Local SEO can be critical for driving footfalls for businesses with brick-and-mortar stores. It is not always feasible to do SEO in-house, whether you have one store or a few hundred. Hiring a local SEO agency can be a great decision, especially when businesses are gathering steam after having faced a torrid time during the coronavirus pandemic. As per Search Engine Journal, it is critical dominating the local online space for businesses with physical outlets. Many business owners find hiring a local SEO agency allows them to focus on the core aspects of running their businesses. When hiring an SEO agency, you need to look out for competencies, experience, attitude, and above all, a good fit with your company culture.
Before You Get Started
For interviewing SEO agencies productively, you should identify your local SEO goals and objectives. You need to know your company’s goals and be familiar with the competition. You should be conversant enough with SEO to be able to evaluate the agencies. In case, you are clueless about SEO and the direction your company needs to move, you should appoint an SEO consultant or depend on someone in your team. Finally, you should be able to work with the agency and monitor the progress they are making. Some of the most important questions, you should ask the SEO agency before signing them on:
Do You Have Any Experience in Our Industry?
It can be a definite advantage if the agency you are talking to has worked with companies in the same business sector. The practice of SEO can differ a lot depending on the industry and business size. If the agency responds in the affirmative, be sure to ask for examples of work they have done. However, if they do not have any direct experience with businesses in the same industry, but have worked with brands with a similar target audience, they may well be able to perform well.
Do You Guarantee Results?
Many SEO companies try to get the attention of potential clients by promising to achieve specific results or by indicating they have cracked the code of achieving guaranteed page rankings. However, no SEO company can guarantee results because of the number of variables. You can be sure that these agencies will find a way to wriggle out of their commitment when the time comes quoting some condition or the other. You will want to work with agencies like Trusted Search Marketing that are confident about their abilities to help you achieve better visibility and are honest and realistic. Also, you don’t want an agency to use black hat tactics and land you in trouble.
Which Metrics Will You Focus On?
It is important not to assume that the agency you are looking at will have the expertise you want. You can ask them what they would like to focus on and match your expectations if you know what the important metrics are for your company. For example, if you are looking to increase footfall but the agency is focused on achieving rankings for a set of keywords, it is clear there is a mismatch. The reason for your outsourcing local SEO will generally be for increasing leads and sales. Even though metric analysis has several dimensions, many of them important, your agency should be firmly focused on the main objectives. By themselves, increasing rankings, improving your traffic levels, or decreasing bounce rates matter less than generating clicks for directions, coupon redemption, consistency in citations, etc.
What Kind of Updates or Reports Do You Provide?
When you appoint an external SEO agency, it is vital to be inform of the weekly and monthly progress. Ask them about the kind of reports they will generate and the frequency. Request them to show you sample reports and explain them to you. Ideally, you will want reports with all the information you want in a format you can easily understand. A good report will specify what has been done and why it was require to be. What kind of results and returns have been achieve, the kind of obstacles standing in the way. And the course of action for overcoming them.
Conclusion
How quickly the agency can begin showing results is among the most crucial questions. That businesses often use to make the final decision regarding the choice of the local SEO agency. The answer, of course, depends to a great extent. On how well established your company is and the kind of improvements needed. While you need to be flexible, you must keep your expectations realistic. You must keep in mind that local SEO takes time to show results. And you should steer clear of agencies that promise quick outcomes. A genuine SEO agency should be able to tell you why the process takes time and be clear that you should not expect overnight success.
