How to Choose a top SEO - Search Engine Optimization Company
Choosing a top SEO company
It is quite difficult to select a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Vendor, especially in
a large city like New york.
One of the main reasons is because each vendor has different service offering and
quite often it’s like comparing apples with oranges.
This SEO article will offer you tips on some crucial aspects of Search Engine
Optimization and helps understand how you can compare services of different
search engine optimization companies.
After reading this SEO article you can ask the right questions to SEO search engine
optimization companiesand their answers will help you select a vendor who
matches your needs.
The following topics will be covered:
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How to shortlist SEO companies.
-
10 tips on comparing SEO search engine optimization companies.
How to shortlist SEO companies.
Use Google, Yahoo, MSN to search for SEO companies using targeted local keywords like
Web Solutions in New York, Search Engine Optimization in New York, New York SEO Companies,
New York SEO services, New York Search Engine Optimization Services, New York Web Solutions,
etc. Do not restrict your self to just organic rankings, but
look at paid listings also.
There is a popular misconception that all good SEO -search engine optimization
companies will rank on first page of Google. Many SEO companies get
credit links from the bottom of their client website
which can get them on first page of Google. But
they might not be able to use the same strategy for
your website. So it’s not necessarily true that only
companies ranking naturally on Google’s first page
are good. It might take you some time getting used
to this concept, but once you consider this, it will
open up your mind to lot of potentially good
search engine optimization companies.
You should ideally shortlist 3 to 5 search engine optimization companies
(by looking at the information available on their website). However if you have
more time, you can expand this list to cover 10 search engine optimization companies.
Make sure to have atleast one local company in the shortlist. Although we at Eagle
SEO New York believe that geographical boundaries are not a limitation to successful SEO,
we also strongly believe that all things being equal, a local company should always be selected.
Section II: 10 Tips to compare a SEO Vendor
Once you have short listed these companies, start using the tips given below to
finalize a vendor.
Tip 1:- Check if the vendor provides Web 2.0 and/or Social Media
Optimization?
There is a lot of hype surrounding Web 2.0
and Social Media Optimization. Some of it is
true while remaining is…. well Hype!
However, Blogs, RSS Feeds, Social book
marking have now become an important part
of overall SEO strategy. Why? Google rolled
out Universal search in May 2007. This has
drastically changed Google’s search results
interface as it now includes results from more
information sources like News, Videos, Google
Maps.
It might be easier to create a video
about your products/ service and rank this video in Google rather than rank
your web page. In short, just ask your SEO vendor what Web 2.0 and Social
media optimization techniques they use and whether you will get all of these
services.
Tip 2:- Does the service cover Press Release Distribution?
Online Press Release distribution is a good way to generate
links. Also companies like PR Web have a syndication network
and their press releases are picked up by other websites
through RSS feeds. Press releases are a great way to get
exposure in Google and Yahoo news. They are also effective
in countering negative publicity about your company. Hence,
it’s important to ask your SEO vendor whether they provide
press release distribution.
Tip 3:- Ask if your website will be optimized for Local search?
Local search includes not only submission to important
local directories like Google Maps or Yahoo Local but
also other smaller ones like Citysearch, Ask City and
Local.com. You also need to have a listing in Online
Yellow page directories. Having presence in these
local search engines and Yellow pages websites will
get you local traffic and can also get you wider
exposure because of Google Universal search interface.
Tip 4:- Does the service include link building?
Many SEO search engine optimization companies do not include link building as part of
their service offering and offer it as an add-on service.
While this is fine, what is wrong on their part is not to
inform this to you as a client. So while a SEO vendor
might charge you $2000 for SEO, link buying may cost you
an additional $1500. This will significantly increase your
budget. So ask your SEO vendor whether the service
includes link building or not. If not, how much extra
would you need to spend on link building.
Tip 5:- Request a few case studies and references
There are some genuine reasons (for SEO search engine optimization companies) not
to display Case Studies on their website. But there is
really no excuse for not giving out case studies of actual results for other
companies when requested. It is very important that you ask for few
client case studies and references. Either call or email
these references and make sure there are not any
discrepancies. Ask those references how was their
overall experience working with the SEO vendor.
Tip 6:- Confirm who will make changes to your website? You or the SEO
vendor?
This is a debatable area. Many SEO search engine optimization companies come in as consultants and give you
a report of what changes need to be done on your website. Ask them who will
implement the changes on your website. If the changes are simple in nature
(like working on html pages) then some SEO companies will include this work
within the quoted SEO price. On the other hand if the changes are extensive
and require either programming or database changes, most SEO companies
might either work with your existing development company or give you a quote
for implementing the changes. In either case, make sure whether the SEO
company will make changes to the site. If not, then how much extra will they
charge?
Tip 7:- Request few sample client reports and ask them what is their
reporting frequency?
It’s generally a good practice
to ask what types of reports
you can expect and what would
be the frequency of these
reports. If you are still not
sure, ask the vendor to show
you some sample reports (to
get an idea of what to expect).
Many SEO search engine optimization companies remove
client name and other sensitive
data and show you examples of
reports.
Tip 8:- Check how much time (or man hours) they will spend on your
project?
Asking how much time they would spend on your
project will give you a quick estimate of what their
hourly rates are. This will help you compare hourly
rates with other search engine optimization companies and also give you a
benchmark for any additional work.
Tip 9:- Clarify what kind of support you will get.
It’s very rare in SEO industry to
get face to face meetings with
your SEO (Unless the SEO vendor is
local or your SEO budget is in
hundreds of thousands of dollars).
However, ask your vendor what
kind of support you will get.
Email, Chat and telephone calls
are the three major forms of
support. Although not all clients might get chat or telephone support. For email
support, ask them what is the average response time to a customer question. It
should not be more than 24 hours.
Tip 10:- Negotiating Payment Terms / Frequency and
Discounts?
Do not pay full payment upfront. Payment should be made in
at least two installments. Check out the frequency of
payment. Also check if they offer monthly installments.
Discounts are sometimes possible if you are committing for a
longer time or have multiple projects. In either case, ask
them for a discount. If you don’t ask they will not tell.
Section III: Conclusion
We hope this helps you in comparing a good SEO vendor. If you have any comments
or feedback about this white paper, do write to us on seo @ E-agle.com
About Eagle SEO New York Inc
Eagle SEO New York Inc is a New York based Search Marketing Agency which specializes in
Search Engine Optimization . . Eagle SEO New York has been featured in PC Magazine as well as Laptop magazine.
With 150 people, Eagle SEO New York is one of the largest Search Marketing Companies in
the world with over 10 years experience in Search Engine Optimization, Pay Per
Click and Affiliate Marketing Services. Eagle SEO New York has executed more than 3000
successful Search Marketing projects, has over 500 clients in US.
Our teams in US and Israel work for Clients of all sizes: from small, innovative
startups to public companies. Eagle SEO New York also works with small and large agencies
and offers them Private Label Search Marketing Services.
