Ask for the SEO line to be itemised: titles, redirects from old pages, Webmaster Tools, listings, content. Then ask what will be measured, from what starting point, and what happens after launch.

A line between hosting and training

A website quote arrives with a dozen lines: design, development, content entry, contact forms, hosting, training. Somewhere among them is one called SEO setup, with a price and nothing else.

SEO, search engine optimisation, is the work of helping a site appear when people search for what the business does. The term covers so much that a single line can mean almost anything.

A second quote has the same line at several times the price. A third does not mention SEO at all.

There is no way to compare them, or to know what you are buying, until somebody says what the line contains.

What one line can mean

The third matters most in a redesign. Old pages that rank keep their standing only if their addresses lead to the new pages; otherwise searchers land on an error and the standing fades.

Ask for the list

Ask the designer to replace the line with a list: what will be done, by whom, and by when. A good web company will do it readily, because it already knows.

Ask who writes the words. Much of what helps a page appear in search is in the text itself, and if the quote assumes you will supply it, the SEO line may cover very little.

Ask whether the work is done before launch, at launch or afterwards, and which parts cost extra if you want more later.

Protecting what the old site earned

A business replacing an existing site has something to lose, and the quote should show how it will be kept.

That means a list of the old site's addresses with a matching new address for each, and permanent redirects set up on launch day.

It means Webmaster Tools set up under the business's own Google account, so error reports after launch reach someone who will act.

And it means checking that the new site is not still blocking search engines, a setting often switched on while a site is being built and occasionally left on at launch.

Building something new

The rest of SEO is about earning a place the site does not have yet, and it is slower.

Service pages that answer the questions customers ask before they call, in the words they use. A Google My Business listing that is verified, complete and consistent with the site. Photos of real work.

This part needs the business's knowledge and time. A quote that promises it for a small fixed price, with no questions asked of you, is probably not delivering much of it.

A starting point to measure from

Ask what will be measured, and record where things stand before launch: which searches bring visitors now, how many enquiries the site produces in a month, and which pages they come from.

Webmaster Tools shows the searches a site appears for, and Analytics shows what visitors did. Without a record from before, nobody can say later whether anything improved.

Be wary of reports built around a list of keywords chosen by the supplier. Rankings for phrases nobody searches look impressive and pay nothing. Enquiries are the measure that matters.

A worked example

A small wind turbine installer puts up turbines for farms, rural homes and off-grid properties, and services the ones it has installed.

It asked three web companies for quotes. Two included a line called SEO setup, one at a few hundred dollars and one at several times that. The third did not mention SEO.

Asked for detail, the cheaper line turned out to mean page titles and a sitemap. The dearer one added redirects for the old site's pages, Webmaster Tools, the Google listing, and rewriting the service pages around the questions buyers ask.

The third company said those things were part of building any site properly, and listed them when asked.

The deciding question was the old site's page on site assessment, which explained tower height, wind and setbacks, and brought in a steady share of enquiries from search.

Only two quotes had a plan to redirect it, and only one had a plan to improve it.

The installer chose on that basis, and asked for a short report a month after launch showing the redirects working and the main pages indexed.

After launch

Search engines take weeks to settle after a redesign. Errors show up in Webmaster Tools as visitors and crawlers hit old addresses that were missed.

Ask who watches for those in the first month and fixes them, and whether that is included.

Then ask what ongoing work, if any, the quote assumes. A monthly fee should come with a monthly list of what was done, not only a report of what happened.

Lines to question

Guaranteed first-page rankings. Nobody controls Google's results, and the guarantee usually covers phrases nobody searches.

Submission to hundreds of search engines, and meta keywords, a hidden tag Google has ignored for years.

A page for every town in the region with the same text and the name changed. Google said earlier this month that it will soon adjust rankings to target exactly those doorway pages.

And links bought in bulk from directories nobody visits, which can do harm rather than good.

The counter-case

A small site in a narrow field with few competitors may need only the basics, done properly at launch: titles, redirects, Webmaster Tools and a verified listing.

Ongoing monthly work can wait until there is a reason for it, such as a new service or a competitor moving in. Paying monthly for reports nobody reads helps nobody.

But the basics are not optional, and they should be written down. Ask for the line to be itemised, measured from a starting point, and followed up after launch.

Questions to send back

  1. Ask for the line as an itemised list.
  2. Ask who writes the page text.
  3. Ask for a redirect plan covering every old page.
  4. Ask whose account holds Webmaster Tools and Analytics.
  5. Record today's enquiries and search visits.
  6. Ask what happens in the month after launch.
  7. Question any guarantee of rankings.

Step three is the one that protects what the business already has. A new site that loses the old site's standing in search starts behind, however good it looks.

Why a page for every town can count against a site is covered in Google takes aim at doorway pages.

Frequently asked questions

What does SEO setup in a quote mean?

Anything from page titles and a sitemap to redirects, Webmaster Tools, listings and rewritten service pages. The only way to know is to ask for the line to be itemised.

Why do redirects matter in a redesign?

Old pages that rank keep that standing only if their addresses lead to the new pages. Without redirects, searchers hit errors and the standing the old site earned fades.

Who should own Webmaster Tools and Analytics?

The business, under its own Google account, with the web company added as a user. That way error reports and figures stay with you if suppliers change.

How should SEO work be measured?

Record before launch which searches bring visitors, how many enquiries arrive each month and from which pages. Judge later by enquiries, not by rankings for keywords the supplier chose.

Is a ranking guarantee a good sign?

No. Nobody controls Google's results, and guarantees usually cover phrases nobody searches. Treat it, along with mass search engine submission, as a reason to ask more questions.

Do I need monthly SEO work?

Not always. A small site in a narrow field may need only the basics done well at launch, with ongoing work added when there is a reason for it.

West Coast Media Solutions Inc. provides web design, web development, hosting, digital marketing, and business consulting to organisations across Canada, drawing on more than twenty-five years in the field.

A quote with an SEO line?

Send it to us. We will tell you what the line should include and which questions to ask before you sign.

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