Choosing the right SEO agency is an important business decision. You’re investing time, budget, and trust, with the expectation of gaining visibility, driving leads, and growing revenue. But SEO is not an overnight process, it often takes months to see measurable results.
This leaves many business owners wondering:
👉 “Is my SEO agency really doing the right work?
👉 *How do I track whether their strategies are effective?”
The good news is: there are clear signs and measurable checkpoints to evaluate whether your agency is actually taking you in the right direction. Let’s go through them step by step.
# Understand the SEO Process
A genuine SEO agency will always explain their process upfront. SEO involves multiple layers:
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Research:Â Identifying relevant keywords and competitors
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On-Page Optimization:Â Optimizing meta tags, headers, page speed, and content
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Content Strategy:Â Publishing useful, high-quality, and original content
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Link Building:Â Naturally attracting quality inbound links
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Monitoring & Adjusting:Â Tracking performance and refining strategies
If your agency is vague or avoids discussing their approach, it’s a red flag. A trustworthy partner ensures you know the “what” and the “why” of every step.
# Check Periodic Analytics
SEO results must be backed by data. Ask for periodic reports (weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly) through tools like Google Analytics, Google Search Console, or SEMrush.
In these reports, look for trends such as:
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Organic traffic growth
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Lower bounce rates (visitors staying longer)
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Increased average session duration
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Conversion patterns (form fills, calls, purchases)
A professional agency won’t just send you a complicated dashboard, they’ll interpret data for you, explaining what worked, what didn’t, and what’s next.
# Track Keyword Rankings
Keyword ranking is one of the clearest signals that SEO is on track. Over time, your website should appear higher in search results for chosen keywords.
👉 Example: If your target keyword is “coworking space marketing”, you should see it move from page 5 to page 1 over a few months.
Don’t expect instant #1 rankings, that usually means shortcuts or black-hat tactics which can hurt you long-term. Instead, look for steady, sustainable improvement across multiple keywords.
# Review Ranked Pages
It’s not just about ranking any pages, but ranking the right pages.
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Are your service pages, landing pages, or product categories improving in search visibility?
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Or is it only blog articles and low-priority pages bringing traffic that doesn’t convert?
A good agency aligns their SEO efforts with your business goals, ranking the pages that actually drive sales, signups, and inquiries.
# Analyze Lead Count and Quality
At the end of the day, SEO is about leads and revenue. You should measure:
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Increase in overall inquiry volume (calls, emails, form fills)
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Quality of leads are they from your target audience or random irrelevant inquiries?
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Conversion rate improvements
If you’re only seeing traffic but no meaningful leads, your agency needs to refine its keyword targeting, content strategy, or landing page optimization.
# Monitor Spam Score
Not all backlinks are good backlinks. Low-quality or spammy links can actually damage your domain authority. Tools like Moz Spam Score can help you check if your site is at risk.
A good agency carefully builds backlinks from authoritative, relevant websites instead of buying cheap bulk links. If your spam score is climbing, it’s time for an audit.
# Presence on Search Engines
Google dominates, but don’t ignore other platforms. Your business should:
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Appear in Bing, Yahoo, and DuckDuckGo searches
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Show up in map listings (Google Maps, Apple Maps, etc.)
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Be properly optimized on Google Business Profile for local visibility
Local SEO is a critical piece, especially if you serve specific cities or regions. If your agency misses this part, you’re losing potential customers.
# Check Web Content for Plagiarism
Search engines penalize duplicated content. Tools like Copyscape or Grammarly can quickly check if your site content is unique.
A proactive agency ensures your content is:
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Plagiarism-free and original
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Well-structured and user-friendly
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Regularly updated to match algorithm changes and user intent
Unique, high-value content builds trust and authority, which is vital for long term SEO success.
# Analyze Inbound and Outbound Links
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Inbound links (backlinks):Â Should come from trusted sources in your niche. For example, a coworking business gaining a backlink from a real estate blog is highly relevant.
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Outbound links:Â Should go to reliable references (industry leaders, research reports, government sites) and complement your content strategy.
A balanced approach to links shows Google and your audience that your content is credible and well connected.
# Quality of Images
Many businesses ignore images in SEO, but they matter. Optimized visuals improve both user experience and search rankings.
Your agency should ensure that images have:
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Alt text with keywords, for better indexing
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Compressed sizes for fast page loading
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High resolution for professionalism
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Relevance to the content topic
Images that are too heavy or irrelevant can drive users away even before they read your content.
How RankArise Ensures You’re Moving in the Right Direction
At RankArise, we believe SEO should be transparent, measurable, and directly connected to business results. That’s why we go beyond “just rankings.”
Here’s how we help clients:
âś… Educating you on the SEO process (clear action plan, no jargon).
✅ Providing detailed but simplified analytic reports with actionable insights.
âś… Tracking and improving keyword positions consistently.
âś… Aligning SEO with real business goals ranking high-value pages.
✅ Evaluating leads not just by numbers, but by quality and relevance.
âś… Monitoring spam score and detoxifying harmful backlinks.
✅ Strengthening presence across search engines, maps, and local directories.
✅ Publishing 100% unique, plagiarism-free content.
âś… Building healthy inbound and outbound link ecosystems.
âś… Optimizing site visuals from images to speed for a better user experience.
Our mission is simple: turn online visibility into business growth. We don’t just bring traffic; we bring customers who matter.
🚀 If you’re unsure whether your current SEO efforts are leading toward growth, let RankArise audit your website and show you the path to sustainable success.
Contact us today, and let’s move your SEO in the right direction.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
1. How long does it take to see results from SEO?
SEO is a long-term investment. Typically, you can start seeing noticeable improvements in traffic and rankings within 3 to 6 months, depending on your industry, competition, and website history. Faster results may indicate risky shortcuts, while sustainable SEO usually requires patience and consistency.
2. What is a good spam score for my website?
A spam score between 0% to 30% is generally safe. Anything above 40% means your site may have harmful backlinks that could damage your ranking. At RankArise, we keep your spam score low by building only high quality, niche relevant backlinks.
3. How many keywords should I track?
Instead of chasing 100s of random keywords, focus on a mix of 10 to 50 high-value keywords closely aligned with your services, local market, and customer intent. Over time, your site will also start ranking for long-tail keywords naturally.
4. What’s the difference between website traffic and lead quality?
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Traffic = Number of visitors landing on your site.
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Lead Quality = How many of those visitors are actually interested in your product/service.
For example, if you sell coworking spaces, website visitors from another country may not be useful leads. A good SEO agency focuses on attracting the right audience, not just boosting numbers.
5. Why is unique content so important for SEO?
Google values original, helpful, and updated content. If your website has duplicate or AI-generated low-value content, it may get penalized. Unique content builds authority, trust, and ranking power. At RankArise, all content is plagiarism free and written with a focus on users first.
6. Does image optimization really affect SEO?
Yes! Images that are too large slow down websites, which hurts rankings. On the other hand, well-optimized images with alt text descriptions help improve search visibility and enhance user experience. SEO is as much about usability as it is about keywords.
7. How often should I get SEO reports?
Most reliable agencies provide monthly SEO reports, but for highly competitive industries, weekly updates may also be useful. These reports should cover traffic trends, keyword performance, conversions, and any issues that need fixing. Transparency is key.
Final Thoughts
Monitoring your SEO journey requires attention to detail, but the key signs keyword rankings, traffic growth, spam score, and lead quality make it clear whether your investment is worth it.
At RankArise, we take a transparent, growth-driven approach to SEO. Our clients always know what’s happening, why it matters, and how it’s fueling their business growth.
🚀 Want an expert review of your current SEO performance?
Contact RankArise today for a detailed SEO audit and start moving in the right direction!