How To Choose An SEO Company: 7 Rules To Follow

on 29 Aug, 2024

How to choose an SEO company in Australia?

Choosing an SEO company as part of your digital marketing strategy can easily become a daunting and overwhelming experience for your business.

It’s always a big step to invest in an SEO agency to manage your online visibility, so it makes sense to work with someone trustworthy and an authority in the field of search engine optimisation.

Choosing an SEO company that adheres to search engine guidelines is crucial to ensure ethical strategies and sustainable ranking improvements.

Now, picking a good SEO company and filtering the legitimate companies from the dodgy ones can be a bit tricky.

The reality is that this is a saturated market, with literally thousands of SEO agencies and so-called ‘SEO experts’ who claim to be gurus in their fields.

However, getting started can be difficult. That’s why we have put together 7 of the most important guidelines you should consider when choosing an SEO company.

How To Choose an SEO Agency in Australia?

seo company

With more than 92% of all search traffic coming from the first page of Google, you can understand why an SEO strategy is so valuable and important for the success of your business online.

Effective SEO strategies must align with the latest algorithm changes and be customized to meet specific business goals, rather than applying a generic approach. Online marketing encompasses various strategies, and SEO is a crucial component of it.

As we approach 2025, search engine optimization will continue to be key to finding the most profitable opportunities online.

I will say, that you need to start considering SEO as a medium/long-term investment to see tangible results in your campaign.

This is not a ‘quick fix’ tactic or hack as PPC.

I always like the analogy of comparing it with going to the gym. If this is the first time you are even doing some physical activity, don’t expect to have six-pack abs and be fit with just one month of working out.

The typical fit guys you see around are eating healthy and consistently training year after year to achieve outstanding results.

The same applies to SEO. You need to continuously work on your campaign to achieve long-term results.

Understanding SEO and Its Importance

What is SEO and why is it crucial for online success?

SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is the process of improving a website’s visibility and ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs) through various techniques and strategies.

It is crucial for online success because it enables businesses to increase their online presence, drive more website traffic, and ultimately boost their revenue.

An SEO company can significantly enhance your online visibility by optimizing your website for search engines through keyword research.

A well-planned SEO strategy can help businesses outrank their competitors, establish their brand as an authority in their industry, and provide a better user experience for their customers.

Why do I need an SEO company to improve my online presence?

In today’s digital age, having a strong online presence is crucial for businesses to succeed. An SEO company can significantly enhance your online visibility by optimizing your website for search engines.

This optimization helps your site rank higher in search engine results pages (SERPs), making it easier for potential customers to find you.

By improving your search engine rankings, an SEO company can drive more organic traffic to your website, increase your brand’s credibility, and ultimately boost your sales and revenue.

With the right SEO strategies, you can reach a wider audience and establish a robust online presence that sets you apart from the competition.

How can an SEO agency help me achieve my business goals?

An SEO agency can be a valuable partner in achieving your business goals by developing and implementing a customized SEO strategy tailored to your specific needs.

By conducting thorough keyword research, optimizing your website’s content and structure, and building high-quality backlinks, an SEO agency can enhance your website’s visibility and search engine rankings.

This increased visibility can drive more traffic to your site, leading to higher conversions and sales. Additionally, an SEO agency can provide you with detailed performance reports, offering valuable insights and data to inform your business decisions.

With their expertise, an SEO agency can help you navigate the complexities of search engine optimization and achieve your business objectives.

How does SEO impact search engine results pages?

SEO significantly impacts search engine results pages (SERPs), determining a website’s ranking and visibility.

Search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo use complex algorithms to rank websites based on their relevance, authority, and user experience.

By optimizing a website for SEO, businesses can improve their chances of ranking higher in SERPs, which can lead to more visibility, traffic, and conversions. Content marketing is another crucial aspect that complements SEO efforts by providing valuable and relevant content to attract and engage the target audience.

A good SEO strategy can also help businesses improve their brand’s credibility and trustworthiness, ultimately leading to more sales and revenue.

So without any further due, here are our top seven simple rules to follow when choosing an SEO agency.

#1 Avoid SEO Agencies That Cannot Explain
Your SEO Campaign

seo experts

Sure, I understand SEO can easily become a very technical strategy, which can become very confusing and overwhelming. However, if an SEO company can’t explain it simply to you, they might be as confused as you are.

I like to be very straightforward when I speak to prospects or new clients about SEO services. It’s all about focusing on content, keywords, and link building. Users rely on Google search to find their products, services, and information online.

Technical SEO is also crucial as it enhances website visibility and performance by optimizing site speed, ensuring crawlability, and implementing structured data.

Therefore, if you have an optimised website, you will get more organic traffic. The more organic traffic you get, the more eyeballs and people can actually see you online, which typically translates into more calls and enquiries.

And ultimately an increase in sales means an increase in revenue. Every business is different, which is why we always have to tailor the SEO strategy and consider what will be most beneficial to the business. So, when choosing an SEO company, find an agency that can explain the SEO strategy they will implement in layman’s terms. If they can’t, then look elsewhere.

#2 Determine Your SEO Objectives

seo service provider

Before you decide to hire an SEO agency, you should clearly understand your business goals.

For instance, is there a specific keyword that you would like to rank for, or do you have a revenue goal in mind that you would like to hit, or are you looking to increase your brand awareness and the visibility of your business in your local area?

Additionally, consider if conversion rate optimization is a priority for your business.

Work out exactly what these goals look like for your business before you allow an SEO company to tell you what they want to achieve. Then, during the initial consultation, you can state these goals.

A good SEO company will be able to map out a tailored SEO strategy and discuss if you can reach these objectives.

#3 Research Their Reputation and Experience

seo campaign

It’s always a smart idea to work alongside an SEO agency that has worked with similar clients from a similar industry to your own. This means the SEO company understands your target market and what makes you different from anyone else.

Let’s face it: With thousands of new SEO agencies consistently appearing, it can be really hard to know who to trust, as most of them claim to be search engine optimisation experts.

This is why you must always consider their reputation before working with them.

Testimonials are a great way to verify this, as they can provide you with a clear insight into how they operate and what their clients think of their SEO services. Conducting a competitive analysis can also help you understand how they stack up against other agencies.

I also recommend asking an SEO company for case studies (ideally in your similar industry) to verify their actual experience and legitimacy in the field.

#4 Ask About Their Reporting Frequency and Communication

choosing an seo company

Having clear communication with an SEO agency is fundamental. The beauty of SEO is that everything is measurable and trackable.

From Google Search Console to keyword rankings, analytics tools like Google Analytics, and actual leads (phone calls and enquiries), you can literally measure everything and make data-informed decisions in real-time.

Work with an SEO company that provides clear and measurable data for all the activities they perform, including search engine rankings. Irrespective of your SEO objectives, a good SEO agency can track your progress and provide analytics for all their work.

If an SEO company refuses to provide tangible data other than a report every couple of months, that’s a big red flag.

Not only should you have access to your reports but also a clear line of communication and agreed meetings to discuss what SEO strategy to implement in the upcoming months and why they will do so.

#5 Pick A Company That Provides Clear and Measurable Data

choose the right seo

Similar to rule #4, the data that an SEO service provider includes in their reports should be clear and measurable.

Don’t be fooled by random keyword ranking reports for useless terms that will not generate revenue for your business.

At eWebsites, we help you improve your online presence by increasing your traffic, generating more qualified leads, and ultimately increasing your sales.

You should know how many phone calls you are getting, whether they are coming from GMB or organic search, and how many contact forms have been submitted.

This is a tangible measurement that enables you to clearly understand the ROI of your SEO campaign and make informed decisions.

#6 Check an SEO Companies Reviews

right seo company

This also relates to rule #3 above. However, we strongly recommend that you check their Google My Business reviews to get a clearer understanding of how they operate with their clients and what they think of their services.

Client testimonials are great, particularly if they are showcased on their website. However, I strongly recommend that you focus mainly on their GMB reviews to get a clear grasp of what their customers think of their business.

This will enable you to determine if they are the best SEO company to partner with for your SEO campaign.

#7 Schedule A Discovery Call

seo companies

This call will definitely enable you to map out how to choose the right SEO company.

You will be able to ask the SEO agency some key questions that will help you determine if they are the right SEO partner for you.

Below are some of the main questions to ask your SEO company:

#1 How long have you been in the SEO industry?

This will give you a clear understanding of their experience and industry expertise. Similar to our rules above around their reputation and case studies, it’s always a good rule of thumb to clearly understand this item.

#2 Can you guarantee a #1 Google ranking for my site?

google analytics

Look, if SEO firms claim to guarantee #1 keyword rankings in less than 90 days, run away! Nobody can guarantee results with Google algorithms being continuously changed and affected.

A good SEO company will ensure you have an optimised site and will apply the best ethical SEO practices, however, nobody should claim their SEO services guarantee #1 results in such a short timeframe.

#3 How will you improve my SEO rankings?

Although no SEO company can know this in advance, it’s very interesting to hear what strategy and reporting process they are considering utilising to drive you more traffic and increase your leads online.

This should give you a clear picture of their operating style and be a good rule of thumb for determining whether you can trust them.

#4 Do you use any black hat techniques?

black hat seo

This should be an obvious one, but it’s worth asking. You want to ensure the SEO company doesn’t use any black hat SEO practices and instead focuses on white hat SEO.

Black hat SEO basically means violating Google Webmaster Guidelines and applying doggy SEO practices to obtain quick results, which ultimately results in Google penalising you.

Unfortunately, many SEO companies apply these tactics, and you are not even aware of them (such as buying links from poor websites).

#5 What is your pricing structure?

Different SEO agencies offer different pricing structures. It is not uncommon for an SEO company to want to include a lock-in contract of 9-12 months before working with you.

Some SEO companies take a time-and-material approach, charging an hourly rate, whereas others work on a monthly retainer or a month-to-month fixed retainer.

At eWebsites, we don’t have any lock-in contracts, so you can be assured that we are the right SEO company for you by consistently providing value every month.

Red Flags to Watch Out For

Guaranteeing quick results or specific rankings on search engine results pages

Be wary of SEO companies that guarantee quick results or specific rankings on search engine results pages. SEO is a long-term strategy that requires ongoing effort and optimization. Any company that promises overnight success or guaranteed rankings is likely using black-hat SEO tactics that can harm your website’s credibility and reputation.

These tactics may provide short-term gains but can lead to severe penalties from search engines, ultimately damaging your online presence. A reputable SEO company will provide you with a customized SEO strategy and ongoing support to help you achieve your business goals.

They will focus on sustainable, ethical practices that build your site’s authority over time, rather than offering unrealistic guarantees.

Conclusion- eWebsites is The SEO Agency To Trust

good seo company

As an award-winning SEO agency, we cannot stress enough how important it is to choose the right SEO company for your business.

The difference between working with the right SEO agency or not can have a massive long-term effect on your business and reputation online.

Search engine optimisation is a fantastic marketing channel that when implemented correctly can truly transform your business and deliver long-lasting results.

At eWebsites we provide different types of SEO services that are tailored to your business to ensure you get the best ROI for your SEO campaign.

Either if you want to improve your local presence, enhance your reputation in another country or state or operate at an enterprise scale we can help you out.

Although it’s unrealistic for any good seo company to guarantee top-page results, we do stand by our record of helping 100% of our clients get more traffic, generate more qualified leads and increase their sales as a result of our business partnership.

We never work with a business unless we’re confident that we can deliver the desired results.

We hope this blog has answered all your main queries around ‘how to choose an seo company’.

Get in touch with us today and schedule an SEO consultation call to discuss your business online needs.

We’ll conduct a free site audit that will lay out your current scenario and show you exactly a roadmap to get you to your desired outcomes with a customised SEO campaign.

Tomás Affranchino Vivanco

Tomás is an SEO professional with over 10 years of experience. He is the founder of eWebsites, a leading SEO agency in Melbourne. Tomás has led several successful SEO campaigns in some of the most competitive niches in Australia, such as health, real estate and law.
Tomás is an SEO professional with over 10 years of experience. He is the founder of eWebsites, a leading SEO agency in Melbourne. Tomás has led several successful SEO campaigns in some of the most competitive niches in Australia, such as health, real estate and law.
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