Is this SEO proposal any good?
Just been quoted? Answer eight questions about what the agency is promising and get an honest verdict — the red flags, the green lights, and exactly what to push back on before you sign anything.
Nothing leaves your browser — no email, no signup, no data collected
Most SEO proposals sent to small businesses are a bit dishonest
Some are outright scams — guaranteed page-one rankings, 500 spammy backlinks a month, twelve-month lock-ins for a few hours of automated reporting. Others are legitimate but oversold, with real work buried under jargon designed to justify the price.
Telling the difference on a twenty-minute sales call is genuinely hard, especially if you do not speak SEO. This does it in two minutes, based on the red flags we have seen across hundreds of proposals sent to businesses like yours.
Eight things worth checking on any SEO proposal
The same checks the tool runs. If you would rather skim than click, here they are with the reasoning.
- 1 · What are they promising about rankings?Nobody can guarantee Google rankings — Google says so explicitly. Anyone promising “guaranteed page 1” is lying, ignorant, or planning tactics that will eventually get your site penalised. Look for promises tied to enquiries or traffic, not positions.
- 2 · What contract are they asking for?Some initial commitment is reasonable, usually three months. Longer than six is designed to protect the agency, not you. A twelve-month lock-in exists because they know clients would leave once they saw the work.
- 3 · How do they describe backlinks?“500 backlinks a month” or “high-authority links from our network” almost always means directory spam or private blog networks. Both violate Google’s guidelines. Real link-building is manual, slow, and nobody legitimate promises volume.
- 4 · Do they audit before starting?Anyone worth paying wants to look under the bonnet before quoting. A package quoted without seeing your site is a template, not a strategy.
- 5 · Who is actually doing the work?You should be able to get a name. “Our team”, “our specialists” or “our partner network” usually means outsourced, often offshore, often junior. Not automatically bad — but they should be able to tell you.
- 6 · Have they asked for Search Console access?It is the only real source of truth for how your site performs. Without it they cannot see a baseline, measure their own results, or prioritise properly. Not asking means flying blind or selling generic work.
- 7 · How will they report?A monthly summary in plain English, with a call or written explanation of what changed. An automated dashboard is not a report — it is a substitute for one.
- 8 · How do they want paying?Monthly is normal. A setup fee is fine if the work justifies it. A full year upfront is a serious red flag — legitimate agencies do not need your money locked in to keep you.
Frequently asked
- Is this actually free?Yes. No email, no signup, no data collection. The whole thing runs in your browser. If you find it useful, telling another small business owner is thanks enough.
- What if my proposal scores amber?Amber usually means the agency is legitimate but the proposal has weak spots worth negotiating. Go back with the specific concerns flagged. A good agency explains or adjusts; a bad one gets defensive — and their reaction tells you more than the proposal did.
- My current agency scores red. Should I fire them?Not today. Ask them the flagged questions and hear the answers first. If the answers do not reassure you, then yes. Separately: if you have been with them a while and enquiries have not moved, that is a warning sign this tool does not measure.
- Can you look at the proposal directly?Yes. Request a free audit and we will look at your site, look at what they are proposing, and tell you what we would do differently. No obligation to switch.
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Send us the proposal, your site, or both. We will audit the site free, look at what the other agency is offering, and tell you honestly what we would do differently. No sales pitch, just a straight answer.