Most businesses hire an SEO agency on a good sales call and find out what they bought six months later. These are the twelve questions that show you the difference up front, with what a good answer and a bad answer sound like. Then we answer all twelve ourselves, because it would be a bit rich not to.
Ask an SEO agency how it defines success, how it builds links, what it will report, and who you will actually deal with. Good agencies answer in plain English with specifics about your business. Poor ones answer with guarantees, jargon and a fixed list of monthly deliverables.
If you only have time for three, ask numbers 3,8 and 10. They are the hardest to bluff.
What is your approach to SEO, and how does it produce results?
You are checking whether there is a method at all. An agency with a real process can describe it in two minutes without a slide deck: how they find what is holding a site back, what they fix first, and how they decide what comes next.
A good answer sounds like
A clear order of work. Usually technical problems first, then the pages that earn money, then content and authority. They talk about enquiries and sales, and they can explain why they would not start with blog posts.
Be wary if you hear
Buzzwords with no sequence. "Holistic", "360", "proprietary algorithm". Or a fixed list of monthly deliverables, such as four blogs and ten links, that is identical for every client whatever the site needs.
How LoudCrowd answers it
We start with what is already nearly working: pages ranking on page two for terms that lead to enquiries. Moving those is faster and cheaper than publishing new content, so that is where month one goes. New pages come after, and only where the search results show a gap.
02
How will you adapt that to our business and our sector?
A plumber in Doncaster and an online shop selling nationwide need different campaigns. This question shows whether the agency has looked at your site and your competitors before the call, or is about to sell you the same package as everyone else.
A good answer sounds like
They name your actual competitors in the search results, which are often not who you think they are. They have a view on which of your services is worth ranking for, and they ask about margins, not just keywords.
Be wary if you hear
"We have worked with lots of businesses like yours" with no specifics. No questions about which jobs or products make you money. A proposal that arrives without anyone having opened your website.
How LoudCrowd answers it
Every proposal starts from your Search Console data and the live search results for your terms, and we ask which service lines carry the margin. Our Danum Plumbing & Heating campaign was built around one service, boiler installations, because that was the job worth winning.
03
What do you count as success?
This is the most revealing question on the list. Rankings and traffic are easy to move and easy to report. Enquiries, calls and sales are what you are paying for. You want to know which one the agency will hold itself to.
A good answer sounds like
Leads, calls, bookings or revenue, tracked properly, with rankings and traffic reported as early indicators along the way. They ask how you currently record where enquiries come from.
Be wary if you hear
Success defined only as "page one" or "more traffic". Ranking reports full of terms nobody searches for. No interest in whether your phone rings.
How LoudCrowd answers it
Enquiries first. We set up call, form and booking tracking before the campaign starts so there is a baseline, and report rankings and clicks as the leading indicators they are. Our UUWD case study reports net sales, not just traffic, for that reason.
04
How long until we see results?
There is an honest answer to this and a sales answer. The honest one has a range in it and depends on your starting point. Anyone who promises a date is guessing or lying.
A good answer sounds like
Typically early movement in one to three months where a site already has rankings to improve, and four to twelve months for competitive terms or a new site. They explain what would make it faster or slower for you specifically.
Be wary if you hear
Guaranteed page-one rankings, or a guaranteed timescale. Google itself warns against agencies that guarantee rankings. Equally, "SEO takes at least a year" used as an excuse to avoid being measured.
How LoudCrowd answers it
It depends on where you start, and we will tell you which case you are after looking at your data. A site with page-two rankings can see movement in weeks. A new domain in a competitive sector should plan for six months or more before organic search is a dependable source of leads.
05
How do you handle mobile?
Google indexes the mobile version of your site, and for most local businesses the majority of visitors are on a phone. A site that looks fine on a desktop monitor and is awkward on a phone is losing enquiries every day.
A good answer sounds like
They test on real phones, check speed and Core Web Vitals on mobile, and look at whether the phone number, forms and booking buttons are usable with a thumb.
Be wary if you hear
"The site is responsive" as the whole answer. Responsive only means it fits the screen. It says nothing about speed or whether anyone can actually complete an enquiry on it.
How LoudCrowd answers it
Every page we build or change is checked at phone width before it goes live, including tap-to-call and forms. Where the platform is the problem we say so: see technical SEO for what we test.
06
How should SEO fit with the rest of our marketing?
SEO rarely works best alone. Paid search can cover the gap while organic rankings build, and the search terms that convert in ads tell you which ones are worth ranking for. An agency that treats SEO as a sealed box is leaving money on the table.
A good answer sounds like
They ask what else you are running, such as ads, social, email and offline. They explain how the channels share data, and they are honest when another channel would get you leads sooner.
Be wary if you hear
SEO presented as the answer to everything, or no curiosity about your other marketing. Also be wary of the reverse: being pushed onto every service the agency sells.
How LoudCrowd answers it
If you need leads this month, we will tell you that paid search is the faster route and SEO is the cheaper one over time, and that the two work best together. We will also tell you when your ad budget is too small to be worth managing.
07
How do you do keyword research?
Bad keyword research is how businesses end up ranking first for terms that never produce a customer. The method matters more than the tool.
A good answer sounds like
They start with what your customers actually ask for, check the live search results to see what Google thinks each term means, and sort terms by buying intent as well as volume. They look at your own Search Console data first.
Be wary if you hear
A spreadsheet of high-volume terms exported from a tool, with no mention of intent. Targets chosen because they are big numbers, not because those searchers buy.
How LoudCrowd answers it
Search Console first, because it shows what Google already associates you with. Then the live results for each term to check the intent, then competitor gaps. We group terms by the page that should rank for them, so nothing on your site competes with itself.
08
How do you build links and authority?
This is where the real risk in SEO sits. Links from other sites still matter, and buying them in bulk is still the quickest way to a Google penalty. You need to know exactly what will be done in your name.
A good answer sounds like
Links earned through things worth linking to: digital PR, data, local press, suppliers, trade bodies and genuine partnerships. They will show you examples and tell you where every link came from.
Be wary if you hear
A fixed number of links a month. Reluctance to say where links come from. Private blog networks, paid guest post packages or anything described as "high DA links" sold by the dozen.
How LoudCrowd answers it
No link quotas. We use digital PR, local and trade citations, and relationships you already have, and you see every link and where it came from. If a past agency left you with a risky profile, we will show you that too.
09
What tools do you use?
Tools do not do SEO, but the answer shows whether the agency works from data or from opinion, and whether you will be able to see that data yourself.
A good answer sounds like
Google Search Console and Google Analytics as the foundation, since they are the only first-party data there is, plus a crawler and a content or rank tool. They give you access to your own accounts.
Be wary if you hear
Only a "proprietary platform" you cannot log in to. Reports built on tool estimates when real Search Console data is available. Any setup where the agency, not you, owns your Analytics or Search Console.
How LoudCrowd answers it
Google Search Console and GA4 for the truth, NeuronWriter and PageOptimizer Pro for on-page work against the live results, and a crawler for technical audits. Your accounts stay in your name. If we part company you keep everything.
10
How do you report, and what will it look like?
You should be able to tell from a report what was done, what changed, and what happens next. Ask to see a real example with the client name removed before you sign.
A good answer sounds like
A short plain-English summary, the numbers that matter to your business, the work completed, and the plan for next month. A named person you can ring with questions.
Be wary if you hear
Forty pages of automated charts with no commentary. Reports that only show metrics that went up. Nobody available to explain it.
How LoudCrowd answers it
A monthly report written by the consultant who did the work: what we did, what moved, what did not, and what we are doing next. You get a named consultant with a direct line, not an account manager passing messages along.
11
How do you keep up with Google updates and AI search?
Google ships several major updates a year, and AI answers from Google, ChatGPT and others now sit above the traditional results for many searches. An agency still working from a 2019 playbook will cost you rankings.
A good answer sounds like
They can name recent updates and what changed. They have a view on AI Overviews and how to be the source an AI answer cites. They test things on their own sites before trying them on yours.
Be wary if you hear
"We follow Google best practice" and nothing more. No opinion on AI search. Or the opposite: panic and a new tactic every month.
Good SEO needs input from the business: access, approvals and knowledge of your customers that only you have. An agency that needs nothing from you is going to produce generic work.
A good answer sounds like
A specific list: access to Search Console, Analytics and the website, a contact who can approve changes, and an hour or so of your time at the start to learn how the business really works.
Be wary if you hear
"Nothing, leave it all with us." Or, at the other extreme, an agency that needs you to write all the content and make all the changes yourself.
How LoudCrowd answers it
Access to your website, Search Console and Analytics, one person who can approve changes, and a proper conversation at the start about which work makes you money. After that, about an hour a month to go through the report.
Take it to the meeting
The one-page checklist
Ask every agency the same twelve questions and score each answer out of three. The difference between them is usually obvious by question four.
#
Question
Vague (1)
OK (2)
Specific (3)
1
What is your approach to SEO, and how does it produce results?
☐
☐
☐
2
How will you adapt that to our business and our sector?
☐
☐
☐
3
What do you count as success?
☐
☐
☐
4
How long until we see results?
☐
☐
☐
5
How do you handle mobile?
☐
☐
☐
6
How should SEO fit with the rest of our marketing?
☐
☐
☐
7
How do you do keyword research?
☐
☐
☐
8
How do you build links and authority?
☐
☐
☐
9
What tools do you use?
☐
☐
☐
10
How do you report, and what will it look like?
☐
☐
☐
11
How do you keep up with Google updates and AI search?
☐
☐
☐
12
What do you need from us?
☐
☐
☐
FAQ
Hiring an SEO agency: common questions
How much should I expect to pay an SEO agency in the UK?
Most UK small business SEO retainers fall between about £500 and £2,000 a month, depending on how competitive the sector is and how many pages need work. Be cautious below roughly £300 a month, because there is not enough time in that budget to do meaningful work. LoudCrowd publishes its prices in full: Local SEO is £497 a month, National £997 and E-Commerce £1,497, all plus VAT.
Should an SEO agency guarantee rankings?
No. Nobody outside Google controls the results, and Google's own guidance warns businesses to be wary of any company that guarantees rankings. A good agency will guarantee the work it will do and how it will report, and will be honest about the range of likely outcomes. Treat a rankings guarantee as a reason to walk away.
Should I sign a 12-month SEO contract?
Be careful with long tie-ins. SEO does take months to show its full effect, so a short initial commitment is reasonable, but a 12-month contract with no break clause mainly protects the agency. Ask what the notice period is, and make sure you own your website, content, Analytics and Search Console accounts whatever happens.
What are the red flags when choosing an SEO agency?
Guaranteed rankings, secret methods, a fixed number of links every month, reports you cannot understand, and no access to your own data. Also be wary of any agency that cannot show you named clients with real figures. One honest case study with numbers is worth more than a wall of logos.
Is a local SEO agency better than a national one?
Location matters less than fit. A local agency will know your area and can meet you in person, which helps for local SEO and Google Business Profile work. What matters more is whether they have results in your sector, whether you deal with the person doing the work, and whether they will be straight with you.
Keep reading
Put us through the twelve questions
Everything we claimed above is published somewhere on this site. Check it.
Tell us what you are trying to rank for and we will look at the site and the search results before we reply. You get a straight answer, including if SEO is not the right spend for you yet.
Post and meetings by appointmentCourtwood House, Silver Street, Sheffield S1 2DD
Cookies
We use cookies to measure how the site is used and, if you allow it, to show you our advertising elsewhere. Nothing non-essential loads until you choose, and you can change your mind any time via "Cookie settings" in the footer.Read the privacy policy.
