How do you know if your SEO agency is bad?

You know your SEO agency is bad when you can't answer a simple question: where did I rank before they started, and where do I rank now? If they never gave you the "before," everything since has been unprovable, and that's on purpose more often than you'd think.

Other signs, from working with contractors who've been through it:

• They report activity instead of results. Blog posts published, backlinks acquired, "impressions up 40%." None of that is a phone call.
• Their plan keeps growing. Flat results mean more content, then ads, then more pages. Nobody ever goes back and asks whether the site structure or the profile is the actual problem.
• They own your stuff. If the website is on their hosting under their account, or they're the primary owner of your Google Business Profile, you're not a client, you're a hostage.
• They can't explain the work in plain language. Ask what they did last month and why. If you get jargon, that's a tell.
• They refuse service area businesses, or they say they'll "handle" your GBP with tricks like fake driving directions. That's how profiles get suspended.
• They guarantee a ranking. Google doesn't sell guarantees, so neither can they.

At Upward Bound Media we run a geo grid before we start and show you the same grid later. You keep your GBP ownership. If you want your site, you can take it with you. If your current agency can't match that, get a second opinion at a free strategy session. Compare on our local SEO packages page.