5 Must-Ask Questions for Choosing the Best SEO Partner

What experience do you have in SEO and digital marketing strategies?

Before engaging the services of any SEO professional, it is important to get an idea of their background in the field. Asking about their training and experience in the SEO and digital marketing space can help you assess whether or not the consultant is knowledgeable and reliable. As with most things, it’s often best to find an SEO partner that has a combination of both experience and training.

Experienced SEO professionals can provide a wealth of knowledge and insight into what works and what doesn't. They can utilize their past experiences to help create successful campaigns and strategies.

However, someone with perhaps less experience but more recent training can also be beneficial. New professionals can bring fresh ideas and perspectives that can be used to enhance the existing strategies. They may also have a better understanding of current trends in the industry, which can help to shape future campaigns and strategies.

How will you measure success and report back to me on progress?

Tracking and reporting is a fundamental part of SEO. It’s important that your prospective SEO consultant can explain—clearly and in detail—how they’ll track, measure, and report the results of your SEO efforts.

Any SEO professional should measure success based on a variety of metrics, such as organic traffic, keyword rankings, and conversions. They should be able to provide you with detailed reports on visibility trends for your website and keep track of changes over time. Your SEO partner should also provide insights into keyword optimization efforts and provide detailed information on backlinks from other websites.



Don’t forget to ask about the cadence of these updates. Will you receive reports weekly? Monthly? Quarterly? And how frequently will your SEO partner assess the results and recommend changes?

Are you skilled in specialized search engine optimization, such as local SEO?

Naturally, a local business has far different SEO needs than those of other types of businesses. When speaking with a prospective SEO partner, ask about their experience and skills specific to local SEO. Don’t be afraid to ask for examples or case studies detailing their past successes with local SEO campaigns.

You should also inquire about their strategy for optimizing your local search presence. This may include tactics such as optimizing your Google Business Profile, building local citations, and targeting hyper-local keywords.



Remember, an SEO professional that’s highly successful with national or international businesses may not be the right fit for a local business.

Are you proficient in all three aspects of SEO—on-page, off-page, and technical?

SEO is comprised of three main components: on-page SEO, off-page SEO, and technical SEO.

• On-Page SEO refers to the optimization of individual web pages to rank higher in search results and attract more organic traffic.
• Off-Page SEO revolves around building external signals and relationships that can impact website rankings in search engine results pages, such as link building.
• Technical SEO focuses on optimizing the technical aspects of a website to make it more search-engine friendly.

A successful SEO professional should be skilled in these three components and have a very clear understanding how each piece works together. Without proficiency in all three areas, an SEO partner could actually cause harm to your website's rankings and overall visibility in organic search. 

How quickly can I expect to see results from your services?

Don’t shy away from asking a prospective SEO partner about timing. How long does their process take? How long will it be before you start seeing results?

Remember, SEO is a marathon, not a sprint. Beware of any SEO professional who promises very rapid results or guarantees page one ranking in X days.

SEO requires ongoing maintenance and adjustment, and patience is part of the process. While no SEO professional should promise a very specific result in a very specific timeframe, a dependable consultant will be able to provide a general timeline for when results can reasonably be expected.

Finding the Best SEO Partner

The truth is, finding the right SEO consultant for your local business isn't always easy. Taking the time to ask the right questions, analyze their expertise and background, and speaking with a variety of professionals can go a long way in making sure that you're selecting the best possible advisor for your business's needs.



Experienced SEO professionals can drive search engine performance while providing valuable insight into content strategy, competitor analysis, and other facets of digital marketing. With a reliable partner and well-crafted strategy, you can take your local business to the next level.