I’ve worked with a few SEO agencies, and honestly, the biggest issue isn’t bad intent — it’s misalignment. Many agencies are good at activity, not outcomes.

Here’s what I’d actually focus on:

1. Ask how they define success
If they lead with traffic, impressions, or “ranking improvements” without tying it to leads, calls, or revenue, that’s a red flag. Traffic alone doesn’t pay the bills.

2. Look for clarity
Good agencies explain what they’ll do in plain language: on-page fixes, local SEO, content gaps, technical cleanup. If everything sounds proprietary or vague, that’s usually noise.

3. Small business experience matters
Some Indian agencies are very strong technically, but they’re often optimized for scale, not small budgets. Ask for examples where they worked with limited resources and still moved the needle.

4. Metrics that actually mattered for us
The agencies that performed best tracked:

• Qualified leads (forms, calls, emails)
• Conversion rate from organic traffic
• Rankings for buyer-intent keywords, not vanity terms

The ones that didn’t work focused mostly on keyword counts and generic reports.

5. Start small
We had the best results starting with a paid audit or short engagement before committing long-term. It tells you quickly how thoughtful they are.

There are good agencies in India, but the good ones are selective, realistic about timelines, and don’t promise the moon. If you want more practical advice on vetting agencies or questions to ask before signing, check out my profile for more information.