Choosing an SEO agency is awkward, because most of what you're shown before you sign is a promise. The work comes later, and by then you've paid for a few months of it.
I run an agency, so I sit on the other side of these calls. This guide is what I'd check if I were the one hiring: what to sort out first, what to ask on the call, and how to compare two proposals.
How do you choose an SEO agency?
Work out what one new customer is worth to you, ask each agency the same few questions, and compare what they put in writing. Then check who owns the accounts and how you leave. The agency that's clearest about the work is usually a safer pick than the one with the biggest promise.
In short:
- Know your numbers before the first call.
- Ask every agency the same questions, including one about proof.
- Put two proposals side by side.
- Check access, notice and who does the work.
You might not need an agency at all. Google's own guide to hiring an SEO says that if you run a small local business, you can probably do much of the work yourself.
What should you sort out before you speak to anyone?
Three things, and none of them take long.
What one customer is worth. If a new client is worth £5,000 to you, a monthly fee looks very different from when a sale is worth £40. I've told people SEO isn't the right spend yet for this reason.
Whether your site is ready. The other time I've said "not yet" is when the website itself needed rebuilding first. Sending more people to a site that can't take an enquiry doesn't help much.
Who owns your accounts. Google Search Console, Analytics and your Business Profile should be in your name, with the agency added as a user.
What should you ask an SEO agency on the first call?
I'd ask every agency the same seven questions and write the answers down.
- How often will I get updates? Weekly, monthly, or only when you chase. This is the one I'd ask first.
- How many page changes can I expect each month? A number, even a rough one. If the answer is "it depends" every time, it's probably not many.
- Who does the work? The person on the call, a team, or a freelancer you'll never speak to. At Nest Content it's just me, and I'd say that up front.
- Will you share every change you make to my site? That's one of Google's own suggested questions, and the answer should be yes.
- What happens in the first month? Listen for a list of things you could check afterwards.
- What won't you do? A good answer is specific. Mine includes buying links in bulk and promising rankings.
- Can I see a result for a business like mine? Dated numbers from their own data, with what they changed. A logo wall or a quote on its own doesn't tell you much.
It also helps to notice what they ask you. The first things I ask a new client are what they're struggling with, whether any leads come from search today, and where those leads come from. If nobody asks about your business, the proposal is probably the one everyone gets.
How do you compare two SEO proposals?
Put them side by side and look for the same six lines in each. If a line is missing, ask for it in writing before you decide.
| Line | What to look for | If it's missing |
|---|---|---|
| Who does the work | A named person or team | Ask who you'd speak to each month |
| Work per month | Pages, fixes and listings, as numbers | You can't check what was done |
| Updates | How often, and in what form | Expect to chase |
| How progress is measured | Enquiries and Search Console clicks, with a starting point | Rankings alone can hide a flat month |
| Accounts and notice | Accounts in your name, notice period stated | Leaving gets harder |
| AI search | Included, extra, or not offered | Ask, so you know what the fee covers |
For comparison, ours are month to month with 30 days' notice, and we agree a three-month plan at the start so you know what happens first. A monthly check of what ChatGPT and Google's AI say about you is in every plan. Getting you mentioned on other sites is an extra.
Price belongs in the comparison too. Our UK SEO pricing guide has what agencies publish and what each level tends to include.
The same six lines work later on, if you want to check an agency you already pay. There's more on how to tell if your SEO agency is working.
See if Google's AI names you
Enter your site. We check the questions your buyers ask and show who gets named.
Can an SEO agency guarantee rankings?
No. Google says it directly: "No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google." An agency can promise the work, the updates and the access. It can't promise where Google puts you.
I'd treat a guarantee as a reason to ask more questions. Which searches does it cover, and what happens if it's missed? A ranking for your own business name is easy to "guarantee" and isn't worth much.
Google adds another line that's worth knowing before you sign: "Ultimately, you are responsible for the actions of any companies you hire." If an agency buys links or mass-produces pages for you, it's your site that carries the risk.
Do you need a separate agency for AI search?
Usually not, from what I've seen. AI answers mostly draw on the same pages and listings that Google search does, so one team can cover both. Google's hiring guide now lists generative AI optimisation among the things an SEO might offer, and suggests checking that advice against its own guidance.
If an agency sells AI search as a separate product, I'd ask three things: which questions they track, how often they re-check them, and what they change when you're not named.
There's more on this in whether to hire for AI search or do it yourself, and this is how we count AI mentions each month.
What does a good first three months look like?
You should be able to see work from month one. Results take longer, and that's where asking for proof helps.
When a new client comes to me from another agency, I tend to find the same three things. The site structure is inconsistent and messy. The content on each page is templated, so one page reads much like the next. And the reports were vague, so nobody could say what had been done.
For one executive search firm we work with, the fix was rebuilding the page for each sector it recruits in. Its clicks from Google went from about 260 a week in June 2026 to about 510 a week in October, in its own Search Console. The case study has what we changed and when. Every site starts from a different place, so I'd treat that as one example.
None of that takes an expert to spot. Ask to see the list of work, and click through a few of the pages they built.