#1: Talk About Secrets. Its OK to have them, but to use them as a point of sale in SEO is wrong. If your outfit is great, then plastered throughout their websites copy will be honest declarations about hard work being the only SEO solution.

#2: Forget About the Social. Social networking is tough, and there are some companies out there who earn a lot of money working only the social networks day-in and day-out. Then there are others who dont even touch it. Ideal SEO Agencies should be somewhere in-between those two extremes.

#3: Linkbuild Without Content. Any good company should have someone in-house to generate content for your company, or be able to point you to freelancers who can, or tell you how to create it yourself. Good content is fundamental, and the best agencies will tell you this immediately.

#4: Too Much Up-Sale. Make sure the rates youre paying are the rates you will continue to pay. If theres extra work, any good SEO company should mention those costs and give you a consistent hourly rate (depending on the work). If youre hit with 100 new charges after signing up, cancel.

#5: Stay Open Only From 9 to 5. The fact that SEO is a business that operates entirely online gives the SEO Agencies a remarkable ability to stay open. If they are treating it like a normal workday, be careful”the internet doesnt work like that.

#6: Spam Forums and Comments Sections. Forums and comments are for constructive conversation, not just a place to dump filler and post a link. Not only will this give you a bad reputation amongst webmasters, real agencies know this strategy has very limited returns.

#7: Learn Nothing About Your Business. The reason SEO companies are like yesterdays ad agencies is because they are promoting your business online. If they make no effort to learn about your company and do research, and instead sell you a one-size-fits all plan with no customization, move on.

#8: Refuse to Change. This is built into the business plan of the best SEO Agencies. Search algorithms and consumer behavior change constantly. Look at all the new forums of communication that pop up in a single year online. If your company cant keep up with them, get a new one who can.