SEO has been around for decades, but experiences with it vary widely. The fact that so many agencies offer SEO services today can give the impression that SEO is a commodity and that one provider’s offering is very similar to another’s.
However, not all SEO is created equal.
Choosing an SEO partner or resource based solely on price or generalized factors is risky. It often leads to cookie-cutter approaches that don’t meet a company’s specific goals and needs.
When evaluating SEO providers, below are several red flags to watch out for.
1. Add yourself to get started
My professional background is heavily related to SEO and, full disclosure, I own a search-focused digital agency. I admit I’m quick to meet anyone who talks SEO and wants to talk about it. I am also eager to start getting my hands dirty and start auditing, doing workshops and strategizing on how to achieve a client’s goals.
Keep in mind that as you consider resources for your own SEO efforts, you want an employee or vendor who doesn’t see you as a quick buck or new client opportunity, but who is careful to evaluate the fit in general and make sure that both sides of the relationship will be positive.
Rushing in and getting started is great if it’s with a helpful intent and a little nerdiness. It’s a red flag, though, if you start talking sales, go through someone’s clearly defined sales funnel and sell something without asking too many questions. You’re likely to get a cookie-cutter or one-size-fits-all approach that isn’t exclusive to your specific goals and needs.
2. Claim it’s easy
I know some great people in the SEO industry who focus on very granular aspects of SEO. They are the best in their focus on local search, content, link building, keyword research and more. I also know them well enough that they will be the first to say that what they do within SEO is not everything you should be doing within your strategy.
If someone claims SEO is easy, get clarification on what that means. Maybe they are a genius and have it all figured out. If so, I love it. If they imply that it’s easy because they only do one or two things and call it SEO, dig deeper.
Again, I’m not here calling anyone out on their techniques or what they’ve mastered. I’m just saying that if you’re thinking about hiring someone who says SEO is easy or has a simple way to achieve your goals, you’ll want to learn more to make sure they’re not taking a shortcut or being short-sighted in a way that which you do not feel comfortable.
Dig deeper: 9 tips for selecting an SEO agency
3. Low price leader
Price can be a touchy subject. There are many psychological games and tricks played by SEO tools, consultants and vendors. Whether it’s published package pricing or a fully customized bidding approach, I don’t have a “right” answer or a firm opinion on what’s best.
I don’t think the cheapest option is the worst. However, I know that in most cases, you get what you pay for.
Is a small business doing SEO for the first time in need of an enterprise solution? Can a single person or small agency serve a Fortune 500 corporation? Need to spend more to get more?
There are so many valid questions to ask. The heart of the matter, however, is making sure you know what your ROI equation is and your risk tolerance on your SEO investment.
At the extreme end, if you spent the money without expecting to see it back, would your business be crippled? On the other hand, if you have an expectation of a certain level of return on investment, are you willing to spend to achieve it?
Resources vary widely and you want to fully understand what you are buying.
Dig deeper: 9 Big Risks of Cheap SEO
4. Lack of strategy
Ongoing SEO work is full of tactics. There are so many “best practices” that are solid and based on time-tested SEO methods and techniques.
However, even if you do all the right things, you can still spend a lot of time and money without seeing the results you want in the future.
I often refer to ‘check-the-box’ or ‘checklist’ SEO work as something that can trick businesses into feeling like you’re making progress when, ultimately, at some point, it’s just not delivering the ROI you’re hoping for. just wait.
In most cases, there is a lack of strategy when I look at why someone is not getting an ROI yet paying a lot in house or to an agency for SEO services.
In some memorable cases, there have been some pretty big tipping points that question who is really driving the strategy (the client vs. the agency).
A defined strategy leads to set goals, planned tactics, agility in the plan, and creating the right expectations and accountability.
Dig deeper: 9 warning signs that your SEO consultant is NOT competent
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5. Little transparency
Transparency and understanding of what an SEO investment entails is important. Not that you want to know everything to the level of the person you trust to be the strategist and tactician, but you need to be comfortable with what the plan is and what your team or vendor is doing.
When you encounter a lack of transparency, that’s something I would challenge immediately. To me, that means the work is being done in a silo (more on that in a moment), it’s being done in a way you might not expect, that the SEO checklist is in play, or maybe not at the speed/aggression level. what are you waiting for
I know that on the agency side, clients sometimes assume that little information or communication can be interpreted as little work or done on their behalf.
It’s often not the case, but perception can become reality, and if you’re not getting information before hiring or hiring, you should push for it, because I don’t know that you’ll get it when you’re on the job. you get paid to do it.
Dig deeper: why agencies need to be transparent with clients
6. Focus on silos
When I started my career almost 20 years ago, I could do a lot as an SEO. For small businesses or roles that wear many hats, this is still possible to some degree.
However, if you have any level of compliance, legal, IT, PR, content, UX, and any number of people who need to approve things to be published on a website, then a silo approach won’t work.
Don’t get me wrong on this one. I loved being an SEO with a lot of control. I also didn’t like having to enter other people’s territory or step on their toes. It was nice when I could report on metrics and SEO issues in those other categories that were someone else’s problems to solve.
The best SEO, however, in my opinion, is done by someone who cares deeply about solving problems and challenges.
Someone who doesn’t want to just do traditional SEO tasks and report only on SEO metrics. It’s done by working with all stakeholders to get the job done and make sure everything is fully implemented and optimized.
7. Full service offer or added value
My agency works with other agencies that offer us to be their SEO partner. In some cases, they are agencies of record and SEO is one of dozens of line items in the scope of an annual plan. This is a fairly common setup for integrated or full-service agencies.
I occasionally talk to companies that have worked with a full service agency and found that even though SEO was listed as a service, the agency lacked the expected expertise in the field.
If SEO is more important than just one of many channels or bits and pieces of your marketing effort, ask questions and determine how far your partner or resources can go. I can say from experience that it is hard to be the best or be good at everything.
8. Set it and forget it
I noted the SEO checkbox earlier. Taking it a step further, if someone talks about “SEOing” something or doing the rounds, that’s not enough.
It’s not something you do once or do once in a while if you care and it’s a focal point of your digital strategy.
SEO requires strategy, tactical implementation, tracking and continuous work to be successful. You run the risk of minimal effort and performance if done with a one-shot optimization approach.
Dig Deeper: How to build a strategic SEO process
Find an SEO partner, not just a vendor
Over the years, people who do SEO have started to sound the same. It’s hard to figure out who really understands the subject and with what level of expertise, since everyone seems to claim to know or have experience with it on their resumes.
I am a firm believer that SEO is not a commodity despite the perception it sometimes has. Push to understand what you are buying and keep in mind that not all SEO professionals are the same, even if they seem to be talking about the same things.
Dig deeper: When your business doesn’t need SEO
The views expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily Search Engine Land. Staff authors are listed here.
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