Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is as imperative for a website as food for the human body. It is crystal clear that no website can withstand the competition of the online market without SEO which is the reason the count of firms looking for services from an SEO agency or hiring professional SEO experts is escalating day in and day out.
When you’ll ask Google to present you with top SEO Agencies or best SEO Agencies, you’ll come across a plethora of never-ending lists, but it is up to you to do the research work and pick out the one that actually is well-suited for your business. That calls for evaluating whether the SEO Agency you’re joining hands with does or does not meet the set parameters and benchmarks. But what exactly are they? That is what this article talks about, so give it a read.
Today, SEO has grown past the horizons of mere keyword integration and ranking. Now it takes into account every single aspect, including optimization of content, usability, text and voice searches, and user intent, among a plethora of other things. Now the main problem is which SEO firm to go with when the market is brimming with hundreds and thousands of service providers and every other agency claims to be the best. That, indeed, is no less than biting down a bullet. To know what to look for in an SEO Agency, scroll down a little…..
Do You Really Need Preps Before Picking An SEO Agency?
There is no doubt that SEO focuses on improving your site’s ranking on the search engine. But this game is not as easy as it may be perceived. After all, we’re talking about an industry that has a market cap of nearly $60 billion.
The search engine’s algorithms keep evolving as the masters behind these search engines constantly strive to provide the users with relevant and useful, top-quality information. Just take Google’s Helpful Content Update, for example. Being used by over 92% of the global population, Google tops the list of best search engines and presently holds over 85% share in the industry. Back in time also, Google realized algorithm updates such as Google Panda and Google Penguin, to favor quality information and display it and penalize the ones falling short at it.
That’s the reason why search engine optimization revolves around turning around the whole website in such a way that nothing is left behind in any of its three key aspects:-(a) On-Page SEO, (b) Off-Page SEO, and (c) Technical SEO.
That’s why before entrusting an SEO Agency, you must ponder upon a few aspects because where the right pick can open a hub of opportunities for your business to grow in ‘n’ number of ways, the wrong one can make your website and business stand in deep water.
How To Pick The Right SEO Agency For Your Business & What Mistakes To Avoid While Picking The Right SEO Agency?
Know What You Want
It isn’t an alienated fact that there are an uncountable number of SEO Agencies out there that are better in one thing or another. Since it’s going to be a major investment, you must consider the issues you want to get resolved.
Decide well in advance upon whether you need SEO Services for a particular project or to optimize your site’s overall content with optimum keywords or increase the web traffic and rake in conversions from your local audience base, or establish your business’s social media presence or improve the site’s functionality for users’ ease.
You might need a single service mentioned here or more or even all. These will help you pick a reliable alternative from the vast pool of SEO Service Providers and not unnecessarily burn your money.
Don’t Fall For Unrealistic Commitments
Get your website ranked on the 1st page of Google in 5 days! Sounds lucrative? But watch out because this can be nothing but a trap.
Falling for unrealistic commitments and promises means burning your money for nothing and adversely affecting your website. SEO is a gradual process that shows the results over time depending upon the desired outcome that you’re looking for from a certain campaign.
It isn’t something that can be done overnight or within a few days. If an SEO Agency promises to do so, your website would soon start to attract penalties and land in deep waters as most likely that would be a result of unethical practices such as Grey Hat SEO or Black Hat SEO which might even get your website blacklisted from the search engine.
Search engines like Google are quite strict with their set guidelines which means a single unethical tactic can show your website a red flag for only God knows how long.
So if you come across any such SEO Agency that highlights itself as a really quick game changer, that’s your cue to take a step back before you get trapped.
Check Out Accreditations
SEO isn’t something that can be done just at a mere gauge. It takes years of practice to be called a Certified SEO Agency. You must check the accreditations and certifications of the agency that you’re about to hire SEO Experts from or to whom you’re considering handing over your next SEO Project. Google Adwords, Google Analytics, Semrush Academy Certification, and Bing Ads Certification are a few among such top accolades.
Get The Hang Of Your Budget
Budgetary allocations differ for every company, in fact, for every company in the same niche. That’s why you must be aware of how much you can and wish to spend for a particular SEO Service and look for the agencies that can offer you the services within that budget.
This will also save you time as you won’t get perplexed while comparing the quotations from different agencies. Though SEO doesn’t come cheap, there are agencies that don’t take a toll on your pocket and are open to providing services at reasonable prices.
The average monthly amount that any business corporation expunges on SEO Services falls in the bracket of $500 to $5000, whereas a campaign package can be expected to call for a monthly investment of $2500 to $5000.
Nevertheless, it completely depends on the size of your business as well as the campaign, competition level, and massively on the SEO Service you need. Many SEO Agencies even provide discounts and customize the SEO Plan for the clients to assist them in only spending where necessary.
Have A One-To-One Discussion
While picking an SEO Agency, business corporations must demand to have a one-to-one conversation discussing the needs, analytical data, and goals for your business. This can’t be done over a pitch call. So always go for a meeting, whether virtual or offline, because it makes it easier for the agency to get a grasp of your issues and, at the same time, will allow you to clarify your doubts more profoundly.
Remember to have a list of questions and concerns prepared prior to the meeting with the SEO Agency. Ask them about their past performances, the time frame they need to complete the project, policies they follow, fee structure, and their Unique Selling Propositions (USPs).
Go Through Their SEO Strategy
Since you will hand over an seo-related task to an agency, it becomes inevitable to be thorough with their strategy. After all, your website (or business profile) will undergo certain modifications, and you must be aware of where exactly the work is being done.
The long hauling journey of search engine optimization incorporates SEO Audit and technical analysis. An experienced digital marketing agency would surely have a plan defining steps they take while formulating SEO Strategy for clients.
Because they have dealt with the field’s several ins and outs and circumvented many issues, their strategy will be in line with the search engine’s algorithm, especially Google’s algorithms.
Google, being the search engine used by the majority of the global population, is constantly evolving to make its mechanism better so as to proffer the best results to the users. So far, it has 199+ set benchmarks to evaluate sites on every parameter, inclusive of a number of aspects such as content, usability, language, etc. And not to even mention that it is diligent enough to scan through the tactics and make such results stand apart on top positions that are rich in pertinent information. This suffices to clearly highlight that you must pick an SEO Agency that is well-aware of search engines’ algorithms, especially Google, stays updated, and doesn’t apply any grey hat or black hat SEO tactic so that you need not fret over what can go wrong with your site at any point of time.
Also, if the strategy that an SEO Company has formulated for your business is not on the same page with your business ethics and standards, it won’t be a cinch for you and your team to have a long-term walk with them. You need such a team of SEO Professionals who can effectively manage the work while at the same time being able to convey and get a grasp of your or your team’s concerns, ideas as well as a working system.
Look For Experienced As Well As Knowledgeable Team Of SEO Experts
There are a plethora of turns down the road of search engine optimization, which is why a long-established and experienced SEO Agency can handle it relatively better than a newbie. Also, don’t forget that fresh knowledge and enthusiasm also plays a crucial role in formulating and leading the strategy.
As mentioned in the previous point, SEO experts undertake SEO Audits of your site. They also look into Technical SEO so as to not miss out on the site functionality, response speed, and ease of use, among other things.
Such firms would rather rely on actual facts and statistics instead of mere gauging, and it’s needless to elaborate on how imperative are stats when it comes to seo, so it’s better to mind the metrics, be it conversions, web traffic escalation percentage, ROI, etc.
In fact, an SEO Agency with an experienced team will also brief you about how they plan to resolve the shortcomings of your site or campaign and improve your business’s ROI. Such a team will stay posted on the current trends and anticipate changes, and will also draw out an effective strategy to work in accordance with them.
People often overlook the essence of quality service and get inclined towards low-cost SEO Plans, which can cost much more in reality. Unskilled and unprofessional SEO Teams can not only make your site’s ranking dwindle but can also get the website penalized by using unscrupulous link-building tactics or crafting low-quality content, which can tamper with your site’s domain authority and page authority. Nobody wants to face such a thing. That’s why you should pay attention to where you’re going to invest.
Ask For Verifiable Portfolio
While every other SEO Agency or digital marketing agency claims itself to be the Top SEO Agency or a prominent name in the industry, it won’t be a smart move to get swayed by it without digging a little deeper.
Moreover, an SEO Agency‘s past performances will provide insights into how effectively their strategies have assisted their clientele and fetched their desired results. Thoroughly go through the agency’s verifiable portfolio, case studies, accreditations, reviews, and/or testimonials. It’ll also give you an idea of the types of industries or niches a particular company has worked for.
In today’s digital era, you’ll come across a hub of SEO Agencies or digital marketing agencies that proudly showcase their testimonials.
But in such a heavy flock of companies, what guarantees that they mean what they say? Get in touch with their previous clients to have insights about how diligently and dedicatedly they manage the work, ask about the complications they faced while working with them and how timely the SEO Agency discharged a project and report.
Getting recommendations from your acquaintance who has got the services of a particular SEO Company will also be of great help as you can cross-examine how they got leveraged from their strategy.
Ask About Terms Of Working & Look For Paperwork
By this time, you must have got an idea about which agencies can be your helping hand in SEO. Another important facet is whether they provide you with a contract before starting the actual work. Digital marketing agencies have a set norm to lay down the discussed plan and services they’ll provide you on paper and explain their conditions to you so that the process runs smoothly and things remain untangled. This works in favor of both the SEO Agency and the client. Make sure to read the contract attentively and clarify any clause or statement that you didn’t catch at the very moment.
It’s Not About Reporting, It’s About Transparency
When you’ll go for SEO Services, trustworthy firms or agencies will keep you posted on the improvements and the progress of your business. In fact, a legit and trustworthy team of dedicated SEO Experts would be more than happy to share how much effort they are putting in for their clientele.
They’ll openly discuss the shortcomings of your site or campaign with you and will also elucidate how their approach can fix a particular seo-related issue and what is needed to be done rather than making you fork over enormous fees and keeping everything behind the curtains. This also implies the extent of transparency the firm you’re about to join hands with follows.
Compare The Alternatives
As you’ve proceeded to pick out the Top SEO Agency for your business, you might have 4 or 5 options shortlisted before you after such a long walk (if your list is still any more lengthy than this, be more precise about your business needs and reconsider the alternatives because more the options, more you’ll get perplexed). Then, see through the comparison of the terms, benefits, and strategy of the SEO Agencies. See how their way of working differs and which one seems to be on par with your set benchmarks or objectives.
After assessing a handful of SEO Agencies, you can finally point towards the one that doesn’t leave you in two minds. A worthy SEO Agency has to be the one with whom you feel confident and comfortable while working out on SEO for your business and whom you can ask about the reason for any changes being applied that you face trouble assessing.
How Mind Mingles Is A Top SEO Agency in India And U.S.?
Mind Mingles is a one-stop solution for any kind of SEO Service, starting right from a Comprehensive SEO Plan to Content Optimization to Mobile SEO.
Why should you trust us? Till date, we’ve worked for industries of varied natures, so we’re more than aware of which search engine optimization tactics can improve our clients’ rankings and establish them as a brand. So whether you’re a business firm/owner operating at a small scale looking for Local SEO Services, or want to expand your business operations overseas and want Multilingual SEO Services, we can surely assist you.
When we say we’re a professional SEO Agency in India and overseas, it is backed with accolades and certifications that suffice the need for verification, to list a few, Google AdWords, Google Analytics, SEMrush Academy Certification, and Bing Ads Certification.
At Mind Mingles, we’re open to offering our clients affordable SEO Plans that are strongly backed by data-driven research. None of our plan and strategy looks right or left and just incorporates White Hat SEO Techniques which is the reason we’ve not just got new clients but also retained them for years.
As an experienced SEO Agency India and overseas, we can tell you that no legit tactic can position your business among the top rankings overnight because SEO doesn’t work like that, and we sure aren’t one of the fake promisers who would lure you that way. With us, you’ll surely get desired results within the allotted time frame.
Look Into Our SEO Services Or Get In Touch With Us!
Gurleen Kaur is a Content Writer at Mind Mingles. She has presented her work in International Conference On Guru Nanak Dev Ji: Life, Philosophy and Legacy held at Mata Sundri College For Women and was awarded by the title of “Best Paper Presenter” under College Student Category for the same (Dated: 27th and 28th September, 2019) Has a strong grip over creating interesting, unique and informative content pieces for a wide range of niches. Firm believer that words have an impact.
