Local SEO is a comprehensive approach to ranking a business on the local level and utilizing paid advertising, organic listing optimization, and other local search strategies to improve rankings.
With the increasing importance of a local SEO company and its potential to help small businesses, we’re going to look at what you should be looking for when searching for a local SEO company.
Source: Local SEO
What do you expect from the Local SEO company?
When you want to improve your business visibility in Google, you need to hire a Local SEO Company. As you are looking for the right SEO firm or agency, it’s always wise to ask for references, client reviews, and case studies.
When looking for the best local SEO company, you need to understand that there are several steps involved in the process.
Source: Online Review
- You may be tempted to hire a cheap Local SEO company or perhaps one that offers you a discount. The problem is that quality work cannot be cheap and good SEO companies are not cheap either.
- Be sure to ask any Local SEO company what method they use to get backlinks and how they plan to rank your site higher. If they use spammy techniques to rank your site, it will only be a matter of time before Google finds out and penalizes your website, which can lead to it being removed from their index, and you will have wasted your money on something that isn’t going to work.
- Check the portfolio of any Local SEO company you are considering hiring and make sure that the sites they have optimized are relevant to yours in terms of product or service. If all you see are links for gambling or adult websites, do not hire that Local SEO company as they will do nothing for your website’s reputation.
- Make sure any Local SEO company you hire uses white-hat techniques, such as using keywords effectively on your site and building backlinks from reputable websites only so Google will trust their
Five Valuable Tips on What to Look For when Googling a Local SEO Company
There’s more than one way to do SEO; it’s essential to know precisely what you’re getting into before hiring a company. These five valuable tips will help you find a great local SEO company that won’t waste your time or money.
Tip 1: Set a budget for yourself beforehand
Then stick to it! This should be a recurring expense every month, so plan accordingly. Remember that many companies offer tiered packages with different price points based on the services provided, so you can choose the one that’s right for you.
How much money do you have to spend on an SEO company? Depending on the size of your business and the state of your website, you may want to allocate more or less money. In any case, breaking down your budget beforehand will help you find the right firm.
It’s imperative to have your finances in order before hiring an SEO agency. It means that instead of getting attracted by flashy ads and fancy landing pages of so-called SEO “specialists”, you should focus on what your business needs and how much money you’re willing to spend on digital marketing services.
Tip 2: Google the company name and the word ‘scam’ before deciding who to hire
Googling your preferred SEO company name and the word ‘scam’ will give you an idea of how trustworthy they are. If the first thing you see is a forum thread where someone is complaining about this business, then it’s best to stay away from it.
However, if you don’t find anything, it’s safe to assume that this company probably isn’t involved in any shady practices, or else someone would have probably complained about them by now.
Using Google or any other search engine should always be your first step in determining whether or not a company is legitimate or not. If there are no results, then the chances are good that they are legitimate.
Tip 3: Look at their portfolio and talk to past clients
Look at their portfolio and read reviews about them on Yelp, Google, etc. Talk to past clients and ask them about the company’s results. Did these results come promptly? Did it cost them a fortune to get these results? What kind of ROI did they receive from this company’s services?
Ask for a list of websites that they have worked on and ask if you can talk to any of their clients about their experiences with them. This is an excellent way of getting an idea about how effective they were at improving search engine rankings for those sites.
Tip 4: Google them and read reviews from other customers
Make sure they have good reviews online. Look at their social media profiles and Google reviews to see what other customers say about them. If there are any negative comments, don’t ignore them; instead, ask why they were posted and how the company responded to them. If they don’t respond well or at all, consider this a big red flag (and move on).
Reviews are very important for both customers and businesses as they give valuable information on the company, service offered and products sold.
Tip 5: Look for Local SEO agencies with higher levels of accountability, transparency, and respect for customer information
Ask how transparent they are with their work and reporting metrics. Some local SEO companies will send monthly reports detailing progress made on each service performed by the company. Others don’t have time or resources to provide detailed information because their focus is elsewhere (e.g., building links). Make sure that whatever option you choose offers regular communication
Some local SEO companies have very little accountability for their client’s results. They don’t report back on their progress regularly or at all. You need to know that the agency is consistently working toward achieving your goals to see where you stand and make changes as necessary along the way.
Conclusion
We hope these recommendations provide you with information and guidance on what you should look for when searching for a local SEO company. When choosing the right company for your local SEO efforts, you should be proactive in your search. Find them by doing your due diligence on search engines and quality business review sites. Take some time analyzing their content, strategies, and marketing materials and make sure they’re a good fit for you.
