Key takeaways
- When you decide what to ask SEO consultants, make the questions about your site, not their credentials. A good consultant answers with a method; a weak one answers with a promise.
- Ask how they would find out why a page isn’t indexed. The answer shows in a minute whether they work from Google’s own data.
- Good answers to technical questions match Google’s documentation, for example that relevance comes before page experience and that AI Overviews need no special optimisation.
- Ask who does the analysis, how hours are billed and what your developer will receive. Vague answers here cost money later.
- One honest answer is worth more than the rest: when would they tell you that you don’t need them?
If you are working out what to ask SEO consultants before you hire one, start with questions that make them think about your site out loud. Credentials, case-study slides and tool logos are easy to prepare. A clear answer to “what would you look at first on my site, and why?” is not.
I have worked in SEO for more than 16 years and I have been on both sides of these conversations: asked the questions by prospects, and asking them myself when clients want a second opinion on another provider. Below are 21 questions in four groups, each with the kind of answer I would want to hear and the kind that should worry you.
These questions are about skill and judgement. For contract terms, ownership and exit, use my 12 questions to ask before you sign with an SEO company. Google also publishes its own short list in Do you need an SEO?, including whether they follow the Google Search Essentials and “How do you measure your success?”. Ask those too.
How to choose a good SEO consultant: what the questions test
Every question below tests one of three things:
- Method. Can they explain how they would find a problem, rather than guessing at it?
- Honesty. Do they say “it depends” when it does, and explain on what?
- Fit. Will the way they work suit your team, your developer and your budget?
You don’t need to understand every technical detail of the answer. Listen for whether it is specific, whether it names a source of data and whether it admits limits.
What to ask SEO consultants about your site
| # | Question | Answer you want | Answer that should worry you |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | What would you look at first on my site, and why? | A short list tied to your goal: indexing, key pages, a recent drop | A generic audit pitch, the same for every site |
| 2 | What data and access do you need? | Search Console and analytics at the lowest useful level; logs if the site is large | Your admin password, or no data at all |
| 3 | How do you decide what to fix first? | Impact on pages that bring business, weighed against effort | “We fix everything in the audit” |
| 4 | Can I see an anonymised past deliverable? | An audit, ticket or report with reasoning you can follow | Only a slide of traffic graphs without context |
| 5 | How will we know if a change worked? | A baseline before, a date, and what will be compared after | “You’ll see rankings go up” |
Question 4 is the one I would never skip. A deliverable shows how a consultant thinks far better than a sales call does. If the recommendations in it have no reasons attached, yours won’t either.
Question 5 separates people who measure from people who claim. A good answer names the data (Search Console, analytics, a ranking check) and the timeframe. The SEO rank tracking I set up for clients starts with exactly that baseline.
Questions that test technical judgement
| # | Question | Answer you want | Answer that should worry you |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | Why might one of our pages not be indexed? | “I’d check it with URL Inspection and the Page indexing report, then look at the reason given” | A guess, or “submit it again” |
| 7 | How much do Core Web Vitals matter for us? | They count, but relevance comes first; fix templates that fail first | “Speed is the most important ranking factor” |
| 8 | What would you need to plan a redesign or migration? | A URL inventory, a redirect map and a pre-launch test | “Just set up a few redirects after launch” |
| 9 | What do we need to do for AI Overviews? | The same fundamentals: indexable, helpful pages that can show with a snippet | A special “AI optimisation” package with secret methods |
| 10 | How would you get us links? | Earned mentions and partnerships, each one visible to you | A number of links per month |
On question 7, Google’s page experience documentation says that “Core Web Vitals are used by our ranking systems”, and also that “Google Search always seeks to show the most relevant content, even if the page experience is sub-par.” A consultant who puts speed above everything else hasn’t read that page. One who dismisses it hasn’t either.
On question 9, Google’s guide to AI features and your website says: “There are no additional requirements to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode, nor other special optimizations necessary.” A page must be “indexed and eligible to be shown in Google Search with a snippet.” Good consultants can still help here, by making content clearer and easier to cite, but they shouldn’t sell it as a separate secret.
On question 8, the full answer is longer than a call allows. My article on what drives the cost of migration SEO lists the steps that should never be cut.
Questions about content and the business
| # | Question | Answer you want | Answer that should worry you |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Which searches are worth winning for us? | Searches tied to your products or services and their value to you | Only high-volume keywords, whatever the intent |
| 12 | Will you write content, brief it or edit ours? | A clear answer, and who checks facts | “Our writers handle it” with no review step |
| 13 | What is your view on AI-written content? | Fine if it is accurate, reviewed and adds value; risky at scale | “We publish hundreds of AI pages a month” |
| 14 | How will SEO connect to leads or sales? | Conversions tracked in analytics, per page or page type | Traffic is the only measure offered |
| 15 | What should we not spend money on? | A specific answer about your site | “Everything we offer is essential” |
Question 13 matters more every year. Google’s guidance on using generative AI content warns that using it to “generate many pages without adding value for users may violate Google’s spam policy on scaled content abuse”, and tells publishers to “focus on accuracy, quality, and relevance.” The answer you want sits close to that: a tool is fine, unreviewed volume is not.
Question 15 is my favourite. A consultant who can name something you shouldn’t buy, even from them, is telling you they care about the result more than the invoice.
Questions about how they work
| # | Question | Answer you want | Answer that should worry you |
|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | Will you do the analysis yourself? | Yes, or the named person who will | “Our team” with no names |
| 17 | How do you bill, and how will I see the hours? | A clear rate model and a record of time or deliverables | A package name that hides what you get |
| 18 | What will my developer receive from you? | Written tickets: the problem, the fix and how to test it | Verbal advice on calls |
| 19 | How do we communicate, and how quickly do you reply? | A named channel and a realistic response time | “Whenever you need us” with nothing in writing |
| 20 | How much of our time will this need? | An honest estimate of your team’s hours | “Nothing, we do it all” |
| 21 | When would you tell me I don’t need you? | A real example: small site, simple fix, the basics done well | “Every business needs ongoing SEO” |
Question 20 is often forgotten. Most SEO work ends with someone on your side changing a page, a template or a server setting. If a consultant says you won’t need to do anything, either they will need full access to everything or the work won’t get implemented.
The answer that tells you most is the one where a consultant explains why you might not need them.
Google’s own hiring page supports question 21: it says that a small local business can probably do much of the work itself, starting with Google’s SEO Starter Guide. A consultant who says the same thing when it is true is one you can trust with the bigger jobs.
How to find a good SEO consultant to ask in the first place
The questions only work if you ask them of people worth talking to. Shortlist two or three consultants whose own writing or talks explain how they work, then ask the same questions of each and compare the answers side by side.
Scoring the answers
- Specific to your site, not a script
- Names a data source (Search Console, analytics, logs)
- Matches what Google’s documentation says
- Admits what can’t be promised
- Gives you something in writing afterwards
You won’t get through all 21 questions in a short first call. Pick the five that matter most for your situation and send the rest by email. My guide to preparing for an SEO consultation explains what to bring so the first call goes further.
How I answer these questions myself
I expect to be asked all 21, and I am happy to answer them in writing. In short: I do the analysis myself, I charge by the hour with no fixed packages, my recommendations go to your team as written tickets with the reasoning and a way to test them, and I will tell you when a problem is small enough for your developer to handle. My background and certifications are on my profile page, and the SEO consultants page explains how a consulting engagement with onwardSEO is set up.
FAQ
How to choose a good SEO consultant?
Ask each candidate the same questions about your own site and compare the answers. Prefer the one who explains a method, names the data they would use and admits what they can’t promise. Check a past deliverable and talk to a past client if you can.
How to find a good SEO consultant?
Start with referrals and with consultants whose public writing shows how they work. Shortlist two or three, ask them the same questions and judge the answers, not the sales deck. A small paid task, such as a short review of one problem, shows more than any proposal.
What questions should I ask an SEO consultant on the first call?
Pick the five that fit your situation: what they would look at first, what data they need, how they decide priorities, how they would measure success and who does the work. Send the remaining questions by email and ask for written answers.
What answers should make me walk away?
Guaranteed rankings, a number of links per month, secret methods, a request for your admin password and a refusal to explain changes. Google’s own hiring guidance warns against guarantees and secrecy, and those answers usually come together.
If you have a shortlist of SEO consultants and want a second opinion on their answers, or want to put these 21 questions to me, book a call and ask them.
Eugen Platon · SEO consultant with 16+ years in SEO and digital marketing · free 10-minute first call
Eugen Platon
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