How to Choose a Local Search Expert for Your SEO

Your business goals are extremely important and that’s why I wrote this blog post: How to Choose a Local Search Expert for Your SEO. Searching for a local SEO Expert in Colorado or other states can be challenging. Use these extremely valuable tips to hire the right SEO Expert and Local Search Expert to help you.Searching for a Local SEO Expert can be challenging. Use my tips to help you. Read my blog post: How to Choose a Local Search Expert for Your SEO.

First: do the obvious: go to Google and type in this keyword phrase but put your city name first:

Greeley SEO Expert

Take note of who shows up in the top search results. But PLEASE: don’t stop there. Read the rest of my tips…

How to Choose a Local Search Expert for Your SEO

Next: click on each search result and read a few pages of the websites to make sure the SEO Expert or SEO Agency is CREDIBLE and TRUSTWORTHY. The content should be college-level reading and not sound repetitious. Throughout the website, there should be enough information that allows you to feel comfortable about your decision.

Robots or Humans?

Do the sentences make sense or do they sound like a robot talking? You’d be surprised at how many people and companies write content that is solely for the purpose of fooling Google’s algorithms into thinking they are legitimate pages of valuable content. That’s why Google periodically runs filters, in addition to its algorithms, that rid their data of what it deems as spammy and/or not very valuable content. (Update: As of mid-January, 2016: Google permanently added the Panda filter into its algorithms. This means the anti-spam filter, nicknamed “Panda,” is now “on” all the time.)

Check if there’s a blog with helpful and easy-to-understand articles about SEO and other online marketing and visibility tips – that’s a really good sign this person is knowledgeable. No blog? What?!

Check to see if the SEO Expert has “Social Proof”: testimonials, reviews and/or examples of clients they have successfully placed in TOP SEARCH RESULTS in Google and Bing. Some SEO professionals are protective of their clients or have client confidentiality agreements but should at least state in their websites that they can supply references and actual live search results when you call or meet with them.

There should be some proof that the SEO Expert has gotten results for their clients – especially in Local Search. The SEO Expert or SEO Agency should be dominating its local search (city names and the state you live in). If she or he can do this, then they should be able to do it for you, too, depending on how extremely popular your particular keywords are.

Check reviews

Do you read online reviews of restaurants and other places before spending $20 there? Do the same thing with an agency you’re about to invest thousands of dollars in: Google the name of the business or the SEO Expert and see how many positive search results there are. Take note of anyone who has more than one search result on page one in Google. That’s a “Badass” SEO Expert, who really knows the complexity of Search Engine Optimization and you should definitely interview that person in your final list of candidates.

Ask: Is the SEO work done in-house or is it “farmed-out” to a foreign country or even another agency in the U.S.?

It’s important to work with a local SEO Expert who has the time to pay attention to the details of YOUR project, rather than overseeing hundreds of other clients. Find out who is going to take care of you. Is that person an expert or an intern? Is the SEO Agency white-labeling someone else’s SEO work or reselling their services? Who is the professional in charge of YOUR company’s SEO? Will you get to discuss the work and results at least once a month?

After you’ve narrowed down your list to three candidates, make an appointment to interview each one (also, see how timely their response is).

During the interview, the SEO Expert should be able to explain how she or he gets results for their clients; show you actual live search results; and be able to explain their SEO work in such a way that you can understand.

Similar to an auto technician fixing your vehicle: you should be shown what’s going on with your engine (your website) and parts (code and other off-site items); be informed how the work will be done (what’s on-page optimization and what’s going to be done off-page for optimization) who will do the work. Be shown the results, after a realistic amount of time  (find out what that is, first). If someone says “we guarantee we’ll get you on page one” – be wary. No one can guarantee that. Not even a Google engineer. There are so many algorithms, filters, on-page optimization and off-page optimization, strategies and other factors that are beyond control of one person, that no one can guarantee top search results.

Now you know How to Choose a Local Search Expert for Your SEO

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What questions do YOU have as you search for your Search Engine Optimization  (SEO) Expert? Please contact us. We’d love to help you significantly increase your visibility with SEO.

Need help with increasing positive reviews about your company? I provide systems for increasing positive reviews, as well as managing your Online Reputation – which is really your reputation (no longer just “online”).

Watch this video and then please call me at 970-302-6994 or fill out this form. I’ll have my team schedule an appointment for us to discuss your project.