have proven results.

2. A Diverse Team of Specialists

A great team can conveniently make anything possible with their knowledge, skills, and expertise, no matter how complex the project is. And when it comes to SEO, a lot of things and factors go into its execution.

From auditor to strategic concept maker, account manager, SEO execution expert, and other members work together to achieve your business goals. And experienced SEO companies never hesitate to make their team public, in fact, they do this proudly.

3. Realistic Offerings

We know everybody likes to get or hear a 100% guarantee when buying any product or service and this is common human nature.

Even if it sounds bad, if any agency gives you a 100% ranking guarantee in SEO, then it is a red flag for you. You should avoid such companies and start searching for other agencies.

Remember, SEO is an ongoing process, and as the search algorithms are beyond the agency’s control, so no one can guarantee to rank. So, look for companies that offer you real results, not a 100% ranking guarantee.

4. Impressive Client Portfolio and Case Studies

Experienced SEO agencies display their clientele and case studies. It’s a common characteristic of a good SEO agency that helps in two ways. The first one is it helps the agency to show that they are experienced and have done some great work.

Another one is that it helps you to get a sense of their style and the results their clients received. This will ultimately help you to make a decision by considering the number and type of companies the agencies have worked with as a benchmark.

5. Real Customer Testimonials

It’s really essential to see the client testimonial while choosing an SEO agency.

When an SEO agency helps its clients achieve their goals, get more traffic, and sell more, clients will be happy to give them a testimonial. And the SEO company itself will proudly display all testimonials on its website.

This helps you to identify what all the past clients say about them and their services.

6. Industry-Specific Thought Leadership

An expert SEO agency is always well-versed with the newest developments and latest trends, especially they always look forward to how changes will impact traffic, rankings, and business.

In fact, most top executives like to share their thoughts and insights about the recent updates and all the latest trends via their blogs, research papers, and social media. This way, they can maintain thought leadership.

In the same way, it will help you to identify the SEO company that is keeping pace with the market and can help you keep all the recent changes in mind.

7. A Crisp-Clear Company Culture

It’s a fact that the best SEO firms never work with toxic clients, and in the same way, you also wouldn’t want to work with a company whose company culture and values don’t go with your business.

This is the reason SEO agencies display their company culture so that you can easily determine if the company aligns with your culture or not. So, make sure to see the company culture of every agency to ensure they are suitable to your values.

8. White-Hat Practices

Each ethical agency that implements white hat SEO practice gives a detailed description of their strategies and how they work on their website. Additionally, you can ask agencies about their strategies, and the good ones won’t hesitate to share their strategies with you.

Make sure to avoid those companies that use black hat tactics to optimize your website. You may see great results in a very short time, but it will not last long, and even it will damage your website performance over time.

9. Transparent Processes and Packages

Experienced SEO agencies have a transparent way of service offerings and packages. Make sure the agency offers monthly reporting and project updates to clients.

Do not forget to ask who will answer your queries, how you should contact the owner or CEO, who should you contact when needed, and how and when will you get the reports?

10. Effective Communication

Communication is the key. So, you can get a lot more in-depth information by directly communicating with them. In fact, you can gauge how well the agency will align with your business, value their client, and their professionalism through their communication skill.

So, it will be best if you make a list of necessary questions and ask them. At this time, look out for how quickly and confidently they reply to you. It’s a great way to learn their process.

All these above characteristics will help you to make the SEO agency list much narrower. And once you are done with this, consider the following factors, and after that, you can finally get the best one for your business.

11. Check the Company’s Past Performance, Client Reviews, and Ratings

It is important to check the past performance of each business to know what the company has done before to determine if it can deliver the results you are looking for. In that case, you can ask the past clients of each agency about their experience. In fact, you can ask the current clients also to get insights into their strengths and weaknesses.

Another way of determining the service and expertise of a good SEO agency is by seeing their customer reviews and ratings. You can get this through Google, social media, and portfolio websites.

12. Identify the Techniques They Utilize

Every company has its own techniques and strategies. Therefore, it’s essential to know how the company helps you to meet your needs. You must ask them about the SEO techniques they are going to use for your project.

13. Check for Level of Competency

When you partner with an SEO agency, it can take your business to the next level and do wonders for your business. But, to ensure this, you must partner with an agency that has complete control over its crafts. Only then, you can make the most out of their superior knowledge and get a better version of your website.

14. Ask For A Free Consultation

Now, you can ask the rest of the SEO companies from your list for a consultation. In our experience maximum best agencies offer free consultancy. You must take advantage of this opportunity to learn about the agency, and experts, discuss your goal and budget, and finally can decide to hire the right agency.

15. Visit With The SEO Company

When you are choosing an SEO agency, you are actually choosing an extended business partner. Therefore, if possible, it would be a great idea to visit the company and meet the people you are going to partner with.

Meeting in person is an excellent way to connect with the entire team and start a great relationship, and also it will give you a mental peace that you have made the correct choice.

This will save a huge time of yours also, you can utilize this opportunity to see their attitude towards you and your business. If everything goes well, you can also be clear about the budget and tactics.

16. Request For An SEO Proposal

After completing all of the above steps, when you are finally interested in working with a company, you can request them for an SEO proposal.

Some agencies will even offer a free website audit and then share the scopes and implementation details of your SEO campaign as a proposal or report. This way, you can have a clear idea of the entire process. It’s a great way to modify any part if required to get the best fit for your business.

Wrapping Up

SEO is something that you need to start sooner than later. The right agency can develop a powerful campaign that will increase sales and quantitative leads for your website.

Remember, choosing the right SEO company is just as important as SEO for your business. It’s not just finding the best SEO agency, it’s all about choosing the right and reliable SEO partner for your business and goals.

Remember, SEO is a complex plus lengthy process, which can only be handled by an experienced agency. And only the right SEO agency can help to take your business to new heights.

So, that’s all about how do I choose an SEO agency.

We hope you find this guide useful and we’ve been able to help you choose the right SEO partner.