What to look for in your SEO Provider for 2019

Last year saw the discipline of SEO move from a period of adolescence to maturity. While this means greater opportunities in the months ahead, the period comes with a renewed need to assess the market to see what businesses are still fit for purpose.

So, here are some of the questions you should look for when approaching an SEO company or renegotiating a renewal with your existing provider.

“Are they truly experienced?”

Simply put, how long have they been operating in the sector and what is their recent track record? Every company should be able to point to a number of key clients and detail what actions they undertook to improve their business. Additionally, take the time to check their commitment to continuous training and that their employees and the members of staff attached to your case are enjoying continuous development. The gold standard for many is Google-led training courses that provide a certificate that should be displayed on their site.

“Do they know what success looks like for you?”

Many businesses can run the risk of settling for a rote SEO solution that doesn’t truly address your unique needs. A standard response will be to deliver blanket improvements to your rankings, calls, sales, and revenue; but applying these without factoring in your unique market requirements is pointless. Ask what they believe the core needs of your business to be and check if they dovetail with your own. Also, take the time to listen to their guidance and validate it internally as a truly great SEO company will help position you to take advantage of opportunities in the sector you were never aware of.

“Have they kept up with changing times? ”

Is there ample evidence that they have kept up with market trends and are committed to helping their clients take advantage of them? Take a look at their latest blogs and articles and explicitly ask how they have seen the market change over the last six months to a year. This should address trends such as the renewed emphasis on authoritative content, page optimisation, and new technologies like featured snippets and increased demand for voice-searching. In addition, validate when they have hit and exceeded their targets for a client and specifically ask how they took advantage of trends to allow them to course-corrected when a campaign wasn’t going as well as it should have been.