So you’ve decided you are ready to hire an SEO company to help you boost your business’s search engine optimization efforts. However, it can be challenging to know which SEO company is best and has the services to meet your unique business needs. While there are many SEO agencies from which to choose, not all will help you get the results you need to see for your business.
Let’s take a closer look at the top SEO agencies’ characteristics and how you can make the best choice for your small business.
What to Look for When Choosing an SEO Company
Selecting an SEO agency is no easy task, but it helps if you know the best companies’ characteristics. Here are some of the top qualities your next SEO firm should showcase to earn your business:
- Customized SEO strategy: A cookie-cutter or one-size-fits-all approach does not work when it comes to search engine optimization. Look for an agency that takes the time to learn about your business, core services, geographic market, and your target audience.
- Free SEO audit and consultation: A professional firm will offer complimentary SEO audits and consultations to help you know where you are now and determine where their SEO campaign can take you.
- Friendly, dedicated staff: You should be able to tell from your first consultation whether or not the agency is a good fit personality-wise for your business. Working with them should be easy and pleasant, and open communication should be a primary focus.
- SEO specialization: A company may call itself an SEO company, but does it specialize in SEO strategy for small businesses like yours? Find out if they have worked with businesses in your industry and what kind of results they achieved.
The Difference Between an SEO Company and a Firm that Offers SEO
You may discover in your search that many companies say they offer SEO services, but that may not be their specialty. For example, a web design company that happens to do SEO too isn’t what you need. If you are going to invest in SEO services for your small business, you need to trust you are getting the best services the industry offers. While SEO experts can give you that, a web designer with some SEO skills cannot.
It’s okay to be frank, and ask a prospective SEO firm about the services they offer. Inquire about their previous experience. Ask them to get specific about their background and specialization. Check their client reviews to find out what other businesses are saying about their experience with the firm.
A professional SEO company will also be up-to-date on the latest trends, tools, and techniques for search engine optimization. Therefore, they should have the highest level of expertise in trends, including:
E-A-T SEO
E-A-T SEO is all about helping your business website achieve expertise, authority, and trustworthiness. It’s a marketing concept that has become one of the most crucial SEO elements, but many industry experts find it confusing and don’t know how to implement it.
The right SEO firm will know that Google uses E-A-T to evaluate the quality and relevance of each page. Unless the SEO firm you choose leverages this type of SEO, you could miss out on a higher search ranking.
Google is continually trying to determine which websites have valuable information and which ones are a bad source of info. Incorporating the E-A-T strategy will ensure your business website falls under the valuable category.
Core Web Vitals
Core Web Vitals is a Google update from 2020 that requires business websites to meet specific site speed guidelines or risk a lower or non-existent Google ranking. The SEO company you hire must be 100% clear on what Core Web Vitals means; experienced SEO’s will ensure your website meets the requirements, including loading performance, responsiveness, and visual stability.
If you get a deer-in-the-headlights look when you ask about it, consider this your red flag. Core Web Vitals is all about creating an optimal page experience on your website. Therefore, you need to count on your SEO agency getting your website in tip-top shape.
Natural Link Building vs. Paid Links
The top SEO companies will have link-building expertise; the best search marketing firms will be able to explain the difference between natural link building and paid links. Unfortunately, there’s actually a lot of confusion in the industry about the importance of link building. Some companies don’t even use link building anymore because they think it isn’t effective. This is dead wrong. Knowing how to use link building correctly and how to avoid spammy backlinks is crucial. And it’s a good idea to avoid any SEO firm that downplays the effectiveness of natural backlinks.
If you are still asking which SEO company is best, it’s time to discover PersistSEO. As a full-service SEO agency and digital marketing company, we serve small businesses that want to gain a competitive edge. Connect with PersistSEO to schedule a consultation or to get your free SEO report.