There are a few things you should know about how to choose an SEO agency. That's why we put this guide together to help you choose a great company.
SEO is a booming business, set to be worth more than 122 billion dollars by 2028. Since these services can transform businesses completely, no wonder the industry is becoming so valuable.
But it's not good enough to simply choose the first SEO agency that you encounter. You need to think carefully about any company you will work with, the best SEO agency, and get great results for your business.
There are a few things you should know about how to choose an SEO agency. That's why we put this guide together to help you choose a great company. Read on to learn everything you need to know about making a great choice.
Understand Your Expectations
Before you set out to choose SEO services, you need to think about your own business. Think carefully about your needs and desires. This will help you to decide what you want to get from SEO.
Lay out a list of goals that you need from the campaign. Do you have a particular target audience you wish to approach? When you approach an SEO company, lay out your desired outcomes and allow the agency to consult on whether or not these are realistic goals.
You need to be on the same page as your agency regarding the end product. Open up a dialogue and be honest about what you're looking for. A good agency will do the same in turn and let you know if you're asking for too much.
Communication
Good communication is at the heart of every strong business relationship. When you choose a company to run your SEO campaign, you need to be absolutely sure they are going to communicate efficiently with you. This will help you to keep an eye on the campaign throughout and raise any issues or queries you might have.
In your initial meeting with the SEO company, ask about their channels of communication and how they keep their clients informed throughout the campaign. Ideally, you should have a dedicated member of staff who can be a point of contact for you at all times. You should be able to communicate quickly by email or chat app, but also have the option to set up a more detailed meeting when required.
This is one of the most important things you ought to look for when choosing professional SEO services. Take careful note of how they communicate with you in your initial consultation. If you don't think they are being honest with you about your campaign, it may be time to look elsewhere.
Ask For Experience
You need to work with experienced SEO professionals. Ensuring your new partners have experience means they will have the skills and know-how to overcome any challenges that may arise over the course of a campaign.
Learning to produce quality SEO content isn't something that can be done in an afternoon. It takes a lot of training and research to master. That means if you hire people who are totally new to the business, they may not be able to rise to the challenge.
SEO agencies have been around almost as long as search engines themselves. Although the practice has only become widely known in more recent years, it's probably an older industry than you think.
Remember, just because an SEO company is newly established, that doesn't mean their staff members don't have experience. Be sure to work with a company that gives extensive training to everyone who will be working on the campaign, from project managers to freelance writers.
Ask About Strategy
The best SEO campaigns are underpinned by a solid strategy. Thinking carefully about how the campaign will run can help you to get a better long-term result.
Think of it like a game of chess. It's not enough to move pieces randomly in the hopes you can win. Instead, you need to think several moves ahead.
A good SEO strategy will include the following:
- Backlinks
- Quality written content
- Guest posts
The exact composition of this strategy will depend on your specific business and the type of results you're looking for. Experienced SEO professionals will be able to get the formula just right for you. They may have expert strategists on their payrolls who can design a bespoke program, especially for your needs.
A good agency will have a meeting with you to discuss this strategy. While the plan may change along the way, a good plan should give you an idea of how things should go roughly.
Check Their Portfolio
An SEO company can give you all the information they like about their history and services. But as the old saying goes, the proof is in the pudding. You need to see concrete examples of good work the company has done previously before you trust them to handle your campaign.
The best way to do that is to see a portfolio. Any good SEO firm will have a portfolio they can share with you. This should include examples of varied assignments carried out for a range of companies.
Don't just look for flashy campaigns. You need to see cold, hard results. A good company will be happy to share some of the results of these campaigns, including increased sales or website visits.
Want to learn a little more about the work we've done previously? Click the link to check out our projects.
Choose White Hat Agencies
There are two types of SEO agencies you should know about. These are white hat agencies and black hat agencies.
White hat agencies are the ones you want to work with. They use established techniques to provide you with quality content.
An example of white hat services is creating blogs about the services you offer. This could come in the form of a high-quality blog written by a professional writer. It would include a set of specially chosen keywords that will help you to rise through the search ranks, while also providing quality content for consumers.
On the other hand, black hat agencies use all kinds of surreptitious tactics to boost your rankings. While their promised results and low prices may seem appealing, these tactics could negatively impact you in the long run, and you're unlikely to see good results in the long term.
An example of the work of a black hat agency could be spamming forums with links to your business. Or they could produce lots of poorly-written articles rammed full of keywords. These techniques may offer you a short-term boost, but they will damage your long-term prospects and could harm your reputation.
Look for Diversity
The best SEO companies have a diversity of skills. They should have different specializations among their employees. For example, they ought to have specialists in strategy, keyword research, content writing, and a range of other services.
This range of skills will help to craft a truly exciting and robust campaign. When a company focuses too much on one aspect of SEO, it won't be able to provide you with the best value for money.
Here at ThoughtLab, we can call upon some of the brightest minds in the industry. We have experts in a range of fields, and they can use their skills to help your campaign be a roaring success.
Watch for Awards
It may come as a surprise to those not familiar with the SEO industry, but there are organizations dedicated to assessing SEO companies and the work they do. Some of these publications give awards to the best companies.
When a company can boast one of these awards, it's a sure sign they're something special. You can also look for reviews of your company which may be published by these SEO review sites.
If your chosen company has received awards, it's a sign they're well-regarded by experts in the industry. That means you could be working with the best of the best!
Check Out Customer Reviews
Find out what existing customers thought of the SEO agency. Did they feel they got the results they asked for and were they treated well throughout the process? There are lots of websites online packed with customer reviews.
Contact the Best SEO Agency Around
In today's increasingly competitive market, quality SEO services are more important than ever. They can give you a key edge over your competitors and help you to thrive in the online market.
If you're ready to get access to the best SEO agency around, we're just a click away. We have all the experience and know-how to help you get ahead. Contact us today to find out more about how our services can help you.
