1. Start small and scale up later
When an SEO agency is just starting out, it can take some time to develop a groove and discover which types of projects are truly the best fits.
This is often easiest to do while working with smaller companies, startups, and local businesses.
Such companies may have smaller budgets, but they also bring a lot of potential to the table — something a growing SEO agency could really use.
Use these initial projects to build a reputation and grow your body of work. Then, when you’re ready, use that experience to land more prominent clients who can really boost your MRR (monthly recurring revenue).
2. Turn your site into a content machine
Many agency owners spend so much energy worrying about how to get SEO clients to trust them with their companies that they completely forget to invest in their own websites.
Your agency’s website is the best tool you have in your arsenal, so make it everything it needs to be to drive targeted traffic.
Use your own stellar SEO skills to propel your key pages to the top of the SERPs.
Fill your on-site blog with compelling, informative content written to serve the types of clients you’d like to have.
Keep your sales funnel in mind as you do so, and be sure to create content for leads in various stages of their unique buyers’ journeys.
3. Entice leads with free SEO audits
Spend much time networking with other service providers in the SEO niche, and you’ll see just how many agencies and marketing pros absolutely refuse to do free work under any circumstances.
However, while that might make sense on paper, those agencies are missing out on a golden opportunity to connect with highly convertible potential clients.
Offering new clients a free SEO audit is a terrific way to break the ice with them, introduce them to your services, and show them what your team can do.
The average SEO client may know they need help, but they don’t really know how badly.
An audit can clue them in, as well as provide the perfect opportunity for you to explain how you’ll fix things.
4. Leverage your LinkedIn presence
LinkedIn can be an absolute godsend when it comes to how to get serious SEO clients to notice your agency.
But it’s important to employ the right technique. After all, every LinkedIn user knows what it’s like to be on the receiving end of someone’s spammy, overzealous outreach attempt, and you don’t want your prospective clients to feel that way about you.
Instead, use your presence there to create and showcase incredible LinkedIn content that informs, entertains, and inspires potential clients.
Set yourself up as an industry authority on SEO, and use your unique brand voice to forge real connections with people who could benefit from your services.
5. Master the art of the pitch
An agency’s go-to pitch technique can really make or break its ability to land high-quality SEO clients, so it’s crucial to get yours right.
Keep in mind that effective pitches accomplish specific objectives like the following:
- They introduce the agency and touch on its accomplishments to show authority.
- They clearly and concisely spotlight each of your abilities and skills.
- They express in detail what work done will entail, as well as outline a clear plan for putting SEO strategies into action.
- They leverage powerful case studies as social proof that your team can get the job done right.
You may also wish to break your pitch down into portions and present it over a couple of separate calls or consultations to avoid overwhelming a lead with too much information at once.
The first call should be primarily about getting to know the potential client’s company and prime objectives.
Offering a free audit is a solid way to close. Use the follow-up call to counsel the lead on possible strategies and showcase how your agency can help.
6. Consider niching down
Even if you’re running one of the best SEO agencies on the entire web, you can rest assured that you’re far from the only option in town.
However, most of those options will be offering generic, catch-all SEO services that look, sound, and seem just like everybody else’s.
Choosing one or two areas to specialize in is a must when it comes to how to get SEO clients that are perfect fits for your agency.
Niches and specialties help an agency stand out and showcase what its team members are most passionate about.
So what are you best at? Maybe you’re a whiz at creating head-turning guest blogs and penning incredible press releases. Or perhaps you’re a serious ace when it comes to technical SEO or email outreach.
Shine a spotlight on the areas where you do your best work, and watch the potential clients line up around the block.
7. Cultivate beneficial partnerships
Running a successful agency is about more than knowing how to get SEO clients to sign on with you in the first place.
It’s about cooking up a viable strategy for scaling what you do in innovative ways that genuinely benefit your clients. Partnering with other businesses is one way to do this.
SEO services often go hand-in-hand with related options like graphic design, copywriting, social media marketing, and web development.
Clients looking for one of those services often find they also need one or more of the others, but no service provider can viably be everything to everyone.
Consider partnering with other digital service providers and referring clients around to one another when it makes sense to do so.
Offer a commission or other incentive as a show of good faith, and watch your client base (not to mention your professional network) grow.
It’s a win for everyone involved, especially the clients.
8. Embrace opportunities to educate online
How to get SEO clients that love what you do and are likely to stay with you over the long haul is all about winning people’s trust and proving that you know your stuff.
One of the more effective ways to do that is to become an online thought leader by seeking out and leveraging online opportunities to share what you know.
You don’t necessarily need to be a major internet personality with a huge following to make a splash this way, either. You just need to know your stuff and be willing to share it.
Information-sharing social platforms like Reddit, Quora, or Medium make incredible options for would-be thought leaders, as they come with built-in audiences who are already engaged and looking to learn a thing or two.
Share content that speaks to your expertise, as well as engage with the rest of the community to maximize your results.
9. Implement a solid email outreach strategy
No strategy for generating leads or attracting new clients can possibly be considered complete without email outreach.
Email has been around nearly as long as the internet itself, and it remains one of the most popular, practical ways for brands to stay in touch with both existing and potential customers.
There are many ways to open up an email correspondence with a lead. Some companies have good luck with a cold email approach, but most get even better results implementing an opt-in strategy.
This way, you know you’re dealing with highly convertible people who have already shown an active interest in your work.
There are many ways to capture emails for your list, including exit pop-ups that prompt website visitors to subscribe before they leave and informative blog posts that end with clear calls-to-action.
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