Sun_Feb_10_06:00:08_PST_2019

345 Questions: Off the Web & Major Changes • Why does their company deserve to be ranked as the top resource? What is their unique sales proposition? • Is their business healthy? Are other disruptive technologies entering or replacing their market? Are they continually losing market share? • Do they plan on launching new site technologies? • If they contacted you, what prompted them to think they needed a SEO consultant now? • Do they intend to use search engine marketing as one of many marketing channels, or are they expecting their whole business to succeed or fail based on SEO? Is their site good other than search engine marketing? Are they willing to accept your feedback on usability and other issues related to conversion? Some of the stuff you cannot know fully, but your gut can get a good sense of how flexible the company is. Being Your Size Many SEOs desire huge corporate clients who may have so much red tape that the SEOs get bogged down and are prevented from doing well. Some small SEO firms try to act big and, conversely, some large SEO firms try to act small. Usually it works best if you act your size and attract clients you can handle. Partner with other firms so that if you feel that a company would be too much of a research hog or not profitable enough, you can get a referral commission by sending them to someone else. Don't be afraid to mention some of the cons of SEO services. If you are the only one who they talk to who sounds honest and mentions risks (such as large algorithm changes or no guaranteed results), then you may get hired. It is usually best to err on the conservative side when estimating returns so that you can meet your goals. Some of my friends with small firms have beat out larger firms by having better proposals and being more honest about some of the cons of SEO. Some small firms also have the advantage of being able to move fast since they do not have the associated legal and IT related wait times.