Effective marketing is a necessary component of business success, but not all businesses are able to employ a dedicated marketing team to handle all of their advertising campaigns while ensuring that the company enjoys a high level of visibility among consumers. Most small- to middle-market businesses instead turn to marketing professionals, and these professionals include experts in SEO strategies.

When hiring an SEO consultant, it may be difficult to determine whether or not they will be able to deliver the results that you are looking for. There are questions that each individual business will have to pose based on their unique needs and beliefs, but there are a few standard questions that may evoke responses that should give you pause with regard to hiring.

If you are hiring an SEO expert, it is clear that you are looking to improve on your current ranking in the various search engines. One of the most common questions clients ask of SEO experts relates to the ability of the SEO expert to improve the client’s ranking, and if the expert promises a guaranteed top ranking it may be a sign to avoid this expert altogether.

Most successful experts will note that they have improved rankings in the past and have successfully achieved a top ranking for a client, but making such a promise or guarantee about future success is hubris that may also be unethical. In order to determine whether the expert is on the level, look into their prior results in the same way you would research before heading out on a vacation to Aruba.

In hiring an SEO expert, it is important to know that you will be working with someone who has a history of successful results and is able to improve your site’s ranking through means that are accepted by the major search engines, as this is the best way to ensure solid outcomes.