Hiring a digital marketing agency is a high-stakes decision — bad fits cost six figures over a year and set the business back. Most SMB owners ask the wrong questions in the vetting process. Here’s the checklist that surfaces the right answers. (For the upstream question of what the work actually costs, see the SEO pricing guide.)
Questions to ask
- Show me three case studies in my industry where you moved a real metric in the last 18 months. With screenshots from the actual analytics.
- Who specifically would be on my account? Names, roles, examples of their work.
- What does month 1 look like? Month 3? Month 6?
- How will we measure success? What numbers will you report on, and how often?
- What contract length do you require? Why?
- If we’re unhappy in 90 days, what happens?
Answers that should make you walk
- ‘We can’t share specifics due to client confidentiality.’ (You can share screenshots with names blurred. Always.)
- Vague timeline answers. ‘Every engagement is different’ is a dodge.
- Guaranteed rankings on specific keywords. Not possible. Anyone promising it is lying.
- Mandatory 12-month contracts with no exit clause. Confidence in the work doesn’t require a 12-month lock-in.
- Cheap pricing far below the market range. The work isn’t happening; you’re paying for a content mill.
