Answers / Buying an Agency

How Do I Know If My SEO Company Is Working?

You should not have to take their word for it. Real local SEO work shows up in data you can check yourself.

Ask for these every month

A ranking map of where you appear across your service area, compared with last month.
Calls, direction requests and website clicks from your Google Business Profile.
A list of what was actually done: fixes, posts, listings corrected, pages published.
Whether AI assistants name you for your main search, and who they name instead.

Warning signs

Reports with only "impressions" and no ranking or call data.
Rankings reported only for your business name.
No access to your own Google Business Profile.
The same generic report every month.

Check it yourself in 10 minutes

Search your main service plus your city from a phone, then from a few miles away. Do you appear? Then open your Business Profile performance and compare calls to three months ago.

FAQ

How long should I wait before judging an SEO company?

Give a few months for competitive searches, but you should see a baseline and a clear work list from month one.

What if they say results take a year?

Ask what has changed so far and show you where. Progress should be visible even if it is slow.

Can I get an independent check?

Yes. Run a free audit and compare it to what your agency reports.

Get a second opinion on your results.

Free AUDIT — an independent look at your ranking, your profile and AI answers. About 10 minutes.

Get Your Free AUDIT