When it comes to SEO agencies, there are often many promises and many claims. Sometimes these can be backed up but all too often businesses find themselves dissatisfied with the results, or perhaps have unrealistic expectations from the beginning.
Finding a reputable SEO company is not an easy task but there are a few steps you can take to make your chances of success better. If we take a look at the UK’s second largest city Birmingham – there are over 25 different SEO agencies to choose from.
Most of these are based in the city with some based a little further afield, but all offer SEO services and most will have completely different pricing structures to one another.
When searching for a Birmingham SEO company or an agency from any location we would suggest taking in to account the following guidelines to ensure you have a good experience.
1] Ensure Both Parties Understand The Goals
It is extremely important that as a business owner who wants to employ a company to manage their digital marketing that you clearly communicate what it is that you want to achieve from a campaign.
What looks like success for one company might be perceived as failure for another and with this in mind you should have a firm idea of what success looks like for you and ensure that the company you choose understands this fully.
Whether your goal is to achieve more page one exposure for a set number of keywords, to increase traffic, increase brand exposure or any other goal – having this set from the beginning will result in a much better experience and more satisfying result for both parties.
2] Set Out and Understand The Expectations
As much as a company might look to set out their expectations of a campaign it is also important that you listen to what the SEO agency is saying in regards to expectations, especially in the first few months of a project.
Search engine optimisation is a process that takes time and as such it is advantageous if the company you are working with has given you some timeframes or milestones to be able to compare progress to.
If a company has told you to expect no real changes to rankings for the first 30 days then that is a very clear expectation and as a business owner you will understand if no changes occur to rankings in the first month of a campaign.
However, if nothing has been said but you are expecting rankings to improve significantly within the first month then this could lead to disappointment, frustration and maybe even cause an issue to the long term success of the project.
3] Look For Transparency
Transparency within an SEO agency doesn’t just mean that they explain what their processes are, it also means that they don’t hide behind technical jargon or behind emails.
When engaging with a company to take care of your digital marketing you should always have as many face to face or phone/Skype conversations as it needs for you to feel comfortable that they are the right company for you.
If it feels like something is being hidden or not said for any reason then the chances are that it may be the case. Even if nothing is being hidden, the seed in your mind is probably going to be enough to cause the relationship to break down if there are any sticking points along the way.
Transparency fosters trust and so it is paramount that this trust is built from day one with an honest and open starting point.
4] Make It Personal
There are a number of top quality SEO companies in Birmingham and the one that is best for you might not be best for someone else and vice versa. There are pros and cons to working with a large agency versus a small agency or freelancer, but whichever you choose you should look to have a single point of contact.
That might be in the form of an account manager or direct liaison with the freelancer doing all or most of the work. Either way, you should be able to have a personable relationship with them.
To conclude, there will be many factors in determining your success in choosing the right SEO company for you (and we haven’t even covered cost) but just remember that if it sounds too good to be true then it probably is and try to follow our guidelines above and you should have the best chance of success.
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