If your business could benefit from some help with your SEO (hint: everyone could), it’s time you thought about hiring a company for the job. However, it won’t be long before you realize that there are too many SEO companies to count. While it’s certainly nice to have options, this time around that blessing can be a real challenge. So here are some things to think about that should help you narrow down your list of potential SEO companies considerably.
Experience
In today’s world, it seems like everyone is an SEO expert. This is one of the reasons SEO companies are a dime a dozen. Unfortunately, because this is such a necessary tool and many people who need it don’t really understand it, many of these snake oil salesmen are hired.
Even if they mean well, becoming a true SEO expert takes time. So that should be one of the first things you look for in any SEO company that is ready for work.
Resume
Of course, they could have a decade of experience and not be the Greenville SEO company for you. Improving your search engine ranking requires a number of talents, chief among them is understanding your market. This is why many SEO companies have a specialty when it comes to industries. One may be the best to help, say, rank law firms. However, if a restaurant were to hire them, their results could be significantly lacking.
On top of that, you obviously want to make sure they’ve had successful campaigns in the past. Don’t just take their word for it, either. Call the customer you served and get their opinion. You definitely want to know how long it took them to ensure that success. But it’s also worth asking what it was like to work with them. Given how important SEO services are and how much they can cost, the last thing you want is a company that you will be constantly struggling with.
Services
Another good way to get rid of some of the wonders of a single hit is to ask potential companies about the services they provide. Specifically, you want to confirm the top three. These are:
• On-page optimization, such as HTML tags, keywords, meta descriptions, and more.
• Off-page optimization, such as backlinks, directory listings, etc.
• Technical optimization, such as website design, etc.
You might be surprised to find out how many companies only handle one or two of these. Again, this is because many of these so-called “companies” have just learned one to go into business. Without having all three working together, your SEO will suffer, plain and simple.
Marketing chops
At some point along the way, SEO was divided from traditional marketing strategies. The two are certainly different, yet they also overlap considerably. This means that your chosen company should be able to provide you with content that describes the benefit of your product or service to readers. If you only get a handful of paragraphs with a few keywords included, this really won’t do you much good. Remember, having a user find your website is great. Turning them into customers is ideal.
A good fit with the rest of your company
If your business is made up of just you and your laptop, you still want to make sure that you can get along with any SEO company that is ready for work. As we mentioned before, getting ranked can sometimes feel like you’re in a trench with your SEO team and those are tight quarters during the best of times.
However, finding the right fit is even more important for larger companies. Your SEO company is likely to interact with your IT department, customer service, your sales team, and more. If you can’t all play nice together, you won’t get what you need from your SEO.
Excellent communication
Lastly, you may assume that a company that specializes in marketing tactics would be great at communicating, but this is an assumption that often turns out to be wrong. Many times you will find that many SEO companies fall short here. This is unacceptable. Try to get an idea of their communication style when interviewing them to ensure that they will update you regularly and respond to communications in a timely manner.