One company has an attractive site but no specific page for a service customers search for. Another already attracts visits, yet its inquiry form fails on phones. Both receive too little business, but need different repairs. Start by finding where the customer journey breaks.
SEO helps search engines discover, understand and present content for relevant searches. It does not purchase first place. Google explains that nobody can guarantee the top position and paid advertising does not improve organic rankings.
From discovery to a customer
A search engine first needs to discover an address and access its content. It then decides about indexing and when to show it. An impression is not a click, and a click is not a sale. Google's SEO Starter Guide covers the foundations.
Ask four questions:
- Does a page answer the need for this service or product?
- Can the search engine access and process it?
- Can a person recognise its relevance from the result?
- After clicking, can they make a decision and complete the next step?
Domain age alone does not explain quality. A short visit is not automatically bad: someone may quickly find the telephone number. One analytics metric cannot tell you how Google assessed a page.
The supplier's first deliverable
Request a baseline: important pages, queries and clicks in Search Console, content availability and actual inquiries. Separate searches for your company name from broader service searches. Increased branded demand after an offline campaign does not establish that an article reached a new audience.
The initial output should list problems, priorities, owners and verification steps. "Improve SEO" is not a task. "Remove accidental indexing restrictions on the service page and check access" is. See the technical checklist.
Content follows the offer
A local accounting practice needs to explain whom it serves, what is included, how clients submit documents and what affects pricing. Ten general blog posts do not replace this foundation.
Assign an important topic a main page. Additional articles need a useful role, such as explaining a procedure or comparing options. Slight variations of a query do not require several nearly identical pages. Use actual customer questions and verifiable experience as inputs.
Worked example: A useful article answers a specific question
ORIGINAL EXAMPLE · FICTIONAL DATA
| Article element | Example copy |
|---|---|
| Headline | What to prepare before a bike service |
| Answer | Describe the fault and provide the bike type. |
| Detail | Say whether it recurs when braking. |
| Next step | View repair services and request a time |
Content supports a fictional service; no invented traffic results.
When should results appear?
A repaired redirect helps visitors as soon as it is deployed. Search systems still need to process changes, and a new content section may need longer observation. A schedule promising growth in month three and stable positions in month nine is neither a guarantee nor a universal sequence.
Agree work-delivery and evaluation dates. Ask what signal the supplier expects, why and what changes if it does not appear. Blaming an algorithm without inspecting pages and queries is not a diagnosis.
My SEO prices
| Scope | Price | Coverage |
|---|---|---|
| SEO care | €200 per month | Up to 3 hours of checks and small priority changes |
| SEO Growth | from €320 per month | Active technical and content work by priority |
| SEO audit and plan | from €400 once | Review, keyword research and repair plan |
| Custom SEO | from €600 per month | Larger or competitive projects, scoped individually |
These are my offers, not market averages. The SEO service provides details. Separate audit, implementation, new content and maintenance when comparing quotes. An undefined low-price package cannot be compared meaningfully with an explicit work plan.
Google does not charge for an organic click, but content, development and operations have costs. Advertising is not automatically a worse investment. The SEO and PPC comparison discusses timing, margin and measurement.
A useful monthly report
Connect completed changes with observed results and the next decision. Track relevant clicks, pages and queries, suitable inquiries and closed business. Average position or article count alone is insufficient.
Worked example: An SEO report reaches the enquiry
illustrative example
| Layer | Value | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Service-page clicks | 240 | Search Console: URL filter |
| Visits from search | 210 | Analytics: same page |
| Received enquiries | 9 | Forms + call records |
| Qualified enquiries | 6 | Manual customer-need review |
Illustrative numbers, not promised results; the last two require sales records.
Avoid large conclusions from small samples. Check seasonality and measurement changes. A call is not necessarily a new job, and a submitted form may be spam. The business handling contacts must contribute their quality assessment.
Warning signs in an offer
Question guaranteed first positions, vague backlink bundles and reports without specific work. Request explanations of data sources and access to your own accounts. A relevant trade profile may be useful; bulk directory submissions are not automatically valuable SEO.
Before buying, identify three offers you want to sell, capacity for new customers and how you record inquiries. Then choose the first useful intervention. Regional businesses should also consider local SEO and business profiles before a website investment.