Building an online presence is essential for every business today, be it a small startup or a large enterprise. While running paid ads is a way, SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is also very important to establish a strong presence in the digital world. SEO results take time but offer long-term benefits. If you are also trying to increase your brand’s online visibility, SEO is something that you cannot overlook.
SEO requires proper knowledge and understanding of techniques and tools used to optimize a website. If you are someone with very little or no SEO knowledge, the best you can do is to hire an SEO agency. However, choosing SEO services for your business should never be a random decision. Below are some essential factors and metrics to look for before you partner with an SEO agency India:
1. Consider The Experience of The Agency
Experience is not the only factor, but definitely one of the most important considerations when choosing an SEO agency. A good agency always has some proof to showcase its experience and expertise in the industry. You can ask for their testimonials, client reviews, etc.
Another idea is to look at the GMB profile of the agency and check the ratings and reviews. Positive reviews will help you understand what is good about the company while negative reviews will help you identify its weaknesses.
There can be a few negative reviews on almost every agency’s GMB profile that has been in the game for several years. However, if the number of negative reviews seems to be higher than the number of positive ones, there is probably something wrong. Just years of experience doesn’t matter; the quality of that experience is also something to be considered.
2. Look at The Agency’s SEO Processes
Before you partner with an SEO services provider, ask them about their SEO processes and strategies. Look at how they have been approaching various projects and what strategies they follow. A good SEO agency will always prefer white-hat SEO techniques over black-hat strategies. However, some grey hat techniques are there is the strategy of almost every SEO services company.
Ask them about their approach to link building, on-page SEO, technical SEO, and other important aspects. Know how they generate and optimize website content. Also, try to understand how often and how thoroughly they conduct SEO audits for their client’s websites.
If their strategy includes detailed keyword research, ask them about the methods and tools they use for keyword research. Make sure that they have a clear answer to every question that you ask. The strategy should not be just created effectively, but the SEO agency must be capable and confident enough to clearly tell you each and every step that they will be taking.
3. Ask for Previous Results
It is essential that you look for previous results when hiring an SEO agency. After all, you also want results. You can ask them to show a website in a similar niche that they have worked for. Ask them where they started and what strategies they followed to improve that website’s SEO performance.
Even if they do not want to disclose the client’s name, just ask them for search console screenshots or screenshots from whichever tools they use for tracking website performance. Make sure that you have clarity on every graph and chart that you see there. If you are new to SEO, ask them to explain all the elements to you and see what they have done.
A good SEO agency will definitely have a record of at least a few websites that they have worked on and their results. Do not settle for a few graphs that they might have added to their portfolio. Ask for an in-depth explanation of every metric and result.
4. Check Their Sample Reports
Transparency is something that you will obviously expect from your SEO agency. These companies share regular share reports with their clients to display the progress. Ask them about how often they report to the clients and what metrics are included in this report. Also, you can ask about the tools that they use for reporting. Some most widely used SEO reporting tools are Ahrefs, SEMrush, Google Search Console, etc.
Some important metrics that should be there in the report include rankings for high-priority keywords, backlinking reports, improvements in organic traffic, etc. Confirm whether they share all these details or not. If they do, ask if you are also given access to the reporting tools to see if the shared data is accurate.
5. Review Their Website and Check for Pricings
An agency’s website tells a lot about it. Go through their website, check different pages, the blog section, and everything else. The clientele will tell about what type of brands the company has worked for. Good and genuine SEO agencies like MadHawks have a proper section on their website to display their clients and projects.
The blog section will tell you how active they are with their website. If a company doesn’t put good effort into its website, you cannot expect them to do a lot for your website as well.
A good SEO agency will have a well-designed and well-optimized website. Check for the technical elements like the page loading speed, navigation, etc, which affect user experience. All this will help you understand what you can expect from a particular SEO company. Also, it should be ranking for at least a few keywords.
Pricing is also an important factor to consider, especially if you are looking for SEO services for small business. But make sure that price is not the primary factor influencing your decision. Look for different agencies, compare them based on all the important factors mentioned above, and make a decision wisely.
Making Your Final Decision
Hiring an SEO agency means quite a big investment. Before you hire an agency, you must have a clear understanding of its experience, expertise, past results, strategies, etc. Doing good research may require some time, but it’s totally worth all the time and effort you put into it. Choosing the right agency is not rocket science. It’s just that you have to look at a few essential factors.
Instead of just hiring the first agency that you find in a random ‘top 10 SEO agencies’ article, try to look at different available options. Compare their clientele, experience, prices, etc, and come to a decision only after that. Go for reputed SEO agency like MadHawks, which work with transparency and have a good record of previous projects.