Choosing The Best SEO Services – What Should You Ask About?
TL;DR SEO offers are hard to compare: one lists tasks in detail, another gives a short list, a third only a price. The questions below help you compare them and see how each agency communicates. Even an indirect answer tells you a lot. If you’re still deciding whether you need an agency at all, start […]
TL;DR
- Ask about results and timelines, link building, account ownership, reporting, the team, pricing, contract terms and AI search.
- Good answers are specific and transparent: how they work, which sources they use, what you’ll get each month.
- Red flags: guaranteed rankings, “secret” link sources, links from the agency’s own sites, the agency owning your accounts, no references.
- How an agency answers tells you how it will communicate during the cooperation.
- A good SEO proposal is based on a first look at your site and competitors, lists specific activities with examples, and separates the agency’s fee from external costs.
SEO offers are hard to compare: one lists tasks in detail, another gives a short list, a third only a price. The questions below help you compare them and see how each agency communicates. Even an indirect answer tells you a lot. If you’re still deciding whether you need an agency at all, start with SEO agency vs in-house.
Make your brand visible – from Google to AI chatbots.
Which questions should you ask, and what are the red flags?
| Question | Good answer | Red flag |
|---|---|---|
| When can we expect results? | A range based on your site, competition and resources; first months for audit and fixes | Guaranteed positions or traffic before any audit |
| How do you build links? | Named types of sources, why they fit your goals, examples | “Our secret”; packages of hundreds of links |
| Will links stay after the contract ends? | Yes; no links from sites the agency controls | Vague answer; links from the agency’s own network |
| Who owns the accounts and content? | You own Search Console, GA4, Tag Manager and all content | Accounts set up and owned by the agency |
| Which KPIs will you report on? | Business goals: organic traffic, leads, revenue, visibility, AI mentions | Only rankings or tool metrics (DR, DA) |
| How and how often do you report? | Monthly report with conclusions, regular calls | Automated reports without comment |
| Who will work on our project? | Named specialists and their roles | “A team” with no names |
| What is included in the price? | Clear scope: audits, content, links, fees vs external costs | Unclear scope; extras discovered later |
| Can you show clients and references? | Case studies (anonymised if needed), contacts to references | No examples at all |
| Do you follow Google’s guidelines? | Yes, with examples of how | Shortcuts, PBNs, “grey hat” talk |
| How do you approach AI search? | Content structure, brand mentions, monitoring AI answers | No answer, or promises of “ranking #1 in ChatGPT” |
| What are the contract terms? | Clear duration, notice period, review after 3 months | Long lock-in with no performance review |
What should you ask about results?
Results depend on the technical state of your site, content, industry, competition, previous SEO work, current visibility and how fast your team can implement changes. Before working with you, the agency doesn’t know your site, your IT processes or legal constraints, so treat any estimate as a range. Small local sites can see first effects in 1–2 months; larger sites take longer (how long SEO takes). Be wary of anyone who guarantees positions: Google says no one can (Google).
The first months usually cover the technical audit and fixes, site improvements, and the base for content and links. After that, the agency can estimate timelines much more precisely.
What should you ask about links?
Ask how the agency earns links and mentions and why those sources fit your goals. Real experts explain their approach. An agency that hides behind “know-how” probably uses low-quality sources. Links from networks of sites built for SEO, and paid links not marked rel=”sponsored”, break Google’s spam policies (Google, Google). Mentions of your brand on trusted sites also drive visibility in AI answers (Ahrefs, backlinks in AI search).
Ask what happens to links when the contract ends. If an agency places links on sites it controls, they may disappear: in a backlink tool you’d see a sudden jump in lost links right after the contract ends (changing agencies safely).
What should you ask about accounts, reporting and the team?
- Ownership: your company should own Search Console, GA4, Tag Manager and every other account, and the content and reports the agency produces (Google).
- KPIs: goals tied to business results, not only rankings (metrics that matter).
- Communication: report frequency, regular calls, and response time. Agencies confident in their service can commit to a response time in the contract, for example within one working day (what working with an agency looks like).
- Team: who exactly will work on your project, and what experience they have in your industry and markets.
Let your customers find you, wherever they look.
What should a good SEO proposal include?
Companies usually ask several agencies for an offer at once. Comparing them is hard: each has a different format, scope and strategy. A good proposal is clear even if you’re not technical, and it’s written for your site, not copied from a template. It should include:
| Element | What a good proposal shows | Red flag |
|---|---|---|
| Initial technical analysis | Key findings on indexing, redirects and canonicals, structure and internal links, speed, metadata; what needs IT work | No findings about your site at all |
| Competitor analysis | Who you compete with in search, their visibility, key keyword groups and your current positions | Generic market talk |
| Proposed activities | Technical support, content, links and mentions, analytics, reporting, AI search, tied to your goals | Elements you said you don’t need (a template) |
| Examples | Sample links, published articles, case studies | No examples and no explanation why |
| Quality criteria | How link sources and content are chosen and checked | Only quantities (“20 links/month”) |
| Costs | Agency fee separated from external costs (sponsored articles, translations, tools) | One total with no breakdown |
| Communication | Reporting, calls, response time | “24/7 support” with no details |
An initial technical analysis
Before proposing anything, a professional agency looks at your site: whether it can be crawled and indexed, redirects and canonical tags, structure and internal linking, keyword optimisation, page speed and metadata. The proposal should summarise what it found, what needs fixing first and where your IT team will be needed. The full technical SEO audit comes after you start working together.
A competitor analysis
The proposal should show how your site performs in organic results compared to the sites you actually compete with: their visibility over time, the keyword groups that matter for your business, and where you rank for them now. That sets the starting point, shows untapped potential and points to the right strategy. A look at competitors’ strengths also helps estimate how long it will take to catch up.
Specific activities, not buzzwords
Most proposals include content, links and mentions, technical support, analytics and reporting, and in 2026 also visibility in AI search. Check that each is described concretely and tied to the findings above. Be careful with very ambitious ideas, such as ten influencer collaborations or several e-books a month: they take a lot of time and money on both sides. And if an offer includes elements you said you don’t need, it wasn’t written for you.
How quality is ensured
One link isn’t worth the same as another. Ask how the agency chooses link sources: topical relevance, real traffic and audience, editorial context. Tool metrics like Domain Rating or Domain Authority can help compare sites, but they aren’t Google’s signals. An offer with 10 well-chosen links is often worth more than one with 20. Paid placements should be marked rel=”sponsored” (Google), and link networks break Google’s spam policies (Google).
For content, a good proposal describes what the articles will cover, who they’re for, what they should achieve, which questions and keywords they target and who will write them. Example topics are a good sign. Length should follow the topic, not a character count (Google).
Costs you can compare
Price often decides, especially for companies new to SEO. Lower prices usually mean less or lower-quality work, so compare scope and quality first. Offers that break the total into areas and separate external costs (sponsored articles, translations, tools) are easier to trust and to compare: you see what the agency’s own work costs.
Where can you check an agency’s reputation?
Ask for references and talk to them. Satisfied clients are usually happy to recommend an agency. Also check reviews on Google and Clutch, the agency’s specialists on LinkedIn, and discussions in SEO communities such as Reddit. If an agency won’t name clients because of NDAs, ask for anonymised case studies with numbers.
FAQ
What is the biggest red flag when choosing an SEO agency?
A guarantee of specific positions, especially combined with secret methods or very cheap link packages.
How long should an SEO contract be?
Often 12 months with a one-month notice period, but a review after the first three months matters more than the length.
Should the agency own my Google accounts?
No. Your company should be the owner; the agency gets user access.
How do I compare SEO offers with different formats?
Ask each agency the same questions and compare the answers in one table: scope, KPIs, links, reporting, team, price and contract terms.
How much does SEO cost?
It depends on the site, market, competition and scope. Compare the agency’s fee and external costs separately, and compare what’s included, not just the total.
Why do SEO proposals differ so much?
Agencies propose different strategies and scopes. A proposal based on an analysis of your site and competitors is more reliable than a generic package.
Sources
- Google Search Central: Do you need an SEO?
- Google Search Essentials
- Google Search Central: Spam policies – link spam and Qualify outbound links
- Search Console Help: Owners, users and permissions
- Ahrefs: AI brand visibility correlations
About the author: This article was prepared by the Insightland SEO and GEO team. Insightland is a Wrocław-based agency, part of the Hexe Capital Tech Hub, that connects business, tech and data: SEO and GEO, performance marketing, UX and analytics, and SEO and AI training. Contact us.
