It can be tough to admit you need a little help. But when your SEO is involved, there’s nothing better for your bottom line than finally getting the help you need.

There are plenty of reasons you might seek out an agency to handle your SEO. Maybe you’re starting a new business or refreshing an outdated website. Or maybe you just don’t have the budget or headcount to hire a full-time SEO professional for your team.

However you found your way to this decision, it’s time to make it count. Asking the right questions when choosing a SEO agency will help you avoid problems you might not otherwise discover well into a contract.

So we wanted to give you some inspiration—and explanations—for a few of the questions you should ask before taking the plunge with a new vendor.

3 Questions to Ask Before Choosing a SEO Agency

First, a word of warning. All these questions require a bit of preparation on you or your team’s end. Understanding each SEO agency’s expertise, markets, and portfolio will set you up with the right context going into any agency meeting.

1. “How do you organize and price your offering of SEO services?”

Unfortunately, price is a huge piece of the puzzle when it comes to choosing a SEO agency. Most will perform roughly the same selection of services: site auditing, content strategy, and the like. But their specialties make a difference.

Some are willing and able to go under the hood and handle structural updates to your website, while others aren’t. And some may provide content writing services in addition to planning, so they’ll write your blog or landing page in addition to helping you select topics and blog titles.

Your price point may determine which services are available to you. Simultaneously, your in-house resources (like a copywriter) may help you choose which services you actually need.

2. “Who would be working on our account? How are your account teams structured?”

Each agency works a little differently. Some smaller agencies might have one team working on all accounts. That could mean they pay closer attention to your account since it represents a bigger chunk of their business. On the other hand, this might extend their turnaround time for requests.

On the other hand, larger agencies may have access to greater resources, and therefore, experience. They may have more bandwidth to respond to requests and handle issues that arise. But you might not be their biggest client—or priority. So despite the access to more experience at a larger agency, junior team members might service your account instead.

Not every agency structure works for every business. Finding the one that fits yours will make a big difference.

3. “Can you provide any examples or case studies for a business of my size and industry?”

As they say, the proof is in the pudding. Most SEO agencies will have some light portfolio content on their site pointing to big name clients or testimonials. But if you’re meeting with an agency, you might be able to see more.

A case study serves two purposes: It gives you a sense of how the agency works, and it helps you determine whether they’ll be a good fit for your specific business. If they only serve SaaS businesses and can’t point to success in local SEO, your auto shop may not be the best fit for them. And that’s okay!

The Value of Asking Questions

Hopefully, these questions give you some confidence to get started. You know your business, and you know your goals. Keep those two things in mind, and any question you ask will have value. Because each question you ask a SEO agency gets you a little closer to finding that perfect match.