Several SEO services claim to be able to take your business to the next level in today’s industry. SEO methods may take a few weeks, months, or even years to produce positive results on your website.
Agencies who claim a 30-day success rate or Guaranteed SEO Results in 15 days are nothing more than con artists! Customers may be enticed by such incentives to invest in such firms, but in reality, this is a red flag that you’ve approached the wrong SEO firm.
Continue reading to learn why you should avoid organizations that provide Guaranteed SEO Results and what you should look for instead.
What are guaranteed SEO services?
Guaranteed SEO services, as the name implies, Guaranteed SEO Results, such as a set percentage increase in traffic in a month or a specific position on Google’s SERP.
As persuasive as it may appear while dealing with such agencies, it is an impossibility if you think about it logically. You have no influence over how Google ranks your website. SEO agencies work hard to understand Google’s algorithms and make adjustments to a site in the hopes of enhancing its SERP rating.
A reputable SEO firm should only guarantee the quality of its services, such as providing regular updates on SEO progress, ensuring that assignments are performed on schedule, promptly responding to customer inquiries, and, most importantly, using the most up-to-date SEO best practices to accelerate results.
Any company that primarily focuses on attracting clients by falsely promoting assured SEO results should be avoided at all costs.
Why should you avoid companies that offer SEO guarantees?
Every company aspires to be on the first page of a search engine results page (SERP). Choosing SEO service companies that provide guaranteed SEO services carries a lot of risks and might harm your position and reputation.
In this section, we’ll look at the potential dangers of hiring SEO businesses that guarantee results.
Search engines alert against guaranteed SEO
One of the main reasons to avoid SEO guaranteeing agencies is that Google, the search engine behemoth, warns customers against engaging with them.
According to Google’s Beginner’s SEO documentation, your potential SEO should be able to provide you with an estimate of improvement. If someone promises you that their SEO optimization would help you rank on the first page of Google, you should hire someone else to do your SEO.
You are not in a position to guarantee something that’s beyond your control
SEO firms do not have direct control over search engine rankings. As a result, making large promises about topics the agency has little control over is not worth listening to.
Nobody outside of Google (including Google employees) knows what goes on behind the scenes of various algorithms. Years of research have only yielded a little amount of information for SEOs. As Google works to improve user experience, the algorithm is updated on a regular basis.
Furthermore, several elements beyond of SEO agencies’ control, such as your company’s reputation or competition, which essentially indicates how many of your keywords are targeted by other authority websites, are uncontrollable. If a company’s reputation suffers as a result of poor customer service or subpar products, its SEO ranking may suffer as well.
This isn’t to say that SEOs can’t assist your website rank higher. Competent SEO services can even deliver greater results than expected, but even the greatest can’t manipulate SERP rankings to get your site to the top in a short amount of time.
Guaranteed SEO services may involve black-hat tactics
Many organisations that advertise assured SEO use black-hat methods, which practice that Google frowns on. Black hat strategies are unethical methods of ranking better on search engines. If Google discovers it, it can result in harsh penalties.
Black-hat SEO techniques are no longer used. 15 years ago, you could have easily fooled Google’s algorithm and climbed to the top of the SERP. Nowadays, the algorithms are much sharper, and you’re more likely to get found, resulting in a decline in website ranking or perhaps removal from Google’s index.
Even if a black-hat SEO firm can trick Google and boost your rankings immediately, you’ll lose them as soon as the activity catches Google’s attention, and depending on the severity of the action, Google may opt to penalise the site with a manual action.
Guaranteed SEO may provide limited benefits
Guaranteed SEO services typically have shady terms in their contracts that leave them culpable if ranks or traffic drop.
Many SEO businesses, for example, insist on choosing keywords for you rather than having you tell them which keywords to target. This is because such firms will target phrases with less competition to rank for, and most of the time, such terms aren’t relevant to your business. If you agree to use the terms provided by such firms, you may see a drop in qualified traffic to your site very quickly.
Others, on the other hand, charge a consultation fee and then put little or no effort into delivering the promised outcomes. Even if they have to give up the promised amount for their services, they will still get your consultation money with little effort on your part. Furthermore, it makes no difference if they lose a business because they’ll go to any length to make large SEO promises and extort money from unwitting customers.
One-size-fits-all strategies don’t work
SEO isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach. The strategy will differ according on your industry, keyword competitiveness, and a number of other things.
You are simply falling for a cookie-cutter plan if an agency gives the same SEO guarantee to all organisations without understanding their particular requirements.
You should choose an SEO agency that specialises in providing personalised tactics for its clients for the greatest outcomes.
The wrong SEO tactics can hurt your business
Given that guaranteed SEO comes with a risk, isn’t it feasible to transfer to a different agency if you don’t obtain the results you expected?
Yes, if you are unhappy with your current SEO firm, you may change agencies at any time; however, if you deal with an SEO agency that employs black-hat SEO practices, the time it takes to recover from the losses could be very costly and time-consuming.
Working with the incorrect agency can result in irreversible damage to your company. Your ranking may drop for a long period and fall far below where it is now. Always avoid agencies who want to tie you into a long-term contract.
How should you choose an SEO agency?
What type of SEO agencies should you choose if you want to avoid SEO agencies that offer SEO guarantees? To ensure that you achieve good results, seek the following elements in an SEO agency.
Knowledge
If your SEO agency is willing to answer any questions you have about their services, you know you’re working with the correct company. If they’re willing to talk about the strategies they’ll employ to boost your SEO, it’s clear that they’ll be a good fit for your company.
When speaking with an SEO agency, discuss SEO in general and try to grasp their perspective on the subject. Find another agency to work with if their response does not make you want to partner with them. Another technique to assess an agency’s knowledge is to look at the blogs they publish.
Custom strategies and goal alignment
Any excellent SEO agency will be willing to tailor its SEO plan to your company’s specific needs. Any SEO firm that adopts cookie-cutter tactics will get subpar results, if not worse.
A competent agency will study everything there is to know about your firm, analyse its needs, and then recommend a custom strategy that is in line with the company’s aims and objectives.
Clear explanation for quick decision-making
An SEO agency should be able to explain its personalised SEO techniques with data-backed justifications in addition to providing them.
You should be concerned if the SEO agency cannot defend its course of action with adequate facts. This indicates that they are either unsure of the specific benefits their plan can provide for your company or that they have a very limited understanding of them.
Result tracking and reporting
Professional SEO firms will offer you with frequent reports that include results monitoring to assist you understand how your SEO campaign is progressing.
Avoid any agency that refuses to provide you with frequent reports. You should also make sure that the organisations who do provide timely reports to their consumers are very informative and easy to understand.
Experience
Any SEO firm that has been in business for a long time will have a greater understanding of the industry than a new one. Older agencies will also have more experience working with various clients and will be more adept at handling clients than most new firms.
If an agency hasn’t worked with a client like you before, there’s no need to be concerned as long as they understand SEO and how it might benefit your site.
Reviews and Testimonials
Reviews and testimonials demonstrate an agency’s dedication and hard work. If you’re having trouble deciding between several agencies, look at their internet reviews and testimonies first.
You can also contact previous clients and inquire about their experiences with the business in further detail. Any awards or accolades won by the agency as a result of its services are a cherry on top.
Case Studies
Case studies from an agency might help you learn more about the work they conduct and how experienced they are at it. Case studies show how an agency has performed in the past.
What Can You Expect from A Reputable SEO Agency?
In terms of service and commitment, a credible agency would aim to deliver more than it promises.
Here are ten essential characteristics of a good SEO firm:
- SEO deadlines that are realistic (not too early, not too late)
- SEO methods that are in line with your company’s KPIs
- No fluff, just clear communication
- SEO approach that is long-term and sustainable
- SEO reports that are easy to understand
- Keyword reporting and tracking tool is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
- A group that works well together
- a track record of successful projects completed in the past
- Working experience in a variety of industries
- SEO services that are both high-quality and inexpensive