How to Tell If Your SEO Company Is Working

Understanding whether your investment in SEO campaigns is yielding results is crucial, especially when significant resources are involved. SEO outcomes can be elusive and not immediately apparent, but there are indicators to watch for that suggest progress.

Let’s explore 7 key signs that show your SEO strategies are effective.

1. Your Website’s Health Score Is Improving

Various tools offer a health score for your website, assessing various aspects. An upward trend in this score is a positive sign. Remember, progress might be gradual, and consistency in tool usage is important due to varying metrics across platforms.

• Ahrefs
• SEMrush
• Site Checker (free)

These platforms evaluate overall site health, including SEO, crawlability, broken links, and more, which can indirectly influence your search engine rankings. Depending on the tool, certain factors might be excluded from the health assessment.

Conduct regular site checks, ideally weekly. Expect some variance week-to-week. Calculate the average health score over the last month and compare it to previous months to gauge improvement.

2. Increase in Organic Traffic

A rise in organic traffic is a clear indicator of SEO success. With a majority of websites receiving no traffic from Google, any increase in organic traffic is significant.

Google Analytics is an excellent tool to measure this. It allows for period comparisons (month, year, etc.) and provides traffic graphs. Focus on organic traffic to distinguish it from referrals or social media sources.

Remember, fluctuations are normal. Look for trends over several months for a clearer picture.

3. Your Pages Are Climbing in Rankings

If both new and older content are climbing in search rankings, your SEO is on the right track.

Tools like SEMrush, Ahrefs, and the free SERP Robot can track your rankings over time. Aim for a general upward trend across your pages. Some pages might dip due to competition, but overall progress is key.

Track rankings for multiple keywords per page. A drop in one keyword can be offset by gains in others, still benefiting your traffic.

Why would older pages rank higher? Google’s algorithms consider the entire site’s SEO health, including:

• Overall content quality
• URL structure
• Domain Authority
• Total backlinks
• User experience and site navigation
• Loading speed
• Domain age

4. Longer Visitor Engagement on Your Site

Visitor engagement, measured by time spent on your site and bounce rate (the percentage of visitors leaving without interaction), is another important metric.

Why Visitor Experience Matters

If visitors are quickly leaving your site, it could be due to various factors:

• Lack of engaging content
• Ineffective calls to action
• Poor user-friendliness of the site
• Slow loading times

Backlinko suggests that bounce rates might correlate with rankings. High bounce rates could indicate underlying issues affecting SEO, like poor user experience or unengaging content.

Monitor user engagement duration on your site using Google Analytics. An increase indicates effective content and a user-friendly site, also reflecting accurate keyword targeting. Conversely, short visit durations may imply attracting the wrong audience.

5. Enhancing Your Conversion Rate

An uptick in conversion rates alongside increased traffic is a positive SEO outcome. For instance, improving from a 1% to 2% conversion rate could be due to:

• Targeting more effective, high-intent keywords
• Creating more compelling and readable content
• Enhancing site navigability and user-friendliness
• Increasing site content and authority, boosting trust

These improvements not only boost SEO rankings but also validate the effectiveness of your SEO agency.

6. Growing Number of Referring Domains

Gaining organic backlinks indicates your content is being noticed. This can trigger a cascade effect, where more sites link to you after seeing others do the same, recognizing the value of your content.

Backlinks function as endorsements from other sites. For local businesses, building local citation backlinks is crucial, often requiring manual effort.

Track your backlink profile with tools like SEMrush and Ahrefs. Ahrefs also offers a free backlink checker.

7. Boosting Domain and Page Authority

An increase in Domain Authority (DA) and Page Authority (PA), as defined by Moz, signals SEO success. These scores, on a scale of 1-100, indicate the likelihood of your site or page ranking well.

DA and PA are not official Google metrics but are widely respected. They are logarithmic, meaning higher scores are progressively harder to achieve. A steady rise in DA and PA, observable via Moz Link Explorer, reflects ongoing improvements in your site’s SEO stature.

Identifying Quality SEO Metrics and KPIs

Understanding which metrics and key performance indicators (KPIs) matter most can significantly enhance your SEO strategy’s effectiveness. Key metrics include:

• Keyword Rankings: Track how your keywords perform in search engine results over time.
• Organic Traffic: Measure the number of visitors coming to your site through organic search.
• Click-Through Rate (CTR): The percentage of users who click on your site after viewing it in search results.
• Backlink Quality and Quantity: Evaluate not just the number of backlinks but also their relevance and authority.
• Page Load Time: Faster load times can improve user experience and contribute to better SEO rankings.
• Conversion Rate: The percentage of visitors who take a desired action on your site, indicating the effectiveness of your SEO in driving relevant traffic.

By focusing on these KPIs, you can gain valuable insights into your SEO performance and identify areas for improvement.

Effective Communication with Your SEO Agency

Effective communication with your SEO agency is pivotal for the success of your SEO campaigns. Key aspects to focus on include:

• Regular Updates and Reports: Ensure you receive consistent and detailed reports on your SEO progress, including changes in rankings, traffic, and other key metrics.
• Strategy Discussion: Engage in discussions about the SEO strategies being implemented, understanding the rationale behind each action.
• Feedback Mechanism: Establish a clear channel for providing and receiving feedback to ensure that your SEO goals are aligned with the agency’s efforts.
• Problem-Solving Approach: Discuss how challenges and obstacles are addressed, ensuring proactive steps are taken to overcome any issues.
• Future Planning: Regularly discuss future strategies and plans to stay ahead of SEO trends and algorithm changes.

By maintaining open lines of communication and actively engaging with your SEO agency, you can ensure a more effective and transparent SEO process.

Metric/KPI	Description
Keyword Rankings	Tracks performance of keywords in search results.
Organic Traffic	Measures visitors from organic search.
Click-Through Rate (CTR)	Percentage of users clicking on your site in search results.
Backlink Quality/Quantity	Evaluates the number and quality of backlinks.
Page Load Time	Assesses how quickly your site loads.
Conversion Rate	Percentage of visitors who complete a desired action.

How to Evaluate SEO Companies

Choosing the right SEO company is critical for achieving your digital marketing goals. Here are key factors to consider when evaluating potential SEO service providers:

• Experience and Expertise: Look into the company’s track record, including years in the business and the expertise of its team members.
• Client Testimonials and Case Studies: Client feedback and case studies provide insights into the company’s ability to deliver results.
• Understanding of Your Business Needs: A good SEO company should understand your industry, business goals, and target audience.
• SEO Strategies and Techniques: Assess their approach to SEO, ensuring they use ethical, white-hat strategies that comply with search engine guidelines.
• Communication and Reporting: Effective communication is key. Ensure they offer regular, detailed reporting on your SEO campaign’s performance.
• Transparency and Honesty: Look for companies that are upfront about their methods, timelines, and the realistic outcomes you can expect.
• Adaptability to Industry Changes: SEO is ever-evolving. The company should demonstrate adaptability to changes in search engine algorithms and digital marketing trends.
• Cost versus Value: Compare their pricing against the value they offer. The cheapest option is not always the best when it comes to quality SEO services.

By considering these factors, you can make a well-informed decision when selecting an SEO company that aligns with your business objectives and can effectively enhance your online presence.