How to Choose an SEO Company

How to Choose an SEO Company: Choosing the Right Partner for Digital Marketing Success

Are you looking for a reliable SEO company to help your business succeed in the digital marketing world? With so many options available, it can be difficult to know which one is right for you. 

Choosing the wrong partner could mean wasted time and money, so it’s important to make sure you select an SEO agency that has the experience and expertise necessary to get the job done. In this article, we’ll discuss how to choose the right SEO company that will provide you with the best results.

This article will provide you with the necessary framework for the process of selection. We also got a handful of useful tips you can use to make the task less difficult for you. We are SuccessAmp. We are a Grand Rapids, MI SEO company dedicated to helping you make informed decisions for your digital success journey.

PART 1 – Prepare and clarify

How prepared are you for this next step for your business? Are you ready to onboard your SEO team? You might get tempted to give an easy “Yes!”. Many companies are anxious to start. But it is crucial to start right.

Start when you’re ready.

Only start when you have an absolute answer to the question, “Is SEO important for your business?”. A yes to this question means that you have a clearer perspective of what SEO can do for reaching your business goals.

By this time, you should be able to enumerate the problems and reasons that make SEO as a definite answer to all of them.

Focus on a correct mindset.

Your digital success is a journey, not a quick one-time fix. Choosing the right SEO partnership is not easy. But working with the right SEO agency should be breezy.

So, one thing to keep in mind is when given all these intimidating options, choose what’s best for YOU. Remember that the best for others may not work for you the same. That is why it’s important to aim to find a company that will develop a true partnership with you and understands your business best.

Prepare a clear set of objectives.

What do you want to achieve in your SEO efforts? Identify and list all of them. Your SEO objectives should be tangible and achievable. It is also better to express them in a language that both you and your SEO team understand precisely what it means to you. Be specific as much as you can.

We are a Grand Rapids local SEO company who has helped both local and national industries in many ways. If you can tell us exactly what your objectives are, we can better help you. We can lay out the path to get you there. But you have to tell us exactly where you want all these to lead.

Here are some examples of detailed goals:

• Organic traffic increased by X%
• Build a stronger backlink profile with high-quality backlinks
• Get a higher domain authority
• Optimize the speed and ease of use of my website
• Make more traffic-generating pages
• Lower bounce rate
• Increase visitor engagement time on the page
• Increase conversion rate from the generated traffic

Define your time frame and set realistic expectations.

A good SEO agency has a good amount of experience to give you realistic timeframes. Be wary of those who promise quick and easy solutions over a ridiculously short amount of time. They may be using black hat SEO practices that may get you results but can get you in a lot of trouble in the end. When search engines like Google detect it, your website will be subject to a Google penalty. Those who are in higher rankings will be downgraded or get delisted.

Set your budget.

Before shortlisting SEO agencies and contacting them, be familiar with SEO pricing models. With that, you can determine your SEO budget. How much should a business your size be spending on SEO services? It always boils down to your expected ROI.

We know a lot of businesses that are looking at affordability, and that is just right. However, never look for the cheapest as your criteria for finding the right SEO agency for you. There are increasing risks for hiring the cheapest instead of the best.

PART 2 – Do your research, answer these important questions

A sound company decision always starts with research. If you are wondering if there is a better way to start the search, you are doing it already.

This is a good starting point. Gather as much information as you can about making smart decisions. Being well-informed will equip you with more than just knowledge. It will give you the confidence to tackle the task.

One of the best tips we can give for choosing an SEO agency is to keep these questions handy.

Who can I trust?

Build a short list of recommended SEO agencies. It is a good idea to start by getting recommendations from people first. You can get this in two ways. You can get recommendations by word of mouth and customer feedback/reviews. You can get references from clients or colleagues about the agency. You can also ask past clients about their experience.

Note that building a shortlist is an important part of the selection process. You don’t want to miss listing an agency that has done amazing work with people you know.

Who are well-experienced and the “experts” of SEO in your industry?

They are the best candidates for the job. Start searching for companies that not only specialize in SEO and online marketing. They should also be well experienced in the type of business you have.

That would need more research but there’s a way to find out. But, not everyone would be flaunting the brands they work with everywhere. So, look into something you can easily find as your measure of experience and integrity.

Experience matters. A decade or two in the industry proves resiliency and adaptability. These are essential to this business. Nothing is promised with the changing trends and algorithms. Only the ability to surf the tides can guarantee future success in the SEO industry.

It is easy to find out how long the company has been operating. Or better yet, zero in on the CEO and the main man.

Research the CEO’s history of success and past clientele. Learn about the company’s history, through the CEO’s track record. The team is only as good as its leader. He personifies the company that you will be working with. So, it is best to get to know him on a different level.

Am I working with my kind of people?

When you are sure of a company’s industry integrity, experience, and expert skills, know where to look next. Look into their work culture.

Your SEO partner can be considered an extension of your team. So, work with your own kind of people.

Many find this an extra consideration when looking for an SEO agency. But we found this to be a really effective way of making sure you are selecting the right company. If it is not the first consideration, it shouldn’t be the least.

Having an SEO team that understands your company’s values and mission will help ensure that they are working towards the same goal as you. This will create a strong partnership between you and the SEO company, allowing for better communication and collaboration. 

Additionally, having a team with a similar work culture will make it easier for them to understand what you want from them and how best to achieve it.

Having an SEO team that shares your values can also help build trust between you and the agency, which is essential for any successful relationship. Knowing that they have similar goals as you do will give you peace of mind knowing that they are doing what is best for your business.

Can they do the job?

It’s the most important question to answer when hiring an SEO agency. And one of the most important tips we can give is don’t rely on Google search. Many do their research this way. They would’ve typed “best SEO” on Google search. But know this first.

All the best SEO specialists aren’t in the best SEO list in search engines. Why? They are usually busy optimizing their customers’ websites. Some aren’t ranking their own websites in search engines. We’ve had spans of over a year without any website updates while constantly updating sites for clients.

So, don’t just go by a Google search, instead, go by word of mouth. Also, look into their case studies and proof. The best way to find them is the traditional way, through word of mouth and referrals.

You can also do a Google search. But instead of searching for SEO companies, look for other businesses. Look for the ones that are ranking at the top of the search. That means they are working with a good SEO service provider.

Contact those who aren’t your direct competitors and ask for their recommendations. You can do this by asking businesses within your industry but not in your locality. Their recommendations are valuable pieces of information.

PART 3 – Close in and consider

When it comes to choosing an SEO company, there are a few key factors to consider. Here are some tips to keep in mind when selecting an SEO firm to partner with:

• Find a company that will take your business objectives into account.
• Find a company that will work with you based on your needs and budget.
• Find a company that’s a good match based on its experience and reputation.

Answer these questions:

• Are they able to deliver results in the time frame you need?
• Do they have the experience and skills you need?
• Does their team know what they’re doing?
• Does it fit your budget on a given time frame?

Open communication and meet the SEO company

Communication is important when partnering with an SEO company. So, these things are important, and make sure the company you choose ticks all the boxes.

• Make sure you can easily contact the company
• Make sure you can easily get in touch with the company’s owner or managing director
• Make sure the company promptly responds to your questions and your needs.
• Make sure the company provides quality service at all levels.

Watch out for red flags

It is great for a company to qualify and tick all the items in the above list. Aside from that, you should also look for red flags to make smart decisions.

Overpromising.

If someone promises you that you can go from zero to hero overnight, that’s a red flag. We all want to hear the great news. But one thing to look for in an SEO company is that they should market their process first. They should be able to impress you with the “how”. They should be providing next-level information.

An example of how SEO companies overpromise their clients is when a company promises to get a website to the top of Google search results in a short amount of time. They may promise unrealistic results and not explain the process or strategies they will use to achieve those results. This can lead to disappointment for the client as they may not see the desired results and feel like they have wasted their money.

What your SEO company should be providing is information on how you can achieve your target. Also, provide you with details of how much time you need. They should be aligning your objectives and making them more attuned to what they can realistically achieve.

Poor communication.

SEO companies are committed to doing it full-time. Choose an SEO company that is committed to communicating with you with ease. You should feel comfortable about asking them questions. 

You should be able to trust they always provide you with the valuable information you need. Good SEO companies have a good sense of transparency. 

Poor communication with an SEO company can have serious implications for your business. If the SEO company does not understand your goals and objectives, they may be unable to provide you with the services that you need. This could lead to wasted time and money as well as a lack of progress towards achieving your desired results.

Additionally, if the SEO company is not transparent about their strategies or results, it can be difficult to trust them and make sure that they are doing what is best for your business.

Poor communication can also lead to misunderstandings between you and the SEO company which can cause delays in projects or even damage to your reputation if mistakes are made. 

It is important to ensure that there is clear communication between you and the SEO company so that everyone is on the same page and working towards achieving success.

A little to no interest in your goals.

This is the easiest to spot. Watch out for SEO companies that start pitching without even asking. They should show interest in who you are as a company. What are your purposes for doing SEO? What key targets do you want to meet?

Watch out for SEO agencies that assume that you are just like everyone else they worked with. This company is not the partner you are looking for. A partner SEO team is like an extension of your team. They should be aiming for the same target you have and understand them the way it means to you.

How to choose an SEO company that will help your business grow

No one can find an SEO that can deliver great results without allocating enough time. Take time to understand search engine optimization and how to choose an SEO company. When looking for a good SEO company, it is important to research and compare different companies.

Make sure you consider the top SEO companies that understand the importance of using the right keywords and tools such as Google Analytics to track progress and measure success. A good SEO team should be able to provide you with detailed reports and explain their strategies in a way that you can understand.

When choosing an SEO company, it is important to consider their SEO strategy and SEO campaign. A good SEO company should be able to provide you with a comprehensive strategy that outlines the steps they will take to help your business reach its goals. They should also be able to explain how they will use different tools.

The SEO campaign should include detailed reports on the progress of the project and how it is helping your business grow.

SEO agencies may be offering the same services but they aren’t the same. They have different work cultures and practices. The best SEO company isn’t just on the top results. They are also on top of their game. And they can communicate that with you.

We love working with businesses of all types. But more than that, we want to be sure that we are a perfect match. This way we can help you better. We are your partner for growth.