Red Flags to Watch for When Hiring an SEO

Thinking of hiring an SEO agency or expert? Learn what to expect before making a decision and discover red flags to watch out for.

When looking to improve your website’s search engine performance, hiring an SEO company is often a logical step. However, not all SEO agencies are created equal, and navigating the industry can be tricky. 

Unfortunately, it’s not uncommon for businesses to fall victim to agencies that overpromise and underdeliver. It’s time to arm yourself with knowledge! We’ll help you understand what to expect when hiring an SEO agency or expert and what sets GPO apart, so you can make an informed decision and avoid being scammed by companies looking for a quick buck.

What to Expect from Your SEO Company

1. Clear Communication and Transparency

A reputable SEO agency will keep you in the loop every step of the way, providing easy-to-understand explanations of their strategies and the progress they’re making. You should expect regular updates, detailed reports, and a relationship where you can ask questions freely.

At GPO, we believe that strong communication is the foundation of a successful SEO partnership. You’ll receive transparent, actionable SEO recommendations and a tailored roadmap that aligns with your business goals.

2. Realistic Timelines and Results

SEO takes time. Organic search results won’t happen overnight, but if a company tells you it will take over a year to see any tangible progress, that’s a major red flag. A good SEO company will offer realistic timelines and explain how you’ll see incremental progress along the way.

At GPO, we set clear milestones and help you see measurable improvements as we move through your SEO campaign. Early wins help to build long-term momentum, which is essential for sustainable growth.

3. Customized Strategies for Your Business

Beware of SEO companies that offer cookie-cutter solutions. Every business is different, and so are its SEO needs. A trustworthy SEO agency will take the time to understand your business, your industry, and your competitors in order to craft a personalized strategy tailored to your specific goals.

At GPO, we don’t believe in one-size-fits-all solutions. We specialize in building strategies that reflect your unique business goals and help you target the right audience effectively.

4 Red Flags to Watch for When Hiring an SEO

1. Promises of Instant Results

If an SEO agency claims they can get you to the first page of Google within weeks, proceed with caution. SEO is a long-term game, and quick results can be a sign of shortcuts that may damage your site in the future. Short-term gains through unethical tactics can lead to penalties from search engines and long-term damage to your online presence.

2. Lack of Transparency

An SEO agency that is vague about its strategies or avoids answering your questions likely has something to hide. Reputable agencies are open about their techniques and the reasoning behind them. They’ll be clear about the SEO steps they’re taking, whether it’s on-page optimization, technical SEO, or backlink strategies.

3. No Clear Reporting or Metrics

Regular, easy-to-understand reports are essential to gauge the progress of your SEO campaign. If your SEO company doesn’t provide detailed reports, is unclear about your site’s performance, or appears to be using arbitrary, inflated, or fabricated metrics, that’s a red flag. You should always know where your site stands in terms of traffic, ranking improvements, and overall SEO health.

4. Black Hat SEO Techniques

Though it’s much less common nowadays, some agencies may still use unethical methods (known as black hat SEO) to manipulate search rankings. Techniques like keyword stuffing, buying low-quality links, or using hidden text can give you a temporary boost, but they also put your website at risk of being penalized by search engines. Not only could these practices penalize your site and any effective SEO you do down the road, but they are also pointless. 

Google has become extremely sophisticated at understanding the intent of a website or web content and has stated that links are no longer a primary driver of search relevance like they used to be. In other words, you can’t just write whatever you want and link to it a few hundred thousand times and expect Google to show your content on page one. 

Instead, long-term success in SEO comes from ethical, white hat practices, such as creating quality, authoritative content with the intention of helping and informing the reader. 

What Kinds of Ethical SEO Practices Should I Be Doing?

As stated earlier, there’s no one-size-fits-all SEO method for websites — meaning what SEO methods will work for one website may not have as much benefit or success for yours. In general, however, you should expect your SEO agency to help you do things like: 

• Create high-quality, relevant content
• Optimize for user experience (UX)
• Use relevant keywords naturally
• Earn quality backlinks
• Optimize title tags and meta descriptions
• Ensure mobile-friendly design
• Implement clean, crawlable site architecture
• Focus on technical SEO (site speed, structured data, etc.)
• Regularly update and refresh content
• Follow Google’s Webmaster Guidelines 

At GPO, our SEO professionals take pride in delivering high-quality, client-first results. We are dedicated to ensuring that your brand appears high and frequently in search engine results by using ethical SEO techniques that are built to last. From optimizing your content to improving technical aspects of your site, we’ve got you covered every step of the way.
If you’re ready to work with an SEO team that cares about your success as much as you do, chat with our experts today.