What To Look For in an SEO Company?

Organic search engine optimization is an absolute must for any business these days. The trouble is that there is a lot of competition out there, and a lot of spam. Too many companies claim to be reputable SEO companies when in fact they are anything but. They make promises they can’t keep and take your money while delivering nothing. You must make an investment in SEO, and your strategy needs to be for the long-haul. You do not want to work with an SEO company that you can’t trust. Here are some tips for finding a quality SEO company.

A Track Record

If you are looking at prospective SEO companies, make sure to scout online for reviews and to get a sense of how long they’ve been in business. If they have been operating in one place for along time, then there is a good chance that they are a reputable company. That doesn’t mean that a new company is necessarily unethical, but if you want to be certain, go with the company that’s been around the block a few times.

They Don’t Offer the Moon

One of the ways a disreputable SEO company can get you is that they offer you the moon, and deliver nothing of the sort. They will make promises, such as guarantees of certain placements in the rankings. SEO is a process. The fact is that it is impossible to guarantee anything because you never know what competitors are doing. If an SEO company promises you certain specific results, then run away.

Qualifications and Certifications

There is no governing body for SEO companies, nor is there a certification that SEO specialists can earn. However, there are certifications for learning certain things related to the profession. These can include analytics skills through Google, for instance. If you see that a company holds such a certification or a similar one, do some research to see what it means. This can be a sign of a reputable company because it means they would have had to prove themselves to Google or to another search engine.

Examples

Unless it is a brand new company offering you cheap SEO services to boost their portfolio, they should have some case studies to show you. These will be examples of how their work has helped other businesses, and what strategies they used in those cases. They should also allow you to contact their clients from those other cases who can work as references for the quality of their work.

You know that you need an SEO strategy, but it can be hard to figure out how to make it work. That’s where an SEO company can help you find success. However, it’s important to understand that with a relatively new field and the wild west of the internet, there are unethical people out there who will take your money.