Google processes over 70,000 searches per second – how many of those are for your product? Do you know how to increase that number?
We do. Yes – hiring an SEO expert is worth your money and your time. You’ll get more leads, make your ad spending more efficient, and improve your profit.
But if you don’t know anything about SEO – how do you know who to trust? Learn what questions to ask during a consultation below.
1. What’s Your Strategy?
If you’re paying someone money to handle your SEO, you deserve to know what their general approach is. That doesn’t mean they have to have a 50 point plan, but they should be able to tell you some major players they use to bump rankings.
Do they really rely on content marketing? Are they more into the nitty-gritty details, like making the Google spiders that crawl your page happy?
If they won’t tell you anything, don’t hire them. That may mean they don’t know what they’re doing or it may mean they use black-hat SEO tricks.
2. Who Are Your Past Clients?
Like any other business you hire, you have the right to ask for referrals. Who have they worked with? Do a quick Google search for that business page. Run it through and check the domain ranking and keyword ratios.
Are they good? Some SEO tools will show improvement over time – so that’s something to pay attention to.
If you don’t want to do all that work ask to speak to their past clients. Ask the clients if they were happy, what their greatest success working with the specialist was, and what they weren’t thrilled with.
3. Where Can We Improve in Our Current SEO?
If this person is worth your money, they’ve prepped for this consultation by taking a look at your current site.
They should come prepared with some suggestions or strategies they’d use that are personalized for you. At least they should if they’re an expert SEO consultant.
If they haven’t done this but you really like them, as them to send you an initial review and get back to you.
This will show you that they can do their homework and that they know what they’re talking about. If you choose to go with another professional, you’ll have their notes as a jumping off point.
4. Do You Outsource?
A lot of SEO managers outsource for things like link building and content creation. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that – but it’s something you should know.
If they do outsource, ask them about the list of partners they use. Do those businesses have good recommendations? Now it’s your turn to do your homework.
5. How Will We Communicate?
People don’t think to ask this question – but it’s essential. If they’re in another time zone, then phone calls may not be the best option.
Are you more of an email person? How will you transmit sensitive data like account passwords so that they can improve your site?
Come up with a solution that works for both of you.
Hiring an SEO Expert
Finally, it’s important to like the professional you’re working with. They don’t have to be your best friend, but you need interactions to be pleasant.
Be patient when you’re hiring an SEO expert, so you get the one that’s right for you.
Need reasons to convince a higher up to help you outsource SEO services? Click here.
