Hiring an SEO company is a major investment, but how to tell if your SEO company is working? In digital marketing, not all efforts show instant results, yet there are clear ways to tell if you’re getting real value.
At GODI, we’ve put together an article to help you understand how to determine if your SEO company is delivering results. With actionable tips, you’ll learn how to evaluate your current SEO efforts and make adjustments to ensure your investment is paying off. Dive in to discover how you can track and improve your SEO performance effectively.
Key Takeaways
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How to Tell If Your SEO Company Is Working? 7 Signs Your SEO Company Is Doing a Good Job
A great SEO agency should be transparent, consistent, and results-driven. Here are the top signs your SEO provider is delivering real value.
1. Sends Regular Reports
A trustworthy SEO agency provides detailed monthly reports covering rankings, traffic, conversions, and next steps. The reports reflect SEO company performance metrics and help you track progress over time. If you’re not getting insights into what they’re doing and how it’s impacting your business, that’s a problem.
Provide detailed monthly reports
2. Request Access and Info
SEO is not a one-size-fits-all service. To truly optimize your site, the agency needs access to your website, Google Analytics, Search Console, and sometimes even your CRM. They also ask questions about your business goals, products, and target audience. If they don’t do this, how can they tailor strategies for you?
3. Suggests Clear Improvements
You should expect your SEO partner to actively recommend changes, whether it’s updating title tags, improving page speed, restructuring content, or earning new backlinks. The actionable tips are signs of a good SEO agency and show how to tell if your SEO company is working proactively.
4. Explains Strategies Openly
Transparency is critical. A reliable agency will clearly explain what they’re doing and why. Whether it’s link-building tactics, keyword focus, or on-site technical fixes, you deserve to understand their approach. The openness is one of the key signs of a good SEO agency.
Explain strategies clearly and in detail
5. Rankings and Traffic Improve
While SEO takes time, you should see steady progress in organic rankings, especially for mid-to-low competition keywords. Over time, that translates into higher traffic and better leads. If your numbers are moving upward after a few months, it’s a strong indicator of effective SEO.
6. Targets Relevant Keywords
Another key performance metric is keyword relevance. The agency should be targeting search terms that align with your business intent, not just high-volume terms. Ranking for “cheap shoes” when you sell high-end boots isn’t helpful. Smart agencies target terms that matter to your audience.
Focus on and organize keywords that align with your website’s current status
7. Covers Both Content and Technical SEO
Great SEO includes both creative and technical work. The included optimizations are optimizing site speed, fixing broken links, using schema markup, and improving content quality. If an SEO provider balances both sides, it’s a major plus and reflects that they understand what to expect from an SEO agency.
Warning Signs Your SEO Company May Be Hurting Your Site
Not all SEO companies play fair. Some use outdated or risky tactics that can damage your rankings long-term. Be aware of these red flags in SEO services.
No Reports or Updates
An effective SEO strategy requires continuous monitoring of progress and tweaking of tactics. Without reporting, you can’t how to tell if your SEO company is working.
A transparent SEO company will provide detailed information about keyword performance, link building, traffic trends, and overall site health.
Warning Signs:
- Vague updates like “we’re building links” without specific results.
- No detailed information about keyword rankings or traffic changes.
Doesn’t Ask for Access
An effective SEO strategy must be deeply integrated with your website and data tools. If your SEO company has not requested access to Google Analytics, Google Search Console, or your webmaster system. They may not be taking enough steps to accurately analyze your website performance.
For example, an SEO company does not have access to your backend data, they will not be able to detect issues like page load speed or crawl errors.
The SEO company doesn’t request access to the website’s admin systems
No Clear Recommendations
When you ask an SEO company about next steps, they should be able to provide specific, actionable recommendations. If their answer is always, “We’re waiting for results,” without specific tactics or plans, that’s a red flag.
A professional SEO company will always analyze data, find problems, and make recommendations for improvement. Whether it’s optimizing page titles, improving user experience, or targeting new keyword opportunities, they’ll be proactive in their approach.
Vague About Methods
Transparency is key when choosing an SEO company. Ethical SEO companies will clearly explain their strategies, whether it’s technical SEO, content creation, or link building. If your company uses phrases like “specific techniques” without providing specifics, it’s a sign that they may be using illegal tactics. These unethical tactics, like keyword stuffing or cloaking, can lead to penalties and long-term damage to your rankings.
Warning Signs:
- Refuse to explain methods or strategies.
- Use technical jargon without any real explanation.
- Overuse of “quick fixes” that don’t follow Google’s guidelines.
Google Penalties Appear
A Google penalty, whether it’s a manual penalty or an algorithm change, can cause a sharp drop in your traffic. If your SEO company uses illegal tactics, you may see a sudden drop in traffic and a penalty in Google Search Console.
A reputable SEO company will work within Google’s guidelines and stay away from techniques that could lead to a penalty. For example, if your site’s traffic drops by 50% overnight, you need to investigate the cause, especially if Search Console reports a penalty.
Being hit by Google penalties can impact your traffic
Spammy Backlinks Increase
Link building is an important part of SEO, but it needs to be done ethically and sensibly. A sudden increase in low-quality links from unrelated websites can be very serious. Since Google values natural, quality links from trusted sources, spammy links can get your site penalized.
For example, your site may receive a lot of links from unrelated gambling or porn sites. Such spammy links can hurt your site’s reputation and rankings.
Uses Over-Optimized Anchor Text
Anchor text is a common practice in SEO, but overusing exact-match anchor text can be harmful. For example, if all of the links to your site use the same keyword, like “best SEO services,” Google may consider this to be manipulative.
A good SEO company will not only use natural anchor text but also variety to create a balanced and natural link profile. Over-optimization is a tactic commonly used in black hat SEO and can result in a penalty if caught by Google.
Irrelevant Keywords Rank
If your website starts ranking for keywords that are not relevant to your business, that’s something you should be concerned about. Proper SEO is all about attracting traffic that is relevant and interested in your product or service.
For example, if you suddenly start ranking for unrelated keywords, like a clothing store ranking for “best smartphone deals,”. They can confuse users and hurt your brand. Targeting relevant keywords that are relevant to your core products or services is something that SEO companies are definitely good at.
How to Check If Your SEO Company Is Effective
If you’re unsure about your agency’s impact, here’s how to evaluate SEO results using real data and tools.
Monitor Traffic in Analytics
Google Analytics gives you insight into how many users are coming from organic search, what pages they visit, and how long they stay. If organic traffic is growing and bounce rates are dropping, your SEO is likely working.
Regularly access and review Google Analytics metrics to stay informed
Track Rankings With SEO Tools
Use tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, or Google Search Console to monitor keyword rankings. While some fluctuation is normal, look for consistent upward trends over time.
Audit Backlink Quality
Use a backlink analysis tool to assess the quality of links pointing to your site. Are they from reputable domains? Do they come from relevant industries? This is a key metric in judging SEO efforts.
Review Content Value
Search engines reward high-quality content. Read the blog posts or landing pages your SEO company is producing – are they informative, original, and keyword-optimized? Good content equals good SEO.
Review content to ensure it provides informational value to readers
Run Technical SEO Checks
Technical issues like broken links, slow load times, or missing alt text can hurt rankings. Use tools like Screaming Frog or Google PageSpeed Insights to run audits and fix issues.
Assess Their Communication
The quality of communication reflects how seriously the SEO agency takes the partnership. Are they proactive? Do they explain changes and answer questions clearly? If not, you might need a better team.
How to Work Effectively With Your SEO Agency
Even the best agency can’t deliver miracles without collaboration. Here’s how to build a productive relationship and ensure long-term success.
Set Clear Goals and KPIs
Start by defining success. Whether it’s a 20% increase in organic leads, ranking for specific keywords, or lowering bounce rates, measurable goals help guide the strategy and track progress.
Define clear goals and KPIs to easily track progress
Schedule Regular Check-Ins
Monthly or bi-weekly meetings keep everyone aligned. Use the check-ins to discuss metrics, address challenges, and plan the next steps. They’re crucial for staying on track and holding each other accountable.
Ask for Action-Based Reports
Reports should do more than summarize data; they should include insights and recommended actions. What’s working? What needs improvement? What’s next? It will helps you see the value of their work.
Review Long-Term Strategy
SEO isn’t just about quick wins. A solid agency should have a roadmap for 6–12 months or more, including content planning, technical milestones, and link-building campaigns. Review the strategy regularly to ensure alignment.
Review long-term strategy every 6 – 12 months to ensure alignment
Align SEO With Business Updates
Keep your agency in the loop about product launches, service updates, or seasonal trends. The more they understand your business, the better they can adjust the SEO strategy to maximize visibility and relevance.
Conclusion
In summary, a leading SEO company is transparent, data-driven, and results-oriented. They provide regular reports, clearly explain their strategies, track important keywords, and improve both content and technical aspects. By monitoring SEO company performance metrics and being vigilant for Red flags in SEO services, you can confidently evaluate your provider.
If you’re still unsure how to tell if your SEO company is working, ask yourself: Are they communicating clearly? Are rankings and traffic improving? Do their efforts align with your business goals?
For businesses seeking a reliable and results-focused partner, Golden Owl Digital stands out as a top SEO company committed to driving sustainable growth. Don’t leave your online success to chance; choose a partner that demonstrates clear value and helps your SEO investment truly pay off.
