Hiring An MSP SEO Company?
When speaking to MSP leaders, the topic of MSP SEO often comes up, and I hear many MSP leaders say that SEO for MSPs is impracticable and it is not worth it to go through the trouble to make it practicable. MSP leaders often talk about the significant amount of competition in their service area and how difficult it can be to land on the first page itself, let alone landing a 1-3 on the first page.
MSP SEO: What Is It?
MSP SEO is the act of leveraging a search engine as a means to direct traffic to your MSP's website. One of the important things to remember is that you want to generate traffic from your targeted audience. You do not want just any casual web surfer to land on your website because you want to land someone who is in need of the type of Managed IT Services that you are providing. Ultimately, you want those targeted website visitors to browse your website and complete your contact form to begin the sales process, and you want to do it without spending thousands of dollars on ads. That is MSP SEO.
Search engine optimization continues to be incredibly important. Landing on the first page of a search engine is the ultimate advertisement for your services, but landing on the first page and staying there is a complex process that has become significantly difficult in recent years. More and more people are claiming to be SEO experts, showcasing some tips and tricks that only they can use to get your website to the top of search engine results.
A few minor adjustments to your website will not lead to you landing on the first page of a search engine. Algorithm advancements are on the rise, and that makes up some of the power of search engines. To obtain a high ranking, your website needs to offer tangible value to the users who are searching for your Managed Services.
What Questions Should You Ask an MSP SEO Agency?
The use of an effective keyword strategy is essential to have your MSP website rank highly in search engines. When your MSP focuses on content marketing, you can give the MSP an edge over your competitors. An MSP SEO agency can have a significant impact in helping your MSP obtain more leads through the creation of high-quality and relatable content.
Here are a few questions to ask before you choose to partner with an MSP SEO agency:
What Strategies Will Be Used To Deliver High-Quality Results?
An effective MSP SEO strategy consists of various categories: An experienced and professional MSP SEO agency will understand how important it is to leverage the major categories and use all of them to improve your MSP website's rankings.
How Will My Goals Be Met?
Every MSP is unique and each one will have its own measurement of success, so it is important for an MSP SEO agency to have a plan that will meet your specific goals. It is also a good idea to understand the ways an MSP SEO agency can improve your search engine rankings.
How Has SEO Changed Recently?
Asking how an MSP SEO agency stays up-to-date with its tactics and strategies is a good place to start, but it is important for you to know how SEO has changed. An MSP SEO agency can tell you everything they have learned over the years, but will you understand what they are telling you? However, this is still an important question to ask because it gives you the opportunity to have these questions addressed:
- Does the MSP SEO agency have a timeline of any recent Google changes in regard to the search engine?
- Can the MSP SEO agency explain how the recent changes have changed the way they do SEO?
- Can the MSP SEO agency explain this to you in a manner you can easily understand?
How Do You Choose the Keywords?
To choose the target keywords, experienced MSP SEO agencies will use a combination of the following:
- Relevance
- Intent
- Traffic volumes
- Level of competition
You want to partner with an MSP SEO agency that will focus on more categories than the level of traffic. SEO for your MSP should not be about landing the highest amount of traffic — it should be about having the most targeted traffic.
Relevance of the keywords to your MSP is vital, but it is important that you place yourself in the shoes of the person who will be making the online search. Is that person likely to be in a high or low position in the marketing funnel? The level of competition is also important. Even if a keyword phrase results in a heavy amount of traffic volume, will it do your MSP any good if you cannot rank for it?
What Does Your Link-Building Process Consist Of?
This question is incredibly important because you do not want to partner with an MSP SEO agency that uses a poor link-building strategy because this will not only result in you wasting your money, but it could result in penalties. You want an MSP SEO agency to understand the following:
- You want to have links that are relevant to your MSP services
- You want to have links that are built-in naturally
- You want the tactics and strategies to be relevant and valid
- You do not want to use any link-building strategies that will result in penalties
How Long Will It Take to See Positive Results?
Any SEO plan is going to take some time, and it will not happen overnight. However, an experienced agency can give you an estimate, as it usually takes a few months to start seeing results. Your MSP could also experience faster results if your website was experiencing low rankings because of technical issues. The SEO agency will locate the technical issues and correct any issues that could have impacted your SEO ranking.
While it may seem frightening to ask different MSP SEO providers key questions, asking the right questions before a partnership begins will place you in a better position to achieve success. If you want to know what a successful SEO strategy can look like for your MSP, contact us.
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