TwentySix2 Marketing Blog

“Your website will be banned and you will not be able to be found on Google not even with your company name […] if you want to be saved PAY ME !!!!”

The above is an actual quote pulled from an email threatening a company that if they did not pay up for unwanted SEO (search engine optimization) services, they would be banned from Google. The man who sent the email, “Dennis,” originally called the company and spoke with a woman about his SEO consulting firm. He then formulated lies about sneaky tactics her SEO firm was using to promote her website.

What “Dennis” was really doing was using scare tactics to steal a client from a legitimate, white hat SEO firm. Luckily the woman on the other end of the phone listened well and caught some red flags. She called her current SEO firm and asked them if what she heard was correct, that Dennis could actually get her banned from Google, the answer of course was no. But Dennis didn’t let up and sent a barrage of emails to the woman demanding she give him money to save her company’s rank in Google, even though she was not a client of his.

Unfortunately this seems to be the route a few companies take when desperate for business, but with SEO, tactics like these only aid in polluting the industry more. Currently SEO firms are under a lot of pressure from various sources to prove that they are legitimate companies whose mission is to help their clients, not clean out their pockets. Most firms are indeed trustworthy but when a company wants to outsource their internet marketing, how can they be sure of who to trust?

Karl Ribas, a renowned search engine marketer, outlined some really great tips in an article posted on Stuntdubl’s blog entitled “How to hire an SEO consultant.”

I suggest reading the article, but in case you’re short of time I will highlight and paraphrase Karl’s main points:

Check out the Company’s references
Find out current and past clients are of the firm. Ask questions pertaining to how well the firm treated them as clients, their work ethic, any successes they had, strategies they used or any other question you can think of to gain further insight into the company. If no one will vouch for them, it’s probably not a good sign.

Use search engines to find out more information
When doing a search for SEO firm using their name or URL, it opens up an opportunity to dig through press releases, company news and comments from outside sources that the SEO firm may or may not provide you with. Performing a search like this will also reveal how others perceive the same firm, either in a negative or positive light.

Use their keywords to do a search
If the firm you are looking at working with cannot even rank for their keywords, that may not bode so well for potential clients either.

Ribas also notes:
“It is important to understand that not all great SEO’s are going to rank high for terms such as Search Engine Optimization or SEO Consultant simply because there are too many SEO companies and only 10 first-page positions.”

However, for the terms they do rank for, how well do they rank? Do they have PPC campaigns set up? If they make the food, they should eat it too.

Speak various team members and company employees
We recently had a client request to speak with the team responsible for their PPC account, just to get an idea of who they would be working with, but what a great idea it was. You will want to get to know the people handling campaigns to gain insight into their role within the company. Those same people might also be able to answer questions of a different nature than the sales team.

Who are their partners
Look not only at who the company partners with (for instance some may outsource things like web design or creative, etc) but organizations they belong to that create credibility. SEMPO, AMA, PRSA and even a membership with the local Chamber of Commerce can tell you a lot about who you may potentially work with. Not to say that firms without these affiliations are not good, but it just provides an extra level of trust.

With these four tips, choosing a legitimate SEO firm should be easy. Don’t be afraid to ask questions, remember these are the people you are relying on to help you, not hurt you. So, co some digging and find the SEO firm that’s best for your company.