I’ve been meeting with different SEO companies, and I can’t tell which is the best fit for my business. It feels like the more I talk to them, the more I get influenced by their sales pitch instead of focusing on what really matters. Should I go for a big company or just hire a specialist? Any tips? And please, no job offers. I’m just looking for advice. Thanks!
One big thing… check if they’re faking their past work or not. Some agencies claim to have worked on projects they’ve never even touched.
As an agency owner, I’m a bit biased, but I think agencies offer more. You get a whole team, not just one person. An individual SEO specialist probably won’t handle everything, like content creation or link building. Plus, agencies have processes in place, so it’s smoother to work with them.
What makes a good agency?
- They know white-hat SEO and have results to back it up.
- They aim for more than traffic; they focus on leads unless you’re running a blog.
- They treat you like their boss, which is key.
- Pricing? There’s no standard, but $1000-$2000 a month is pretty common for around 15k-30k words of content too.
Happy to answer any more questions!
@EmmanuelBrown
I had a specialist before and felt like I was doing half the work with them. What exactly do you mean by 15-30k words of content? And can you show me what a good backlink looks like?
Lucia said:
@EmmanuelBrown
I had a specialist before and felt like I was doing half the work with them. What exactly do you mean by 15-30k words of content? And can you show me what a good backlink looks like?
I work at an agency too, and we’ve got a great process that covers everything from content to link building. We also offer discounts and packages to our clients. A good agency should show you clear data and results. We make sure our clients get the best of everything.
Lucia said:
@EmmanuelBrown
I had a specialist before and felt like I was doing half the work with them. What exactly do you mean by 15-30k words of content? And can you show me what a good backlink looks like?
Content is usually charged separately, but some agencies include it. For example, we just signed a client from Canada for $1500 a month, and that covers 15k words of blogs plus PRs and guest posts.
Lucia said:
@EmmanuelBrown
I had a specialist before and felt like I was doing half the work with them. What exactly do you mean by 15-30k words of content? And can you show me what a good backlink looks like?
If you want quality content, you need to be involved. Sure, an agency can help guide you, provide data, and optimize your content, but if you let them write everything, you’re missing out on the real value.
@EmmanuelBrown
I usually look for agencies on LinkedIn or Facebook, but sometimes smaller agencies from third-world countries can provide good results at a lower price.
Troy said:
@EmmanuelBrown
I usually look for agencies on LinkedIn or Facebook, but sometimes smaller agencies from third-world countries can provide good results at a lower price.
Any specific places I should be looking besides Upwork? Thanks for your advice!
@Lucia
Try LinkedIn or Facebook for sure. Always ask for a written and verbal strategy and check their case studies.
@Lucia
Honestly, try this forum too, or even X (formerly Twitter). Also, local people might be good since you can meet them in person.
@EmmanuelBrown
Couldn’t agree more with this! Thanks for putting into words exactly what I was thinking.
Look for tangible results. A good agency should be able to show how their work has increased revenues, not just traffic. Freelancers can be great too, but with an agency, you usually get a full team working for you. Just make sure they ask smart questions about your business, not just throw buzzwords at you.
If you can afford it, hire an in-house SEO person to work with an agency. Someone in-house can help guide the agency on what’s most important for your business. Otherwise, an agency alone works fine. Always check the sites they’ve worked on and do a quick search to see how well those sites rank.
You could find a good SEO specialist on LinkedIn or X (formerly Twitter). Check out their case studies, results, and client reviews. They should give you a clear idea of how long it will take to see results.
Look for the basics:
- Do they have their own site?
- Do they rank for at least 50 keywords on their own site?
- Is their site technically sound?
- Do they have real testimonials from real people?
If they don’t do it for themselves, they probably can’t do it for you.
I’ve run an SEO agency for 16 years, and here’s what I’ve learned. ‘Content is King’ still holds true, even more so now. The goal of SEO isn’t just rankings; it’s about getting qualified traffic that converts. We produce around 10 x 2000-word articles for our clients every month. Over time, search engines start seeing your site as an expert on your topic, driving more traffic for various keywords.
One of our clients has now filled his schedule, and his website traffic is coming from all sorts of keywords. It’s taken me 15 years to truly understand the power of content.
Curry said:
@Evans
What tool do you use to create the articles?
We use a mix of AI tools to help with headlines and content ideas, but we avoid overly generic tools like ChatGPT for content creation. We have our own system that we use.