Search engine optimization is a term that is new to the business world. In fact, many business owners do not understand SEO, what it entails, and the benefits it can provide. Once a business owner has decided that SEO is a service that they need, they do not know how to go about finding a particular SEO company. I don’t blame them. There are so many SEO companies that have sprung up over the past ten years that it is hard to decide which one to go with. This is especially true if you have little or no knowledge of how SEO works, and what the worth is. There are a number of things that you should be looking for when you are considering hiring an SEO company.
PROMISES
Bad SEO Company
If an SEO company tells you that they are going to guarantee you the number one spot for ranking, that should throw up some red flags – especially if their service is really cheap. You can never guarantee someone the top spot for a particular set of keywords.
Another thing that you want to watch out for is link placement on sites with good PR, being permanent. A high percentage of links can never be guaranteed to be permanent because usually, the SEO doesn’t have any control over that.
Good SEO Company
A good SEO company tells you upfront that the top spot is something that you cannot guarantee them. They will let you know that they will do everything in their power as well as in your budget to rank you as high as possible through natural SEO strategies. They will also let you know that this is something that takes time, and patience.
When you start talking about links, a good SEO company will tell you that they will give you a natural approach to link building based on quality content. Promising links to be there forever is something that is not in the service. Instead, they might offer link replacement or a time frame in which links will stay alive.
SERVICE PRICE
Bad SEO Company
A bad SEO company usually charges a low fixed rate, without detailing exactly what they are doing for you. They do not give you any preference or diversity through packages, based on your preferences or budget. They just want to do the minimal amount of work for the littlest amount of effort.
The other thing that a Bad SEO company may do is charge an outrageous amount of money, to make it seem as though they have all the tools they need to be a good SEO company. Something they may offer is 10,000 links or 5,000 pages of optimized content. Usually, this means that they are a fly by night company, and even if they could produce those numbers, that would be considered over-optimization – which you could be severely penalized for.
Good SEO Company
A good SEO company will offer a variety of SEO Services packages detailing the various types of work and services they will be providing. This way you can work with the company to get a consultation on the best strategic plan to give yourself an online presence.
A good SEO company will charge based on the amount of work provided, and what your needs may be. There isn’t a one size fits all approach to SEO, so a variety of choices should always be offered.
ON-SITE SERVICE PROVIDED
Bad SEO Company
A bad SEO company usually never even mentions on-site SEO. This is typical because they don’t know anything about it. You need to have strong on-site SEO to have a successful Internet marketing campaign.
Another thing a Bad SEO company may do is pass off a WordPress or Template theme as their own work. While there is nothing wrong with a template, you shouldn’t be charging for a template site like it is custom-built.
Good SEO Company
A good SEO company will analyze your site from top to bottom using a few different tools. Most likely they will use SEO-Moz to diagnose your site page by page, using the campaign feature.
A good SEO company will also explain the difference between a WP and custom design. They will break down the importance of keyword density, proper meta tags, header tags, title tags, and everything else that goes into on-site SEO. They also will not overcharge you for doing these things, and many times give you honest advice for free.
IN THE END
Although there are just a few instances where you can tell the difference between a good and bad SEO company, they are some of the most important. Do a little bit of research and look for signs of bad practices when consulting with an SEO company. Your best bet is to talk to a number of different professionals, that way you can find out the most information, and the most important information for your site. A good SEO company won’t mind when you ask questions. In fact, they will most likely encourage it.
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