Most business owners aren’t experts in search engine optimization (SEO) themselves, which makes it necessary to bring in an expert to handle your SEO on your behalf. But if you don’t fully understand SEO, how do you know you’re going be working with an SEO expert you can trust?

Here are a few of the red flags and green lights you should watch for when looking for an SEO expert to handle your law firm’s digital marketing.

Green lights

• Experience: Don’t just take the label “SEO expert” for granted. What kind of experience does the company actually have in the business, and especially as it relates to law firms? Check and see how long they’ve been doing SEO and what sort of history they have in working with firms like yours.
• Knowledge: An SEO expert should be able to describe, in plain language you can understand, the specific action steps you’ll need to take to get more traffic to your website.
• Testimonials: You should be able to find plenty of positive reviews and testimonials online with insights from actual clients to help you get a better sense of what you can expect out of your relationship with the SEO expert.
• Genuine interest: Your SEO expert should take a genuine interest in your firm and its success. It’s a good sign if they ask you a lot of questions, especially about issues you might not have previously considered to be relevant. They should approach SEO for your firm from many different directions.

Red flags

• Bottom barrel prices: If the prices seem too good to be true, it’s probably because they are. Don’t get tempted by extremely cheap prices—you get what you pay for with SEO services.
• Lack of transparency: If it feels like the company is attempting to hide the processes it uses, or if they don’t take the effort to ask questions or explain things to you, this is a sign that the business should not be trusted with your SEO.
• Guarantees of success: Any trustworthy SEO expert will avoid making promises or guarantees of specific successes, especially within a short time. SEO takes time, effort and consistency. Don’t be swayed by empty promises of guaranteed rankings.
• Poor communication: If it’s difficult to communicate with the SEO expert or you find they respond poorly to your feedback or questions, you should look elsewhere for your SEO services.

SEO doesn’t have to be a daunting task for your law firm; follow these tips to help you find a company in which you can place your trust for your digital marketing endeavors.