Choosing an SEO agency is harder than choosing most suppliers. Results take months to show, much of the work is invisible, and almost every agency promises growth. These questions help you tell careful work from sales talk. We’re an SEO agency ourselves, so read this with that in mind: every question here applies to us too.
1. Do they guarantee rankings?
They shouldn’t. Google’s own guidance on hiring an SEO says plainly that no one can guarantee a number one ranking. An agency that promises page one by a date is either guessing or planning shortcuts that put your site at risk.
2. What will they do in the first three months?
A good answer is specific: an audit, a prioritised plan, the first fixes and how progress will be measured. “We’ll optimise your website” isn’t an answer. Ask what you’ll have in your hands at the end of month one.
3. Who will actually do the work?
Ask for the names and roles of the people working on your account, and whether any of the work is outsourced. You should be able to speak to the person doing the work, not only an account manager.
4. Can they make technical changes, or only recommend them?
Many SEO audits end as a list of recommendations that nobody has time to implement. Ask whether the agency can make changes to your website itself, or whether your developer will need to. If it’s the latter, budget for their time too.
5. How will they measure success?
Rankings and traffic matter, but they aren’t the goal. Ask how they’ll track enquiries, calls, sales or whatever counts as a result for your business, and ask to see an example report.
6. Can they show relevant work?
Case studies are more useful when you can check them: a named business, a live website and, ideally, someone you can speak to. Treat anonymous screenshots of traffic graphs with caution.
7. How do they get links?
Links from other websites still matter, but buying them or using networks of sites built for linking breaks Google’s spam policies. Ask for examples of links they’ve earned and how. If the answer involves a fixed number of links per month for a fixed price, be careful.
8. What does the contract say?
- How long is the minimum term, and what’s the notice period?
- Will your Google Analytics, Search Console and Business Profile accounts stay in your name?
- Who owns the content and any changes made to your website?
You should be able to leave with everything that was created for you.
9. Do they understand your industry?
Some sectors need extra care. Legal and financial services, for example, have rules about what can be claimed and expect content to be checked by qualified people. Ask how they’d handle your sector’s content and who signs it off. We explain our approach for law firms and R&D tax credit specialists.
10. How do they approach AI search?
Tools like ChatGPT and Google’s AI Overviews are changing how people search. A sensible agency will explain what it can influence, such as clear content, structured data and crawler access, and admit what nobody controls. Be wary of anyone who guarantees mentions in AI answers. Our AI search optimisation page sets out what we will and won’t promise.
Warning signs
- Guaranteed rankings or guaranteed AI mentions.
- Secret methods they can’t explain.
- Cheap packages promising large numbers of links.
- Reluctance to give you access to your own accounts.
- Long contracts with no break clause.
- Reports that only show rankings, never enquiries or sales.
Freelancer or agency?
Both can work well. A good freelancer is often ideal for focused, well-defined work. An agency with a team makes more sense when you need content, technical SEO and website development handled together, or when you don’t want everything to depend on one person. Ask either about cover for holidays and illness.
Comparing proposals
Send the same short brief to two or three agencies. Then compare what each includes, who will do the work, how results will be measured and what happens if you want to stop. The cheapest and most confident proposal is rarely the best value.
A low-risk first step
A free audit is a good way to see how an agency thinks before you commit to anything, ours included. Request a free SEO audit and we’ll send a plain-English summary of what we’d fix first. You can also meet the team who would do the work.