Getting your website to the top of a Search Engine Results Page (SERP) can be a long process. It is one that requires real effort and quite often requires a professional search engine marketing company or guidance from a professional search engine consultant. Your selection of a marketing company – much like your choice of a website design company – can make or break your company’s online lead generation. Choosing wisely is imperative, but you may not be entirely sure what choosing wisely means. What criteria should you use when choosing a search engine marketing company, and how can you know that you’ve chosen well?

Promises and Pricing

You’ll find a broad array of search engine marketing companies out there. Many promise you the moon and charge the same. They may guarantee you’ll be number one, get thousands of visitors or promise other things you are looking for to grow your company. Some companies promise you bigger, better, faster, more results yet charge prices that are ridiculously low and certainly unsustainable. Can these companies really do a vast amount of good for your business? The company that charges so little is likely outsourcing your work to smaller companies in offshore areas. They may not have your best interests at heart in helping you grow.

When it comes to ranking, it is very rare that any website will immediately rank and begin to generate revenue for the site owner. Selecting a company that promises to rank your company immediately means you are choosing a company that may not be doing things ethically or in a way that will keep your site ranking well for a long time. Rapid ranking methods are very often like throwing gasoline on a fire. It flames up and burns well for a while and then typically burns out quickly.

The company that believes its time and effort on your behalf is worth far more than it benefits your company needs to be set aside. A quality search engine marketing firm is going to charge a reasonable fee that may seem a bit high. The services that they offer will be top quality, and they will add value to your company over time. Yes it takes time to add value to your business reputation with not only search engines but people as well. Nothing built fast lasts, and there is almost always a difference between cheap and quality.

Examining Portfolios

Finding the right company to help you accomplish ranking and growth means spending some time reviewing companies and doing some research. You want to find a company that understands you and is not just trying to sell you. You can tell the difference between a company that is just being pushy and one that is really interested in understanding your business and what you need to grow.

Examine the marketing company you are considering. Take into account their successes and look closely. If the company has a fairly broad spectrum of different types of companies in their portfolio and each of those sites is ranking well, you’re probably going to be in very good hands. If, on the other hand, you can’t see a portfolio or you’re not seeing reputable companies they work with, tread lightly. The types of businesses in a marketing company’s portfolio can give you an idea of the kind of work they do or can handle. Often it is hard to see the keywords or ranking in a portfolio because of the confidentiality of keywords being focused on for a company. You wouldn’t want a company to publically display what keywords you are targeting and neither do they.

Other Considerations

Look for a company that is not a flash in the pan. Companies that have been in business for under two years or have a background in another industry are probably not experienced enough and are quite likely not able to offer you the kind of service you need.

• Since search engine marketing is all about content, ask them about their experience with content marketing and about their writers.
• Ask them about monthly reports and insist on going over them. Typically a reliable marketing company will offer you a monthly meeting or phone call to discuss your campaign.
• Talk to them extensively before you hire them. To a large extent, this company is a partner in your growth. They are going to be promoting or speaking for your company.
• Make sure that you gel well and get along well enough to work as a team for your own future growth.
• Can you actually go to their office and meet some of the staff. Sit down and see they are for real, not someone telemarketing out of their livingroom.

Hiring a good search engine marketing company can provide long term consistent growth for your company. They can take your business to areas that you have been wanting to reach or gain a stronger presence in one you are in now. Make sure that you hire the right marketing company by doing your due diligence. The business that you save may be your own.