SEO is central to an online business’s growth. Brands with brick-and-mortar stores also need a strong digital footprint to drive more traffic to their business and boost their brand awareness. So, if you are a new online business or are thinking of starting an online presence of your physical business, you will need to optimize your website for search engines. And you might need to hire an SEO provider, be it a company or an individual professional. They will make things easier for you as you will have more time to focus only on your business growth while they take care of the SEO aspect.
Here is a rundown of all the things you should consider when hiring an SEO agency for your business!
Who is An SEO Service Provider?
SEO services are typically a part of the wider digital marketing services a company provides. SEO agencies offer search engine optimization services to businesses of different sizes so they can drive more traffic, get higher rankings in search results for relevant search queries, and maximize their revenue.
Types of SEO Services
1. On-Page SEO Services
On-page or on-site SEO assists Google in learning about a website’s design, its information, and relevance according to the users’ requirements. On-page SEO encompasses content creation and optimization, keyword research, metadata optimization, etc.
Users type a query in the search bar, and Google’s algorithm rummages around the web to find the best possible match to their queries. If your content perfectly answers a searcher’s query, you increase your chances of ranking in the top spot for that keyword.
Therefore, creating valuable content that solves the audience’s problems with unique and relevant solutions is pivotal to the success of on-site SEO. You can boost lead generation for your website by using on-site optimization best practices.
2. Off-Page SEO Services
Off-page or off-site SEO includes link building, social media, online reviews, etc. Link building refers to developing one-way hyperlinks, commonly called backlinks. It runs as a networking tool for a site as it focuses on nurturing connections.
SEO specialists write guest blogs for high-domain authority websites in their niche and pitch to them with their samples. They also apply content marketing tactics, run email outreach campaigns, fix broken links, and issue press releases to generate backlinks.
3. Local SEO Services
These services involve using local search terms and strategies to rank a website for local searches on search engines. Local SEO services are beneficial for businesses that serve a specific location and want to appear on top when someone searches with the name of that location. An example is a health and fitness center that operates in a specific neighborhood in Dubai and wants to attract locals living near their center.
An SEO veteran can aid you in improving your brand’s local presence, which enhances your customer engagement.
4. E-commerce SEO Services
E-commerce SEO services involve driving mature leads to product pages of an online store and augmenting the consumer experience. SEO pros apply specific strategies to help an e-commerce store convert daily visitors into long-term buyers.
5. SaaS SEO Services
They aim to grow your organic rankings to make your website more discoverable by prospects. SEO agencies place high-value keywords on your site’s pages naturally to attract mature leads for your business.
6. SEO Audit Services
Search engine optimization includes multiple facets, including on-site optimization, off-site optimization, and technical SEO. An SEO audit can help you detect most of the technical issues in your website in about 10 minutes.
However, a more holistic audit involves evaluating a company’s current SEO strategies, recognizing plus points, and exposing weaknesses. SEO audit services scrutinize your website from every angle from an SEO point of view, which includes site architecture, content quality, backlinks, user experience, etc.
Benefits of Hiring An SEO Provider in 2024
1. Saves Costs and Time
As business owners, you are skilled in growing and managing a business, but SEO is a whole new science that needs learning. Some people try to perform SEO for their businesses by doing courses or watching YouTube videos, but it can’t bring you the years of experience and understanding a professional has.
So, it’s better to hand over your website’s SEO to learned people while you concentrate on other elements of your business.
2. It has Up-to-Date Knowledge
An SEO firm has a team of experts that keep an eye on new trends, technologies, and tools in their field to hone their skills. It’s their field, so they spend all of their time learning about current news in their industry, but you may not have this much time to spend on learning SEO.
By taking the services of a trusted company, you benefit from their updated knowledge and set of skills in boosting your organic visibility and driving traffic.
3. Tools and Expertise
An SEO company has professionals who are proficient in using different relevant tools to detect issues with your site that you may be fully unaware of. SEO encompasses various types of skills, such as keyword research, link building, content optimization, identification of technical issues, etc.
So, a company can solve the issues within your website or optimize your site for search engines using their prowess.
4. You can Focus on Your Business
The main aim of your business is growing your ROI, which encompasses many aspects, including search engine optimization. So, if you hand over your SEO to a team of experts, you become free to focus more on other aspects of your business.
You don’t need to optimize content, perform keyword research, and find which keywords perform well and which your competitors are using. You just pay the monthly or project-based fees, and your SEO agency will do all the technical work and provide you with results.
Factors to Consider When Hiring An SEO Provider in 2024
1. Go for SEO Experts with Experience in Your Niche
There are loads of SEO companies in the market, as nearly every business that has a website needs search engine optimization services. But not all of them are proficient in your industry.
SEO strategies and needs may vary with the platform you use to host your website, your industry, the nature of your business (e-commerce, service-based, B2B or B2C), etc.
You need to partner with an SEO service agency that contemplates the nitty gritty of your industry and understands your brand. So, ask the prospective SEO company about their competencies, sub-services, and years of experience in the industry.
Check their SEO services package to ensure it matches your particular requirements and doesn’t have anything extra. It will help you save your money in the coming years when you start to work with them.
2. Read Client Reviews and References
How can you ensure the SEO consultant you hire will work with honesty, transparency, dedication, and professionalism? Many service providers may have the skills and experience to impress you, but not all of them will work hard and understand your success as theirs.
So, the trick is to go through the feedback from the company’s previous or existing clients to analyze if they can be a great fit for you. Every company has different aims even in terms of SEO.
For example, someone’s goal may be to earn more qualified leads, and someone’s can be to rank for a highly niche-specific keyword. You should ask the customers who have already taken the company’s services you are considering about their expertise and work ethics.
Going through the client reviews will help you evaluate their market reputation to decide whether you should go forward with them.
3. Assess Case Studies and Portfolios on Their Website
Assessing case studies is paramount to effective SEO hiring as they help you analyze how the company has solved the issues of its previous clients. A reputable and professional company should not hesitate to give you case studies of existing or previous customers or portfolios of successful projects.
Experienced and acclaimed SEO service providers show case studies and portfolios on their websites to incite trust in potential clients. They showcase the company’s working style and the types of outcomes their customers have earned. It will offer you an exact insight into what you may expect from them in exchange for the price you pay them.
For example, if you see a health clinic’s website in the case studies and you are also operating in the health industry, you can expect their team to understand the intricacies of your niche.
Similarly, if you want to get your brand keyword on Google’s first page and the company you are hiring has done the same for some clients in less time, they can do the same for you.
4. Ask for Their Pricing
Prices are also a pivotal factor in SEO company selection. A company may have accomplished many projects, but if they command a fee much higher than your budget, you can’t hire them.
So, to save yourself from disappointment, consider the costs when looking at the other aspects of hiring an SEO service provider for your business. We recommend shortlisting some companies, considering the type of results you want, and contacting them one by one to request a pricing quote.
Only shortlist a company if their service charges are affordable for you. Most agencies have the quote request form on the home page of their sites, but you should add your particular business needs to it to get a highly exact quote.
You can compare the fees of different agencies and how likely it is for them to fulfill your needs and select one of them to go ahead with.
Final Word
Hiring an SEO service provider company for your business is crucial for consistent success in achieving your SEO goals. Some small business owners try to manage their SEO campaigns by themselves, but it is not an ideal approach. SEO agencies have been providing remarkable results to small, medium, and large organizations as they have a team of experienced and knowledgeable pros. These companies are already managing SEO for multiple clients and delivering results so they can replicate the same outcomes for your business.