The number of website owners allocating their resources to search engine optimization is growing at an astonishing pace. For example, look at the B2B sector, where 45% of enterprise-level companies spend more than $20,000 on SEO.

Parallel with this trend, the number of SEO agencies is also growing.

To attract new SEO clients and retain them in such a competitive SEO landscape, SEO companies need to focus on bringing value to their target audience and improving client relationships.

Here are a few tips that may help you.

1) It all Starts by Generating Qualified SEO Leads

You cannot expect to target your clients randomly and expect to position yourself as an industry expert. On the contrary, you need to know how to get SEO clients, engage them, and fortify your relationships with them.

Now, there are numerous ways to generate SEO leads for your agency.

For starters, harness the power of social networks. You can use social listening tools and join relevant groups to participate in relevant conversations and help them solve problems through helpful tips and content.

Search for poorly optimized sites that rank low, reach out to their owners, and offer your SEO services to them.

You could also host and attend relevant meetups, where you will have an opportunity to meet your potential clients directly, build personal relationships with them, and inspire them to choose you over your competitors.

Most importantly, once you build a list of leads, you will need to perform an in-depth assessment of their websites and determine whether they’re the right fit for you. It’s always a good idea to specialize in a specific industry instead of casting your net wide. That is how you will attract more qualified SEO leads.

2) Honesty is Crucial

Keep in mind that each client is different. Some of them are investing in SEO for the first time. Maybe they already wasted their money on an unprofessional SEO agency that didn’t deliver on their promises. Not to mention those clients from hell that set unrealistic expectations and constantly tell you how to do your job.

In such situations, honesty is crucial.

Before you even sign a client, you need to schedule an in-person meeting with them. This is the most effective way to feel their pulse and understand what their goals and expectations are. Try to educate a client and familiarize them with the basics of SEO. Speak their language – use simple examples and words instead of industry jargon.

Listen to them carefully and don’t be afraid to say if their goals and expectations are not reasonable. By overpromising, you will only harm your client relationships and compromise your overall reputation in the industry. A client needs to understand that SEO is not a magic wand that you can wave and help them appear right in front of their target audience.

3) Provide Detailed Reports

When hiring your SEO agency, your clients will want to see the results of your work. The problem is that SEO is a highly dynamic industry, where it is sometimes impossible for a client to see whether progress is being made.

I risk sounding like a broken record, but you should never forget that most of your clients are not sure how SEO really works. Most of them associate SEO with keywords and rankings. So, what would you do if a client called you angrily, asking you why their rankings dropped overnight? How to explain that this is not necessarily your fault?

One of the best ways to gain clients’ trust is to use SEO client reporting to increase transparency. Set relevant KPIs for each client and monitor the result of their SEO campaigns in real-time to show the effectiveness of your strategies. There are many powerful SEO reporting tools that integrate with popular SEO tools and that may help you create multiple, personalized dashboards for each client. Based on your clients’ goals, you need to create engaging, honest, and in-depth reports to help them track their performance. In addition to traditional quarterly reports, you could gain your clients’ trust by sending weekly or monthly reports regularly.

4) Create Helpful Content that Resonates with your Audiences

Content marketing benefits your SEO agency in multiple ways. Through helpful, authentic, and informative content, you will stand out in the sea of your competitors. Most importantly, you will prove that you know what you’re talking about and build trust with your target audience. Starting to understand the value you’re delivering to them, your audiences will soon decide to hire you.

Now, you don’t have to focus on traditional articles only. There are numerous content forms that may boost your client relationships. For example, reorganize a bunch of boring data and stats into an easily digestible infographic. If you want to discuss the most common SEO myths or explain the most common problems your clients face, then you could start creating explainer videos or even host a podcast. In addition to your blog, you should also create a comprehensive FAQ page and knowledge base articles, where you would answer your customers’ most frequently asked questions.

Remember, you need to understand the needs of clients in your target industry and tailor your content for them. Every piece of content you publish should inform them about a new trend, teach them something new, or help them solve a specific problem. If you’re not sure where to start, you can always do competitor research and see how reputable SEO players are approaching this problem.

5) Share Social Proof

Did you know that 84% of users trust online reviews as much as their families’ recommendations? Most importantly, they trust social proof more than your ads and paid brand content.

Now, there are numerous ways to build trust with target clients. For example, you could ask for client reviews, inspire them to write testimonials, create social media polls, or write case studies that emphasize the problems your clients faced and how you helped them solve them.

By integrating social proof with your website or social networks, you will be able to build trust with your target audience and help them understand what to expect if they choose you over your rivals.