Here at Blue Fusion Digital it’s like clock work, we conduct SEO consulting calls every day and every day we stumble upon business owners who have got themselves in a bit of a pinch. They own a website and often times have spent a good chunk of change to have it created so naturally they want it to be found in the search engines so they hire an “SEO Company” to help their website be found in the search engines.

Here is where their headaches can begin, as a business owner or marketer I’m sure you get hundreds of emails and phone calls a year (We get them too even though we are ranked as one of the top 15 seo agencies! They just send out mass emails and hope for the best) from SEO freelancers and SEO companies all over the world claiming they can guarantee you the #1 position overnight or other outrageous statements and claims that sound to good to be true….because they are. For every good, legitimate SEO professional out there, their is a dozen of people who just know how to sell SEO really well even if they don’t know how to actually perform the SEO. But, when you don’t know what you are looking for I can see how those offers and claims can be enticing so I don’t blame you, I just want to help you.

If you know anything about Blue Fusion Digital, you know we are big advocates of making sure your business is protected from the less then reputable and transparent “SEO companies and free lancers” across the globe.

One of the best ways to protect your business from getting stuck between a rock and a hard spot is to arm yourself with the right ammunition when you are in the vetting process of hiring someone to perform your SEO or internet marketing. So, I figured why not create a list of questions you should ask ALL SEO companies before you sign on that dotted line!

Here is a list of questions you should find an answer to before committing to sign up for someones SEO services.

General Questions to ask SEO companies

• Do they practice what they preach? What keywords does their own website rank for?
• Do they have experience in your industry? If not, what makes them believe they can be successful for you?
• Do they have any sort of certifications or recognition’s from trusted sources?
• How do their contracts work? (ex: 6 month commitment, 12 month commitment)
• Have they helped any businesses you might recognize or know?
• Do they offer any sort of guarantee?

Pre-Sale Questions

“If I sign up with you……”

What specifically are they doing for you in regards to SEO? (Monthly deliverable wise)

If an SEO company offers to build you a website….

• Who owns the URL (domain name) for your website?
• Who owns the hosting for your website?

In the event that you ever cancel AND the SEO company owns the URL and hosting, what happens to the website?

• Does it stay live?
• Do they take it offline?
• Do they transfer the ownership of the URL and Hosting to you?
• Where is your URL and hosting set up? (GoDaddy, Host Gator, etc.?)

Pre-Post Sale Questions

• Do you/will we have Google Analytics set up?
  • If so, who owns the Google Analytics Property?
  • Do you have access?
  • Can they make you the owner and not just an administrator right now?
• Do you/will we have Google Webmaster tools set up?
  • If so, who owns that?
  • Do you have access?
  • Can they make you the owner and not just an administrator right now?
• Do you/will we have a Google My Business page?
  • Do you have access?
  • Can they make you the owner and not just an administrator right now?

I know it seems like a pretty long list of questions to ask but these are questions you absolutely should be asking to seo companies to protect your business from falling into the wrong hands!