You’ve heard all the buzz about search engine optimization and the importance of search results. You’re ready to take the plunge, improve you rankings, and have decided to hire a professional SEO company to “take you to the top”.
But hold on a second, before you jump too fast, make sure you know what to ask and look for in a reliable service provider. The search business is akin to the “Wild West”, it’s a fast growing and rapidly changing field. SEO consultants and companies crop up every day. Make sure the one you throw your hat in the ring with is ethical, knowledgeable and has proven results.
This is the first in a three part series on questions to ask your potential search engine marketing company.
Ask your self the first question…what do I know about SEO and what do I need to know to make a good decision?
Search engine optimization is part science and part art, so it’s really important to spend some time learning more about the SEO industry. There are a number of good and reputable sites that you can peruse to get familiar with some of the terms and critical issues of the day. These sites include Seo Today, Search Engine Watch and Search Engine Guide.
As you being to talk with prospective SEO companies, use these sites to help you “vet” the company. If you don’t understand something, or would like another opinion, search the sites for helpful information.
We will cover three areas in this series including competence, ethical tactics and business practices, and business assurances. You will increase your odds of a successful partnership if you ask all of these questions.
1) What changes will you make to my website?
Look for two key things in your vendor’s response:
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First, do they talk about changes that affect the “techie” side of SEO, such as adding or improving title tags, meta tags and alt tags
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Second, they let you know that there will be changes to your pages and content to better match popular search requests
2) Will you add more pages to my website?
Search Engine Optimization usually requires the addition of more web pages. New pages are built to create new content that fine-tunes the match between your service or product and specific search queries.
If your prospective company answers no, note this as a red flag. They may simply intend to stuff your current pages with keywords and phrases. You might see an increase in search rankings, but you probably won’t see an increase in long-term visitors or conversions.
3) Do you only work on my site?
The answer you are looking for here is…NO! A key to improving search results has to do with linking. Search engines love incoming links and use them as one criterion to determine the credibility of your site as it relates to the keywords or phrase of the end-user request.
Incoming links equal a “vote” of confidence and that’s why they are important.
A knowledgeable and quality SEM company will recommend and include a link building strategy as part of their efforts.
4) Do you have any references?
The correct answer here is a big “YES” and here are their names and numbers. Be very careful not to fall for the “Well, we do have several references, but unfortunately due to the competitive nature of SEO, they wish to remain anonymous.”
At that point, you can conclude your consideration of this company. Reputable companies will have client references or case studies that can demonstrate their expertise.
In part, two of this series we will look at questions to ask your prospective SEM Company that will give you insight into the “ethics” of the company. There are a number of tactics search engine optimization companies might use that are considered…unethical. In fact, some of the tactics could actually violate the Terms of Service of major search engines…putting you in the slightly traumatic position of penalties or even worse…removal! So stay tuned!
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