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So you found an SEO agency that guarantees first page Google rankings…
There’s no risk then, right?
Think again.
If you see an agency making this claim – run the other way. You could end up in a lot of trouble and the “first-page” rankings are not always as valuable as you might think.
I will show you precisely why SEO agencies that offer guaranteed Google first page rankings are a load of rubbish and what you should be looking for instead.
What Will I Learn?
Let’s make this clear:
There’s NOT an SEO agency on planet earth that can (or should) offer guaranteed Google first page rankings.
It’s both morally and ethically wrong.
And just because you’re on the first page doesn’t mean all of your SEO hopes and dreams will come true.
Here’s why…
There are 10 spots on the first search page results.
If you rank in the 10th position, chances are you won’t get many clicks. Most people don’t usually bother visiting pages ranking below the top 5 positions in Google search results.
This is the percentage of clicks that each position gets:
| Ranking Position | Click-Thru-Rate (%) |
| 1st Position | 34.2% |
| 2nd Position | 17.1% |
| 3rd Position | 11.4% |
| 4th Position | 8.1% |
| 5th Position | 7.4% |
| 6th Position | 5.1% |
| 7th Position | 4.1% |
| 8th Position | 3.3% |
| 9th Position | 2.9% |
| 10th Position | 2.6% |
Just because you are on the first page of Google doesn’t mean you are getting much benefit from being there.
You need to be in at least the top 5 search results – ideally the top 3 for it to actually mean anything for your business.
SEO is not a one and done kind of marketing strategy.
It’s easy enough for an agency to get you the first-page ranking but it’s not always easy to stay there. Here’s why:
These two factors are usually the big reasons you see a decrease in your own rankings.
You need to make sure that your SEO agency is on top of all Google search updates. Your website must constantly be feeding the algorithm exactly what it wants to see.
Are you in a competitive industry?
Your competitors likely have you in their sights and are actively working to steal your rankings. You need to ensure that your content is the most up to date and valuable for your target audience.
If your agency gets lazy it won’t take long for your rankings to drop.
Consistency in SEO is key.
One of the things that SEO companies report on most is rankings.
It makes sense, right?
You are paying them to rank your website as high as possible in the Google search results.
Here’s the problem:
Some keywords are easy to rank for but have very little or even no search volume. If no one is searching for a keyword it’s not worth targeting for SEO.
There are loads of dodgy SEO companies out there that are willing to do almost anything to retain you as a client. That includes ranking your website for keywords with zero (or very low) search volumes.
They simply find keyword phrases that are easy enough to obtain high rankings for and try to convince you that they’re valuable. Once they get you to the top of the SERPs, they report back and let you know how good they are.
Don’t be fooled!
You are basically paying them and getting NO-VALUE whatsoever.
Note: Your SEO agency should never choose the target keywords for you. It should be a discussion where you both evaluate and choose the target keywords together.
The agency will do all of the keyword research and put together a list of keywords that could be valuable for your business.
Then, you work on the list together and choose the most valuable keywords for targeting.
This ensures that you are only ever paying for SEO services that will actually bring you a good ROI.
Here’s the truth:
Cheap SEO = Huge red flag.
There is no way around it – good search engine optimisation costs money to do well.
The one thing that all cheap SEO services do is compromise on quality. They promise huge results for really attractive prices.
This leads them to:
You might see some initial gains but you will likely end up in a boatload of trouble with Google and your website will get penalised harshly.
And guess what? It just isn’t worth the risk.
Invest in a quality SEO company that you can trust and will deliver the results you want.
Do be fooled.
The only company that really has control over the Google search engine is…
At the end of the day, every agency and client is at the mercy of Google.
Simply put – it’s not possible to guarantee rankings.
Even if the agency has an excellent track record for delivering high-quality SEO services – it still doesn’t change the fact that Google is the only one that has complete control.
Any SEO agency worth its salt should own this fact.
If they don’t – run the other way!
Been hit by a penalty? Check out my Google penalty recovery guide!
Just because an agency doesn’t guarantee first page rankings doesn’t mean they shouldn’t offer any other guarantees.
In fact, reputable agencies should make guarantees about the quality of their services and business practices.
Here’s some that you should expect to see.
This might be stating the obvious but it has to be said.
Unrealistic promises include guaranteed:
Why these might sound good, the truth is that the agency doesn’t have any direct control over any of these factors.
Think about it…How can you promise something you don’t have direct control over?
Honesty and integrity are the most important aspects of an agency and client relationship. If your agency makes any claims that sound too good to be true…
They probably are.
Goals and objectives are essential for all SEO campaigns.
How will you measure results if you don’t have a target in the first place?
Lots of agencies fall short by overpromising on results.
One of the biggest mistakes I see in agencies is overestimating their ability to rank a website. For example, they target a highly competitive keyword even though their client’s website has low authority or is brand new.
This just isn’t possible.
Good agencies will quickly understand your website and the competitiveness of the industry. They have the experience to set realistic objectives and goals that can be achieved.
This generally leads to better search engine optimisation results and a profitable relationship for both the client and the agency.
When working with your SEO agency, ensure that you set realistic goals that can be achieved.
Never hire an SEO agency without meeting them face to face.
This doesn’t mean that you have to meet them physically. You can arrange a video meeting over Zoom or Skype.
Why go to all this trouble? You need to ensure that the agency you hire has good customer service and they are easy to contact.
Lot’s of cheap SEO services only offer email support so be sure to double-check.
This means that if you need to contact them you might be waiting up to 48 hours (sometimes 72 hours) before they respond.
Quality SEO agencies will ensure you have direct access to the SEO team working on your campaign. This allows you to ask questions whenever you want and learn more about SEO to get the most out of your campaign.
When it comes to SEO…
Data is king.
It drives the entire campaign and ensures that you make the best decision possible every single time.
There is tons of data that can be analysed within an SEO campaign. But not all data is important.
So how do you know what’s important?
A reputable agency will have the experience and knowledge from doing SEO for years and know exactly which data is worth looking at.
They will likely have processes built around analysing the right data so that you always get the best outcome.
Despite what you may have heard…
SEO campaigns are not all about rankings and search traffic.
Good SEO tracking should be able to measure leads and sales generated from organic traffic. This is the ultimate measure of success.
You are investing in SEO to grow your business and get a positive return.
Agencies that only focus on organic search traffic and rankings in the SERPs miss the big picture. Every SEO campaign should be focused on delivering results that help you accomplish your business goals.
Reputable SEO agencies understand this and will make this the primary objective.
Note: Quality SEO agencies usually publish case studies to prove the quality of their work.
An agency is only as good as its employees.
When you hire the best employees you get the best results.
Because a wide variety of skills are required to properly execute an SEO campaign, the best agencies will hire a specialist for each needed skill.
This allows each member of their team to become very specialised in what they do.
It just makes sense:
The entire campaign runs smoothly when you have highly skilled and experienced SEOs executing their individual roles effectively.
Now you know why guaranteed Google first page rankings are not all they’re cracked up to be. When hiring an SEO agency – take the time to understand the guarantees they make about how they do SEO and what they focus on.
This is what makes an SEO agency great.
They will have the knowledge and experience to get you the kinds of SEO results you want.
Are you looking for an SEO agency you can depend on?
Check out Search Logistics. They have a reputation for delivering SEO results that help you accomplish your business goals.
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