SEO Proposal Comparison

When comparing proposals, make sure that your SEO consultant does everything listed. Here is a short list of almost everything we do . . . we do keep some secrets. 

Strategy & Onboarding

• SEO Project Kickoff call 
• Research and select effective keyword phrases 

Website & Rankings Review

• Check Mobile-friendly version of the website exists
• Check homepage for mobile SEO issues
• Make sure Google Analytics is set up and on every page
• Make sure Google Search Console (GSC) is set up
• Submit XML sitemap to Google GSC
• Fetch as Google and submit all linked pages to the index
• Check for any messages or notifications from Google (manual actions or security issues)
• Set up shared user and notification
• Set geographic target area within GSC appropriately
• Merge/sync Google Analytics and GSC
• Make sure schema markup (Local Business) has been applied to the NAP information
• Add Knowledge Graph schema markup
• Add client information and keywords in Advanced Web Ranking (AWR) Reporting
• Setup monthly report in AWR to send to client
• Google SERP for the country targeting in rankings report

Content Analysis & Optimization

• Outline and finalize site architecture and keywords
• Content audit on the website based on selected keywords 
• Check if a law hub exists
• Apply on page optimization
• Recommendation of long form content
• Check for In-depth “About Us” page with mission statement, company directory and other signs of legitimate business
• Robust Contact and/or Customer Service Information
• Fetch as Google and submit all linked pages to the index
• Authoritative outbound links are included in content
• Internal linking has been included within content
• Main content (purpose of page) is not below the fold

Technical SEO

• Exclude traffic from us & firm IP address in Analytics
• Apply custom channel grouping (Level 3 & 4 only)
• Google Analytics: Exclude all hits from known bots/spiders
• Navigation and page copy is visible/functions without JS
• Error pages return error status codes
• All URLs work with HTTP or HTTPS, but not both
• Google Analytics Contact Form Goal Setup
• Google Analytics/Tag Manager Phone Number Click Goal 
• Google Analytics is capturing internal search (if applicable) 
• Run Xenu report and check that all links are functioning
• Google Analytics – Add domain to referral exclusion list
• Google Analytics – Add segment to filter out referral spam 
• Apply update to capture Google Translate usage data
• Run Screaming Frog report 
• Check for redirect chains using Screaming Frog
• Check for duplicate titles and metas using Screaming Frog
• Check for canonical errors using Screaming Frog
• All relevant images have optimized alt tags applied
• No “splash” entry pages/doorway pages
• Internal technical duplicate content check 
• Duplicate content is not returned by other websites 
• Check for multiple URLS parameters with same content
• Hidden text does not exist
• Keyword stuffing does not exist
• iFrames, flash or JS links are not being used on the website
• Confirm no more than 300 links per page exist
• Confirm no more than 25 footer links
• Address clearly listed on each page in header or footer
• Copyright and Blog date stamps are applied
• Use rel=”canonical” for duplicate pages or check that it should be “noindex; nofollow”
• 301 redirects for alternative domain names and old pages
• WWW used only (and the non-www redirects)
• SEO friendly URLs – short, extension less, close to the URL
• htaccess file is established (if on Apache server) 
• Check/setup browser caching for .htaccess 
• Custom 404 error page exists
• Broken URLs redirects to 404 page
• Robots.txt file configured and XML sitemaps are listed
• Make sure a extensive sitemap page is created
• Generate a Sitebeam report
• Site Speed has been checked
• Safe Browsing Site Status Check
  

Content Writing (Initial and Ongoing)

• Initial content writing for the project
• Editing of existing pages on website
• Ongoing content writing for the project 

Link Building & Reporting

• Initial Backlink Analysis
• Run an AWR update after the launch of all new websites
• AWR Baseline Ranking Report
• OpenSiteExplorer.com Baseline Report
• Check for Broken & Lost Links
• Check if business has enough Google reviews to set up review snippet for SERP
• Submit Specified Links
• Submit Local Listings
• Initial Competitor analysis
• Submit General Business Links
• Recommend Paid Listings
• Article Submissions
• Recommend Local Community and relevant sponsorship opportunities
• Check for Brand Mentions
• Assist with HARO setup

Analysis and Consulting

• SEO Content Manager Starts Blogging 
• Quarterly check on campaign keywords
• Periodically check bad backlink profile and disavow
• Quarterly check on mobile speed of website
• Periodically check Online Business Reviews and Ratings 

Social Media

• Google Local/Business Page listing Setup & Claiming
• Google Maps Link is listed on contact/city pages
• Facebook set up and optimized
• Twitter setup
• LinkedIn setup
• Google Publisher setup
• Hootsuite setup (optional)
• Social media pages include Design branding
• All social media icons are present on website
• Provide social media logins & strategies
• Open Graph meta data has been added
• Check if engaging (not just posting) on social media
  

Website Redesigns and Transfers Checklist

When you are redesigning or migrating a website, we have a long 100+ step checklist to review. Some key features are:

• Find All Content – We create reports to showcase ALL content on your current site to map old to new pages.
• Benchmark Analytics – Keep the same analytics and benchmark analytics to determine traffic spikes and drops.
• Update Internal Links – You must update links internally, if any have changed.
• Check Duplicates and Canonicalization – Check out any canonicals or duplicate content on the website.
• Resolve Duplicates – Check out domains, subdomains, HTTP vs. HTTPs, individual pages, etc.
• Identify Removed Pages – Make sure any removed pages were done so on purpose.
• 404 Error Pages & Sitemaps – Create custom 404 error pages. Create a new sitemap and upload to Google.
• Redirects – Create 301 redirects as needed for all marketing materials, print materials and broken links.