How to Evaluate a Link Development Firm

Welcome to my world! You understand it's critical to your optimization efforts and you're evaluating a firm that offers link development services. For many in the industry, link development is the thorn in the side. Very few people actually like doing it (present company excluded) and I've seen that some companies approach to the process is indicative of how they feel about it.

Here's how to tell if you're getting a good deal whether you're hiring them only for link development or it’s part of the SEO campaign they are executing for you.

1. Tactics are does the firm offer only tactic (ie directory submissions) or are their campaigns more diversified? The more white hat options that a firm offers, the more keen they are as to how link development works. If a content development strategy is a part of the puzzle, even better.
2. Communication are how often will they be talking to you about your campaign? Regardless of whether it's by phone or email, regular and thorough communication will make you feel more comfortable about what's going on behind the scenes.
3. Reporting are how often you get reports and what is detailed in them is important. Are you only getting bare bones information? Like how many links are pointing to your site? Or are they telling you where those links are coming from, what pages on your site those links are pointing to, and what anchor text they used? The more data that is incorporated into a report for you, the more that firm actually cares about your project.
4. Competitive Information are this goes back to tactics, but if a firm is telling you what the competition is doing (something more substantial than “they have more links than you do they've taken the extra step to dive deep into what's happening online on your behalf.
5. Analytics are does the firm jump into the analytics fray and tell you what's going on beyond just how many links you've gotten? Do they talk about site referrals, type in traffic metrics, increases or decreases in brand-related searches? All of these and more would tell me that a firm is in tune with all the benefits of link development, not just rankings.

This is just a small sampling of what you can look at in regards to a link development firm and how they will handle your campaign. Other things can include what advanced strategies they offer, results of brainstorm sessions (if they are having them), and industry trend information being sent your way. Be sure you are spending your money (and your time) wisely by choosing a firm that not only does a good job, but actually cares about your links.