There are thousands of companies who sell 'SEO', and there are a handful who actually properly provide SEO...
There are thousands of companies who sell SEO, but there are a handful who actually provide effective SEO services.
Confusing one with the other costs UK businesses millions of pounds per month.
There are a lot of glossy, hip SEO agencies who know a little about SEO and will sell this as a service.
They will use it as a buzz word or say that they do "SEO" just to sell you a website, knowing the majority of business owners know less about it than they do.
We also see a lot of SEO agencies pushing key phrases that no one uses. There is no point being top for 'Best Surfboard Tooting' or 'Pet Shop Canary Wharf ', unless you are already a well known service in that specific area.
You should only be aiming for key phrases that get over 1,000 searches per month.
Considering there are only 10 spaces on the first page of Google for most areas, knowing only a little bit about SEO is not effective in the real world.
So finding one of the few knowledgeable SEO agencies will stand your business in good stead.
Real SEO is not cheap but will provide good value for money.
In Summary
There are thousands of under-experienced SEO companies, and they usually employ a larger sales team than technical team. They are often pushy and use flashy marketing materials.
Before signing up with anyone, do some basic checks:
1. Ask if they are on the first page of Google for anything and note their response.
2. Check yourself that their website is on the first page of Google for "SEO + your town / area"
3. Ask for 5 examples of their clients' sites and check where they are in Google.
If they aren't on the first page of Google for their own site and they can't provide five of their own clients who are, then you know they are selling SEO and not actually providing it. Give them a wide berth and find a company that actually knows their stuff!
