It shouldn’t be so difficult to find someone who will actually help your search rankings. Everyone is an “expert,” everyone can get you on page one, and half of the industry seems to talk in either overly technical terms that you can’t understand or vague concepts that make you feel dumb. The reality of the situation is that SEO is in such a weird place; it’s technical enough where most business owners can’t assess the work being done themselves, yet, informal enough where tons of people think they know what they’re doing after watching a few how-to videos.
It’s by knowing the right questions to ask and the right signs to tell you that this isn’t the right expert for you that you’ll weed through the wannabees and find the best SEO for your company.
Check out Their Site
This seems obvious. If they’re an SEO expert, their own website should be ranking for something notable. If someone is selling you on their services and you search “SEO services [insert their city]” and they aren’t on page one, that’s a red flag the size of Texas.
Also check site speed, mobile responsiveness, and if the site even comes up at all (as this article recommends using Google’s PageSpeed test). If they can’t handle their own, what makes you think your client’s websites will be any different?
However, at the same time, don’t just go by rankings either. A lot of SEO people rank because they’ve temporarily tricked Google, not because they’ve done actual quality work. Check if their articles make sense-read through a couple and if they sound like they have actual content (not just tons of keywords shoved together) because this is also a good sign.
Ask Them About What They Do
Anyone who knows what they’re talking about should be able to explain themselves in plain English. For example, they can use buzzwords like technical audits and keyword research, content strategy and link building, but they better explain what’s involved in each for your business specifically.
If someone gives vague answers or tells you they’ll be using secret techniques that they can’t divulge, run away. It’s essentially smoke and mirrors. While yes, it may get technical, at the end of the day, even if it’s comprehensive work, it shouldn’t have to be dumbed down to the point where people don’t understand what’s going on.
If you’re looking to work with someone who will treat your business with an educated, strategic approach, then professionals like Juan C. Rezk are known to keep information transparent because they value their work through timelines. Someone who knows what they’re doing expects people to want to know what is going on.
Ask for Case Studies, Not Testimonials
Anyone can say, “I got X company better search rankings.” Anyone can put generic numbers behind a basic statement to sound fancy. But ask for specific examples – “We took X company from position 47 to position 8 through keyword 123 and this meant a 340% increase in organic traffic within 6 months.”
What did they do? Show screenshots of before-and-after analytics proving their statements came to fruition (not within weeks or days either, but months).
They should be able to explain where someone started from, what problems they faced along the way and how they ultimately found success. If they can’t provide at least three solid examples with proper explanation, there’s something sketchy going on.
And legit stories come with caveats. It’s good to know if you’re brand new versus established to guide against a super high expectation from the jump, if the competition was high or low ,if it was a saturated market or what was realistic to expect. Anyone who boasts that they’ll get you #1 for XYZ keywords in just a matter of days is running some risk – or lying through their teeth.
Ask for a Timeline
This is where SEO professionals show their hand. If you ask someone how long it will take for you to see results and they tell you within a month (or days), they’re scamming you.
Crawlers need to crawl your site before rankings improve. It takes time for adjustments to be made and compared against competition. Most results take 3-6 months to materialize and in competitive industries, much longer.
The right professional will tell you what results may come about after month one (small technical changes), what should be gaining traction month three (content adjustments via initial feedback) and when these realistic changes can be made (months 4-6 and beyond; yes – there should be timelines involved).
Additionally, it’s important that they explain what’s realistic for you depending upon your budget, competition, and starting point. If you’re a local plumber looking for a fast track to success against 10 other plumbers in a small town, that’s different than trying to compete nationally against those who’ve been around for decades with higher budgets.
Ask How They Communicate
SEO isn’t a set-it-and-forget-it gig. Things change constantly, algorithms shift, competitors adjust strategy; your business grows..you need someone who’s going to keep you in the loop about what’s going on, and check in with you as time goes by.
Find out how often they’ll check in, what those reports include and how they’ll answer any questions or concerns you’ve raised along the way. Some people send reports once a month filled with detailed analyses of changes over the month; some prefer quick reports every two weeks.
There’s no right or wrong format as long as you feel comfortable with it and they’re willing to accommodate or at least find a medium that’ll work for both parties. Red flag: If they don’t want you privy to your own stats or don’t feel comfortable explaining metrics, walk away.
Ask How Well They Know Your Business
Someone who’s just going to throw your business into their cookie-cutter application isn’t going to do well by anyone. An SEO professional needs to differentiate between businesses so that they can best determine what’s unique about yours, who’s actually searching for you, and what they’re searching for by necessity and not convenience.
Do they ask about your business model during initial conversations? How about your competition? Or what you’re trying to achieve? Or are they pitching as though they’ve pitched everyone else with a run-of-the-mill sales approach? The best approach comes from those who truly understand the business behind the website.
They should also be honest about what SEO can do for you (and can’t). If there are foundational issues regarding your business model or if you’re in an industry no one typically searches for online, a good consultant will tell you that instead of just taking your money with false expectations.
The Bottom Line
Ultimately it shouldn’t be about price; it should be about someone’s ability to convey technical information transparently while valuing business-related results. The right SEO professional will come equipped with case studies showing transparency, realistic expectations, and tangible results so that when it comes time for you to pay up, it’ll be worth it for everyone’s benefit, not an overnight miracle that was just a scam from the beginning.