How Do You Know If a SEO Company Is Doing a Good Job?
Many SEO companies come on strong with promises of high search engine rankings and increased traffic to your website. But once you’ve paid the fee and they’ve started working, how can you tell if they’re doing a good job?
In order to evaluate the performance of an SEO company, you have to have a clear starting point. Did you receive an initial analysis of your website before work started? Having a baseline to work from is the best way to measure future performance.
If you didn’t receive an initial analysis – including target keywords, content development plans, current keyword rankings and link building strategies – it’s not too late to have them put one together for you now.
 
Here’s what you want to know before you do anything to your site:
1. What keywords is the SEO company targeting for your website? How were the keywords chosen? Most reputable companies will include the client in keyword selection. After all, no one knows your business better than you do. What solutions does your website provide to customers? What are the most profitable parts of your business? Good keyword selection will cover all of these areas.
2. Where is your website ranking right now? In order to increase targeted traffic to your website, your SEO company will have to make your site more visible for relevant keyword searches. Companies have different methods for achieving higher ranks, but they should be able to tell you where your site ranks at all times and what timeframe they believe is reasonable to increasing the rank.
3. What work is being done? Does your SEO company have a complete strategy for your website optimization? Are they focusing solely on link building and leaving content up to you? Or are they creating new pages on your site that are specifically optimized for targeted keywords? It’s important to have a clear plan of attack and for all of the players to understand the role they play.
A good SEO company will provide you with timely reports about your targeted keywords and the results they’re producing for you, including starting rankings and regular ranking updates. They’ll also be willing to discuss what’s being done to improve your keyword position and answer any questions you may have.
Search engine optimization is never accomplished overnight. It does takes time to produce the results your after, but your SEO company should always be up front about their predicted timeframe.
In the long run, high quality SEO work is an investment in the future of your business. As long as you’re satisfied with your website’s progress, have an open line of communication with your SEO consultant and are seeing a return on your investment, it makes sense to stay the course.