Quick answer: how do you vet an SEO expert?
Ask them to explain a problem on your own site in plain language, ask what they would not do and why, request examples of past work you can verify, and check that they will give you access to everything they change. Google's guide to hiring an SEO suggests asking for examples of previous work, how they measure success, and what experience they have in your industry and location, and warns against anyone who guarantees rankings.
Why vetting an individual is different from vetting a company
When you hire an agency, you buy a process and a team. When you hire an individual expert or consultant, you buy one person's judgment, so that judgment is what you test. The best evidence is how they think about your situation, not how polished their proposal looks. Thirty minutes spent on the right questions will tell you more than any portfolio.
The questions that reveal real expertise
Google's own list of questions to ask an SEO is a sensible start. These go a step further, because they are hard to answer well without experience.
"Looking at my site, what would you check first, and why?"
A real expert asks for your Search Console data and talks about specifics. A salesperson talks about their services.
"What would you not do on my site?"
Experienced people have strong views on what wastes money. If everything is a good idea, nothing is being prioritized.
"How would you tell a Google update from a technical problem?"
Listen for timing, update dates, the shape of the decline in Search Console, and checking the indexing reports.
"How will we measure whether this worked?"
Good answers mention a baseline, leads and calls, and a realistic timeframe. Weak answers mention "rankings" in general.
"Who will actually do the work?"
With an individual, the answer should be them. If it is a subcontractor, you deserve to know.
"Tell me about something that did not work."
Everyone who has done this for long has a story. Someone with no failures has either not done much or is not being straight.
Proof worth requesting, and proof worth ignoring
Not all evidence is equal. Some of it can be checked, and some of it cannot.
| Worth asking for | Treat with caution |
|---|---|
| Sites they have worked on that you can look up yourself | Screenshots of traffic graphs with no site name or dates |
| A reference you can call who hired them for a similar problem | Testimonials with no name or business attached |
| A sample audit or report, anonymized if necessary | Third-party "authority" scores presented as Google metrics |
| Their own writing or talks that show how they think | Award badges you cannot trace to an organization |
| A clear explanation of a problem on your site, for free, before you commit | Promises of positions, traffic numbers or dates |
A note on client results: experts often cannot name clients because of confidentiality, and that is fair. But they should be able to explain the problem, what they did and what happened, in enough detail that you can tell it is real.
Run a small paid test before a big commitment
The safest way to hire an expert is to start with a small, defined piece of work with a fixed price: an audit of your top pages, a diagnosis of a specific drop, or a review of your current provider's plan. You learn how they communicate, whether their findings make sense, and whether they deliver on time, all before any larger decision. A confident expert welcomes this. Someone who insists on a twelve-month contract before showing any work is telling you something.
Red flags that should end the conversation
- Guaranteed rankings. Google says no one can guarantee a top ranking. Anyone promising one is guessing or planning tactics that break Google's rules.
- A "special relationship" with Google. Google says there is no priority submission and no special access for SEOs.
- Secret methods. If they will not tell you what they will change on your site, do not let them change it.
- Link packages. Hundreds of links for a fixed price usually means paid or network links that violate Google's spam policies.
- They want to own your accounts. Your Search Console, analytics, Business Profile and domain should be in your name, with access granted to them.
- Pressure and urgency. Countdown discounts and "only two spots left" are sales tactics, not expertise.
- No questions about your business. If they pitch before asking what you sell, who buys it and where, they are selling a package.
A simple vetting scorecard
Score each candidate from 0 to 2 on each line after your first call.
| Criterion | 0 | 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Explained my specific problem | Generic pitch | Specific, data-based explanation |
| Said what they would not do | Everything is a priority | Clear priorities and exclusions |
| Verifiable evidence of past work | None, or unverifiable | Sites, references or samples I can check |
| Measurement plan | "Rankings will go up" | Baseline, leads, realistic timeframe |
| Ownership and access | Vague or they keep accounts | Everything in my name |
| Pricing clarity | Open-ended or unclear | Fixed scope and price in writing |
Anyone scoring under 8 out of 12 deserves a second look before you sign. Hold us to the same scorecard.