Finding the right SEO agency can be a difficult task. Just go to Google and you'll see there are plenty of SEO firms making all kinds of promises.

Some of these companies tried to explode loopholes that take advantage of Google's algorithms, but it was quickly closed by Google. Exploiting loopholes will not provide you with long terms results and Google will get rid of sites that violate their rules

A reputable SEO company will strictly work according the guidelines set out by Google and will effectively optimize your website to improve your rankings in search engines.

Here are some tips and things to look out for:

1) Guarantees The #1 Spot in Google

SEO is like good wine and it takes time to see results. Any company that claims they can guarantee results in a short period of time are not telling the truth.

Although no one can guarantee search engine ranking results, it's reasonable to predict that your search traffic can increase for 'medium' competition search terms within 3 months and for more competitive terms within 6 months.

2) Look for a Track Record

A good SEO agency should be able to show you examples of websites they have optimized and the search terms they have worked on.

3) SEO Agency Should Provide You with a Statement of Work

You should be wary of companies that are unwilling to tell you exactly what SEO techniques they're going to use to promote your company. If you do not understand something ask them to explain it to you.

You are responsible for the actions of the seo agency you use, and, if they use techniques Google disapproves of, your site could removed from Google's index.

4) Do They Use Link Farms To Build Links

Although backlinks play an important role in SEO it won't mean much if they come from link farms which can cause a lot of trouble. Link farms consist of sites that serves no real purpose other than to provide links to other sites.

Unlike natural links that links to related information, sites that build links through the use of link farms contain links to unrelated sites.

Google hates link farms so it’s important to try and get natural links that are similar to your own site. If you have a dog training site for example, it would be natural to attract more links from other dog related sites and those links would help to improve your rankings.

But, if the only links you had was from sites like debt consolidation and golf for example it would look a little suspicious in Google’s eyes.

With a little help, you can start to overcome all of these issues. Check out our plan on How to dominate your market to see what we advise.