Business

Finding The Right SEO Company: What You Should Pay Attention To

The quality of the work of SEO companies is often difficult for inexperienced customers to assess. You only really know when it is too late whether an SEO company is doing good work in search engine optimization or just making empty promises. In this article, you will learn how to find the right SEO company without much experience.

For many companies, SEO is a mystery because they have to take care of their products and services. Competent SEO managers are few and far between and hard to find. This is becoming a problem, especially for small and medium-sized companies.

So they hire an SEO company or an SEO freelancer to get their website up and running and to attract new customers via Google and other search engines. But how do you actually know whether an SEO company is really good or is just selling you hot air – or even worse – dangerous half-knowledge?

This is as easy to answer as the question of whether you need an SEO company at all or whether it would be better to work with a freelancer. This article by SEO Consultant Birmingham will explore the key considerations for selecting the right SEO company for your business.

When do I need an SEO company?

Whether you need a large SEO company or a (usually much cheaper) freelancer depends on a number of factors. The only difference is the number of employees.

  • Do you have websites in multiple languages ​​and countries?

  • Do you have a large online store with many products?

  • Are you operating in a very competitive online market?

  • Is your business dependent on online sales?

  • Do you need different expertise from technology to content to strategy?

  • Do you have your own SEO manager that the company can work with?

When is an SEO freelancer the better choice?

  • You have an advertising-financed offer or a small shop or just need an online presence for your target groups.

  • You know your online competition.

  • They are not exclusively dependent on online sales, but they are becoming more important.

  • They produce content largely themselves or with the help of a specialist editorial team.

  • You have a developer who takes care of the technical aspects of your website.

  • You don’t have your own SEO team and need an expert to tell you what YOU can do to get more reach with your existing setup.

In this case, an SEO freelancer is the better choice because they get everything from a single source and also receive top-notch treatment.

SEO a la carte

When it comes to search engine optimization, it is essential to keep an eye on all the factors that are crucial for ranking. It is no use just optimizing for keywords if no one is searching for your product using these keywords. Conversely, link building or working on technical details is no use if your own site does not have relevant content. If you only buy individual services and want to save money instead of all-round care, you might as well not bother.

Old tactics: link spam, keyword spam , manipulation

SEOs who still claim that you can still seriously outsmart Google with a few old tricks like purchased links and keyword spam are living in the Internet Stone Age. Google now largely ignores anything that could be artificially manipulated in some way and is only interested in whether the content is well structured and relevant and unique for users. Anyone who still uses outdated terms like “meta keywords” or “keyword density” in their vocabulary also proves that they are no longer up to date and have lost touch.

Publish blog posts only

Blogs can be helpful for covering current topics and building useful content, but it is much more important to find out which content, search terms and topics a company should actually use to be found in the long term . All other strategic measures should be derived from this. News formats are rarely the right content format. It’s about building relevant content in the long term, so you need particularly useful and informative posts about the product/topic of a website.

Wrong Key Performance Indicators (KPI)

Some SEOs promise low bounce rates from a page. But that has nothing to do with whether a page performs well or not. Pure visibility is also not an indication of success. So avoid any strategy based on pseudo-goals and discuss your goals with the SEO company. In the end, you probably want to generate more sales and you won’t achieve that with topics that may bring in traffic but no sales. So it’s important to define common goals in order to make the right optimizations.

Poor quality and thin content

Anyone who repeatedly publishes the same thin content on the same topic has a massive problem because they are competing with themselves and thus destroying any chance of a good ranking. Good SEO companies like SEO Services Birmingham will always advise you to only produce first-class, relevant content that can also be found. A regular (at least monthly) analysis of your own rankings is essential in order to find and correct this crucial error. Recommendation: It is better to be deeper and more detailed than superficial and leave too many questions unanswered.

Guaranteed rankings

SEO is not an exact science and Google does everything to ensure that site operators cannot simply manipulate the search results. The search algorithm is constantly being changed and improved. Anyone who advertises with telltale slogans such as “guaranteed position 1” is only trying to conceal this complexity, because everyone ranks in position 1 with “something”. That’s not a problem at all. This dubious promise is nothing more than a sales gimmick and should always be seen as a warning signal.

Cheap SEO, 100 Pages SEO Audits

Some SEOs simply send automated reports that contain a lot of irrelevant details but do not prioritize them. And in doing so, they overlook the simplest problems that SEO tools cannot even recognize: SEO is about the quality of the content and not the length of the meta description. Tools or AI cannot evaluate this. SEO takes time and you have to look at a website from very different perspectives: content, usability, and technology must work together like clockwork.

Setup fees

There is nothing to “set up” with SEO. That’s why fees without a specific service are not appropriate! Instead, it makes sense to have a personal initial consultation or a second opinion or an SEO seminar to see how an SEO works and whether you understand what they are doing and whether the collaboration works. Longer terms are also quite common in SEO because results are not immediately visible, but only if you stick with it for a few months. 6 or 12 month terms are therefore not uncommon in SEO.

No access to Google Analytics or Search Console

As an SEO, you can identify many classic problems very quickly in the source code of a website or with special tools. But if an SEO is going to work with a website long-term and has not requested access to Google Analytics and Google Search Console , it is better to pull the ripcord. Because in order to optimize a page, you also have to know exactly how it is actually used and how the reach is developing. Anything else would just be guesswork and not serious.

No regular reporting

SEO is a fast-moving business and everything is constantly changing. That’s why you should check the performance of your website at least once a month and observe the development. This is the only way to understand whether you are on the right track or the wrong one and where you can find new adjustments. The reporting should be prepared in a way that is understandable for the customer and should include all KPIs.

FAQs

1.How to find an SEO company?

SEO companies that write to you by email or even letter should be treated with caution. An SEO company should understand its business well enough to be found on Google. After all, that is its core competency. So just start your search on Google. Search for “SEO company + your city” or “SEO consultant + your city” if you prefer more personal support.

2.What skills do SEO companies need to have?

I advise many NGOs, authorities, trade unions and other content-rich websites. Other SEO companies are particularly specialized in online shops.

3.Should I work with a local SEO company?

If there is not enough choice of competent companies in the area, you can also search nationwide. An SEO company does not necessarily have to be located in the same city; most tasks can easily be discussed via email and video chat.

4.How do you recognize a good SEO company?

Who could know better what makes a good SEO than Google? On the Search Console help pages , Google recommends that an SEO should first be able to identify with and be familiar with the topic of a website. SEO can only be successful if you have fun, are motivated and have a certain understanding of the topic.

5.What questions should I ask SEO companies?

Do you follow Google’s guidelines for webmasters?
What results do you expect in what time frame? How do you measure your success?
For shops: What experience do you have with developing online shops?
How long have you been in business?
Who will be looking after me? Is it the intern or the managing director?

6.What can I do if I am not satisfied with the work of my SEO company?

If you have any problems or doubts, talk to your company first and have them explain the problem to you. If you have the impression that your SEO company is not working seriously, get a second opinion. Many SEOs offer consultation hours where they look at your website and the work of your company. If you are not satisfied with one doctor, go to another.

7.What should I pay attention to when choosing SEO companies?

The most important thing is: do you understand the company? Or does it hide behind technical terms and only talk about things that you cannot understand? A company that does not understand you cannot do good work for your company. A trusting collaboration is essential for success.

8.Can I outsource search engine optimization completely to SEO companies?

A lot of things can also be done in-house by employees if you bring the necessary know-how in-house and use the SEO company as a consultant and coach for the team. All employees who look after websites must be continuously trained and understand their craft. In this way, you can bring knowledge in-house with the help of SEO companies.
SEO is not rocket science and every step can be proven with data. A regular SEO check is the basis for success on the internet.

SEO Agency Birmingham is offering a free consultation for a limited time. Contact us now to take advantage of this opportunity, as it is on a first-come, first-served basis.