There are more than 200,000 dentists in the United States. So as a dental practice trying to grow your practice, it’s a great idea to invest in digital marketing. And search engine optimization (SEO) is the perfect place to start.
But as you’re looking for an SEO expert to help you take your business to the next level, it’s important that you hire the right partner. How can you make sure you are?
One way is to ask the right questions. So as you hire SEO help, be sure to go through these 6 must-ask questions.
1. Can We See Your Previous Work?
Anyone can offer big promises. But as you’re looking for an SEO expert, go a step further. Ask to see examples of their previous work before signing a contract.
Reputable agencies will have this information readily available. Of course, because of confidentiality agreements, they won’t be able to share every last detail, but this will help you get an idea of their strategies, tactics, and results.
Often, this is available on their website under a portfolio section. If you don’t see this, go ahead and ask them. It also may be located under a case study section.
When you’re able to see their past work, it will give you a better idea if they’re the right fit for you.
2. How Are You with Data?
In the world of SEO, data is king. So no matter the company you work with, they should be proficient and experienced in dealing with SEO data and numbers.
If they’re not, it will be hard to see results. And you won’t be able to know if your investment was worth the cost.
Here are some data points you should ask them about. They should be familiar with:
- Average search ranking
- Click-through rates
- The most common user journeys through your site
- Number of leads and sales from your site
- Average conversion rates
Look for a company like 814 Interactive that has years of SEO experience.
3. Who Will Actually Work on Our Account?
As you meet with potential SEO partners, it’s normal to meet with executives and management. They’ll be able to give you an overview and a birdseye look at the process as a whole.
But once you’ve signed a contract, who will actually do the day to day work on your account? This is an important question to ask.
Does your account manager have experience in your industry? Are you focusing on content marketing? If so, do they know what they’re doing in this field?
What about the rest of the team? You’ll want to ask about their experience as well since these will be the people actually fulfilling your requests.
4. What SEO Strategies Do You Use?
The world of SEO is constantly changing and there are lots of SEO strategies out there. As you’re vetting potential partners, ask about this too.
These tactics could include any of the following:
- Decide which keywords you want to rank for on each page
- Optimizing local pages to rank
- Creating a blog and regularly publishing relevant content pieces
- Designing and publishing infographics to share on social media as a way to drive traffic
- Updating titles, meta descriptions, and H1s on your pages
- Reaching out to other websites to generate backlinks to your site
There are many more possibilities out there. As you hire SEO help, ask about their strategies before making an agreement.
5. Can We Trust You?
This is another important part of hiring an SEO expert. You want them to be trustworthy.
Start by doing your own research on the company. Check out their reviews on sites like Google and Facebook.
Reach out to your network and see if anyone you know has worked with them in the past. These recommendations from trusted colleagues can be invaluable.
You should also ask the company directly about their philosophies and how they do their work. Do they value ethical marketing practices? How will they maintain transparency with you as you work?
6. What Will Our Working Relationship Look Like?
Last but not least, ask them about what your working relationship will look like. These could include the following questions:
- Who will be your main point of contact?
- How will you know how your SEO campaigns are doing?
- When can you expect reporting and how often will you receive this information?
- How should you reach out when you have questions?
Also consider how your personalities mesh. Even though you aren’t hiring employees to be in-house, you’ll be working with them very closely. The better you get along, the better the experience will be.
Do they listen to your requests? Do they respond quickly to your messages?
These types of qualities will make a big difference in your working relationship over time.
Hire SEO Help: Final Thoughts
Now that you’ve read all about hiring SEO assistance, what’s next for you? You should start by thinking about your goals.
Do you want to improve your rankings? Do you want to grow your blog? Are you interested in generating more calls to your sales floor?
Once you know this, you’ll be able to make the right choice when it comes to your SEO partnership.
Also don’t be afraid to take your time when it comes to this. It’s an important decision that you should take seriously.
Ready to hire SEO help? Contact our team of professionals today. We’re ready to take your business to the next level.
