Choosing an SEO partner – what you need to know

So, you’re looking to find a Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) expert to help you achieve your business goals.

Investing in SEO is always a smart move, not least for the following reasons:

• Build visibility in the SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages)
• Boost brand credibility and awareness
• Generate more leads/sales
• Support your content marketing strategy
• Maximise your PPC campaign
• Reach more people and boost engagement

You’d think it’s as easy as heading to Google/Bing, doing a quick search for SEO specialists, and narrowing down your options. But obviously, it’s not that simple (otherwise you wouldn’t be here). The market is flooded with people claiming to be SEO experts, and it’s a very time-consuming process to separate the good from the bad – and the downright ugly.

The good news is that it needn’t be that difficult – we’ve got the answer. Marketing Supermarket is the perfect tool to quickly find the SEO services you need. In this article, we’ll talk you through some of the most common considerations to help inform your choices.

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What is SEO?

Search Engine Optimisation (or SEO for short) is one of the most powerful online tools to support your digital marketing efforts. Done right, it’ll help your business/brand gain visibility in the search engine results pages for the keywords you want to be found for.

An SEO expert ‘optimises’ your webpages so that they rank higher in the organic (i.e. not paid for) search results and therefore your business generates more traffic, sales/enquiries and brand awareness.

Still not sure if SEO is for you? What if we told you that 88% of businesses who already invest in SEO plan to increase or maintain their investment this year? That’s fairly substantial proof that SEO is one of (if not the) most powerful online marketing tools available to you.

Good SEO is different for every single business, so a tailored approach is always needed. For example, if your marketing strategy is to attract clients from your local area, you’ll want to be found in searches for your product/service, along with your town name – e.g. ‘mattresses in Birmingham’. Conversely, if location isn’t that important to you because your clients are nationwide/global, then you’ll want to attract people using non-location specific search queries such as ‘buy mattresses online’.

A good SEO supplier will help you identify the key search terms that you want to be found for, before designing an SEO strategy to underpin that. Once things are up and running, they’ll regularly tweak and refine the plan based on performance to maximise results.

What are the benefits of SEO?

With good SEO, you can expect:

• Improved rankings
• Increased volume of traffic to your site
• Better quality of traffic to your site
• More leads/sales
• Better brand credibility
• Better brand exposure

And who doesn’t want all that? Sure, it costs money to implement a robust SEO strategy, and you shouldn’t expect immediate results, but if you’re working with an SEO expert and you’re in it for the long run, you should begin to see a return on investment within 6 to 12 months.

In a world where your online profile is everything, visibility in the SERPs (search engine results pages) isn’t just a ‘nice-to-have’, but an essential; your brand will be drowned out by your competitors if you’re not investing in optimising your website. It also supports any content marketing you’re doing, along with any PPC (Pay Per Click) campaigns you’re running.

Perhaps one of the biggest benefits of good SEO is that, because it’s data-led, it will generate meaningful metrics on what’s working for you, and what’s not. You’ll be able to keep a close eye on keyword performance and engagement rates – and then implement more of whatever is working for you to boost results even further.

What should an SEO supplier do for you?

While every SEO company will have slightly different processes, they should all start with a thorough SEO audit. This is where they look at what’s currently working for you (and what’s working against you). They’ll do a technical audit of your website, review user experience and check there’s nothing going on in there that might impact your search results (things like using duplicate or thin content can work against you, and you’ll be penalised in the search results until you fix it).

Once the website audit has been completed, they’ll work to understand your goals and expectations and find out what ‘good’ results look like to you.

Next, your SEO provider will design and implement an SEO strategy that’s based on your agreed budget. This strategy will also likely include optimised content creation which keeps a steady flow of fresh, relevant content being added to your site. They may also recommend you invest in generating backlinks, where referral links to your website boost your site’s authority.

When the SEO strategy is up and running, they’ll monitor and report back regularly (usually around once a month) so you know how things are performing. They may also recommend tweaks to the strategy at this stage to make sure that results are being optimised.

What makes a good SEO supplier?

Unfortunately, this is an area where you’ll come across a few people who promise the world, but fail to live up to their claims. Be wary, for example, of anyone who quickly promises to get you on page one of Google. How they can be so confident in this before they even know what terms you want to be found for is nothing short of baffling, and this should serve as a big red flag.

A good SEO practitioner, whether an agency or a freelancer, will be honest and upfront with you and manage your expectations accordingly. There should be no hidden costs and you should feel like you’re in safe hands. The best SEO experts are the ones who are really invested in your success and get as excited about growing your business as you do.

Be warned though – SEO is not a one-time, quick-fix job. To see the best results from any SEO strategy, you should expect to wait at least a few months. You won’t scale the rankings overnight; it takes time for the impact of your SEO strategy to shine through.

How do SEO suppliers price, and what factors affect this?

Most SEO agencies use a monthly retainer model. This reflects the fact that SEO is a long game – so be prepared to sign a contract.

Freelancers may be able to offer you a more flexible pricing model, and sometimes work on a daily and/or hourly rate. You should always feel able to negotiate if needed.

It really helps if you’re clear on your business goals, priorities and target audience, and also your budget, before you start the SEO ball rolling. That will help the SEO supplier provide you with a realistic quote.

Whatever you choose, don’t sign any contracts until you are confident that it’s the right deal for you and that you’re clear on what you’ll be getting.

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What’s the difference between using a freelance SEO consultant and an SEO agency?

A freelance SEO consultant will likely be able to offer you more flexible terms, whereas an SEO agency will be more likely to ask you to sign an ongoing contract.

Those with smaller budgets should probably opt for a freelancer, but if you have a more substantial pot of money to invest then an SEO agency is probably the right choice for you. Marketing Supermarket asks you about your budget so we’ll only match you with suppliers that operate at the level you’re looking at.

Marketing Supermarket’s top tips for finding the perfect SEO supplier for you

1. Be clear on your budget

We all want the moon on a stick, but the fact is that your budget will determine the level of SEO service, and therefore the speed of results, that you’ll get. So have an idea of what you have to spend before you start conversations.

2. Ask for a free consultation

Following your enquiry, any SEO supplier worth their salt will take a look at your site and carry out a quick audit to see where you’re currently at. They will expect to spend some time with you to establish whether you’re a good fit for each other. Book a call before committing, and have a list of questions at the ready.

3. Check social proof

Can they do what they say they can do? The best people to answer that question are their previous customers. Case studies, testimonials and reviews will tell you a lot about what they’re like to work with (you’ll see these listed in their Marketing Supermarket profile) – and they should also feature some impressive metrics too.

4. Understand how will they report

Understand how the SEO supplier will report back to you. What metrics will they use? How regularly will they report?

5. Understand their Service Level Agreements

Be clear on what you can expect in terms of service levels, response times and who your lead contact is, as well as what to do when things go wrong.

Why use Marketing Supermarket to help you choose your SEO supplier?

Marketing Supermarket is here to take the pain away from finding the best SEO supplier for your business.

Use our handy online SEO supplier search tool, answer a few questions about your budget and what you need, and you’ll get instant access to a range of suppliers who are a good fit for your brief. Alternatively, use our quote request tool to speed up the process of getting prices and comparing providers.

Use our free tool to find and compare SEO agencies, and check out our guide on how to compare SEO suppliers to help you make your choice.

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