Search Engine Optimization is not just a luxury anymore. If you want a powerful and effective website that brings traffic and results, SEO is an absolute must. But choosing the right firm can be tricky, especially if you're not familiar with what SEO firms should actually be doing. Here are some tips to help you, as well as some warning signs to watch out for when choosing an SEO firm to market your website.

Pricing

When choosing an SEO firm, you will obviously want to get the best bang for your buck. However, because SEO firms usually offer different pricing for different services and lengths of terms, price shopping can be complicated. Things to look out for:
• The SEO firm should be clear about all fees and the services included with those fees, upfront.
• Most will require some sort of initial payment, but will usually draw up a payment plan for the remainder of your term; avoid firms that require full payment up front. If you want to pay in full, that's fine, but requiring it should be a red flag.
Length Of Service

Most SEO firms will offer several options for length of service. How long is best? It depends. Generally, a 3 month term is the absolute minimum you need in order to see real results. Most people start out with a 6 month term, as it is long enough to see results but not too long if you aren't happy with your firm. Just remember, if your SEO firm is reputable, the longer your term the better results you will likely see.

Why So Long?

It's important to understand why continued SEO service produces better results. SEO is not like remodeling your kitchen, where you do it once and relax for 20 years; the very nature of SEO requires continual maintenance, monitoring, and tweaking. Search engines report that keyword searches are constantly changing, and their algorithms shift on a daily basis now. Any good SEO firm understands this, and will continually monitor your rankings and work to increase them.

Make Sure They Are Ethical

Like much in this world, there are SEO firms that are above board, and there are those that are not. Obviously, go with the one that uses honest, white-hat methods for optimizing your website. A reputable, ethical SEO firm uses content building, blogs, social media networking and link building as part of their strategy.
• Ethical SEO firms will have no problem giving you references or testimonials from other clients. Impressive results speak for themselves and any good firm will be glad to show off their successes to you.
• A good SEO firm should also provide you with monthly reports showing your site's rankings, stats, and charting its growth.
• The staff at your SEO firm should be willing and available during business hours to answer any questions you may have.
Beware Of The Following Red Flags And Avoid These Firms Like The Plague:
• Never use a firm that practices keyword "stuffing". This unethical practice entails loading a web page with targeted keywords strung together in nonsense paragraphs for the purpose of increasing search engine rankings. However, the search engines got wise to this form of cheating and now give poor rankings to any pages using this technique.
• Avoid firms that claim they have special techniques, or preferred relationships with Google. There is no magic secret to SEO. Continuous maintenance, fresh content, and hard work are what works and any firm claiming otherwise is hiding something.
• No reputable SEO firm can guarantee immediate results, a precise number of visitors, or even a certain ranking within a certain amount of time. These grandiose statements may sound good, but it is impossible to predict exact timeframes or numbers. An honest firm might tell you that they will work until they have achieved a certain goal, but promising to deliver specific results in a slated amount of time should be a warning to you.