SEO Scams and Red Flags: How to Avoid Bad SEO Services

On this page

1. Red flags
2. Green flags
3. Questions to ask before hiring
4. If you've been burned

Many small businesses get cold calls, emails and WhatsApp messages promising "page one on Google". Some SEO providers do excellent work; others waste money or even damage your site. Here's how to tell the difference.

Red flags

1. Guaranteed #1 rankings. No one controls Google's results. Guarantees are a sales tactic.
2. "Hundreds of backlinks" packages. Cheap, bulk links from low-quality sites can harm your site and waste money.
3. Secret or proprietary methods they won't explain.
4. No access to your own accounts. You should own your Google Business Profile, Search Console, Analytics and website logins.
5. Reports full of vanity metrics: rankings for keywords nobody searches, "backlinks built", with no traffic or leads.
6. Long lock-in contracts with no clear deliverables.
7. Unsolicited emails claiming your site has "critical SEO errors".
8. Fake reviews or review schemes for your Google profile.
9. Mass-producing pages, such as hundreds of city pages with the same text; see doorway pages.

Related: how to spot domain renewal and SEO scam emails.

Green flags

• Clear explanation of what they'll do and why
• Realistic timelines; see how long SEO takes
• Focus on your business goals: enquiries, sales, qualified traffic
• Technical fixes, useful content and ethical link building
• Monthly reports tied to Search Console and Analytics data
• You keep ownership of everything

Not sure what a useful monthly report should include? See what to track in a monthly SEO report.

Questions to ask before hiring

1. What will you do in the first 90 days?
2. How do you build links?
3. How will you measure success?
4. Can I see examples of similar work?
5. Who owns the accounts and content?
6. What happens if I stop working with you?

If you've been burned

Check Search Console for manual actions, review your backlinks, remove fake reviews, and regain control of your accounts; see regaining website access.

Honest, technical SEO for WordPress: WordPress SEO services.