What to ask an SEO agency before you sign a proposal

Do they understand the business you want to grow?

The first discussion should cover the services you want to promote, the people you can serve and how the website currently produces enquiries. The agency should ask about delivery capacity, previous website work and the information available to assess performance.

Be cautious when the plan is fixed before anyone understands those details. Ask which assumptions still need checking and what evidence would change the recommendation. Google’s guide to hiring an SEO includes questions about business understanding, communication, experience and realistic expectations.

What will happen first, and why?

Ask for the first phase in plain language. It might include reviewing technical access, resolving an indexing problem, improving important service pages or establishing enquiry measurement. The proposal should explain why those tasks come before other work and who will implement them.

An audit and a repair are different deliverables. If recommendations require a developer, find out whether implementation is included, separately quoted or your responsibility. Also agree how work is approved and how significant website changes can be reversed if needed.

What will you actually receive?

Replace vague labels with reviewable outputs. For content, ask who researches it, who checks technical claims, how revisions work and whether you retain the source files. For technical work, ask which checks are included and how completed fixes are verified.

For promotion and link-related work, ask what methods are proposed and where your business will be represented. You should be able to understand the approach and approve material commitments. Be wary of an offer whose main selling point is a large quantity of unexplained activity.

Who owns the accounts and the work?

Keep essential website, domain and reporting accounts under the business’s control. Grant an agency the access its agreed work needs and review that access when the relationship changes. Ask whether you can export reports and retain commissioned content if the engagement ends.

Check what happens to licences, hosting arrangements and third-party subscriptions. Include handover responsibilities in the agreement while the relationship is straightforward. Clear ownership helps both sides work efficiently and reduces the chance of a rushed dispute later.

How will they report progress and limitations?

Ask to see a sample report with private client details removed. It should connect completed work to observed performance, identify unresolved issues and recommend a next action. Enquiry quality and business relevance deserve a place alongside search metrics.

Discuss what the provider can influence and what it cannot promise. Google’s hiring guidance warns against guarantees of first place in search results. A credible proposal should state its assumptions and dependencies rather than present an uncertain outcome as a certainty.

Our guide to SEO and enquiry reporting gives you a basis for discussing those measures.

Is the agreement practical for both sides?

Confirm the scope, payment terms, review points, communication route and process for additional work. Agree who must provide approvals, subject expertise and access. Delays on either side affect delivery, so make those responsibilities visible.

Choose the team whose reasoning you can follow and whose work you can review. If a proposal leaves a material question unanswered, clarify it before signing. The aim is an informed working relationship in which both sides understand what they are trying to achieve and how the work will be assessed.