What exactly will change?
Ask which pages and technical issues the provider intends to review. What evidence suggests those areas need work? Which changes are included, and which require another developer or writer?
“Improve on-page SEO” is broad. “Review the five service pages, verify missing information and revise their titles and navigation” is easier to assess.
Clarify who confirms business facts before publication. The provider should not invent service claims or conditions to fill a content gap.
How will the work be carried out?
Ask for an explanation in terms you understand. If the proposal includes links, clarify how placements are obtained, whether they are paid and how relationships are disclosed and qualified.
Google’s hiring guidance warns against guaranteed top rankings and encourages checking an SEO’s methods and experience. A confident claim is not a substitute for a reviewable plan.
Relevant examples can help, but another client’s results do not establish what your website will achieve.
Who controls the accounts and assets?
Agree who retains access to the website, domain, analytics and search tools. Ask what access the provider needs and why, and use an appropriate role rather than sharing a personal password.
Clarify how content, change records and reports will be handed over if the engagement ends. A business should be able to continue maintaining its own website.
Have the person responsible for your systems review access requests if you are unsure of their scope.
What will the report help you decide?
Ask for reporting that connects completed work with the pages and outcomes you care about. A long list of keywords or a single authority score may not explain whether suitable enquiries improved.
Agree on a baseline, reporting period and the limits of attribution. The provider should be able to explain uncertainty and competing causes when results change.
Our SEO measurement guide gives a starting point for that discussion.
Confirm responsibilities before starting
- Scope and deliverables.
- Who supplies and verifies information.
- Who implements and approves changes.
- Access and account ownership.
- Reporting and review dates.
- Additional costs and handover arrangements.
Start with an assessment that produces specific findings if the main problems are still unclear. Our basic audit checklist can help you ask better questions about the proposed work.
When you are ready to compare a service offer, review SEOmini SEO and backlink plans on our commercial website. Bring your list of priorities and ask which tasks are included, who implements them and how completed work will be reported.