What does an SEO agency do? 

Let's look at each aspect of SEO in greater detail. 

On-page SEO

The first thing that any SEO company would do for you is to optimize your website so that search engines could crawl it better. This includes improving the existing content on the site, the title tags, descriptions, and the keywords on the main pages of your site. SEO experts would usually use Google Analytics to analyze the website traffic and other SEO tools (like Google Search Console, Moz, or Ahrefs) for keyword research.

Off-page SEO

Another vital component of any SEO strategy is what happens off the page. This includes all the external links from other websites and any press mentions your business might have. A good SEO agency would use outreach to build content collaborations and get your business mentioned by the industry's top publications.  

Technical SEO

Your organic rankings are also affected by how well your site runs. If your site is too slow or not optimized for mobile devices then you will get a high bounce rate and that would decrease your organic rank. SEO experts use Google's core web vitals to improve your site speed and optimize the technical aspects of your website. 

Local SEO

Local SEO is used for businesses that serve specific areas and want to show up in local search results. The way to get more online visibility for each target audience is to get listed in online directories, update the Google My Business profile, Google Maps optimization, and a variety of other strategies. 

When should you look into SEO? 

SEO is not for everyone. Not every business is ready or should use SEO. For example, if a business is just launched and hasn't really reached product-market fit, or is in a very competitive niche, or there's a lack of audience demand then it's probably not the right time to be working on an SEO campaign.

So you need to be in a good enough niche where users actually search using the keywords that you are trying to rank for, have product-market fit, and have enough content on your site to make it worthwhile. 

How to hire the best SEO agency for your business

Here are some tips to help you hire the right SEO company. 

Avoid companies that use black hat SEO practices.

Anything that Google doesn't allow could get your website banned, sometimes for a few months, and sometimes permanently. And you don't want that to happen. So make sure to get a good sense of the type of SEO practices that your prospective SEO agency uses before you start working with them. 

Look at their case studies

Don't get wowed by the SEO agency's fancy customer reviews or sales decks. Get your hands on their case studies and see their previous work. Make sure that they can help you achieve your business goals and get you qualified traffic to your site. The same is true for any type of digital marketing service. Always look at the case studies and ask for actual data from their previous marketing campaigns. 

Make sure the agency has experience in your industry/niche

It's critically important that an SEO agency has experience working with other clients in your business niche. 

Start with an SEO audit

Don't commit to working with an agency before getting an SEO audit. First, ask for an SEO  Get a list of recommendations and a comprehensive strategy that they.  

Questions to ask the top SEO companies before you hire one

1. What SEO strategies or tactics do you use? 
2. How do you create your SEO strategy? 
3. Which platforms and tools do you use? 
4. Do you have experience working with other businesses in my niche? 
5. Do you have an in-house team or do you use freelancers? 
6. How much do your search engine optimization services cost? 
7. How often do you send reports / communicate with your clients?
8. Who will the main point of contact be?
9. How long will it take to see results?