Sales conversations with SEO firms are asymmetric: they have had this conversation hundreds of times and you have had it once or twice. The questions below level that out. They are grouped by stage so you are not asking about termination clauses on a first call, and each comes with a good and a bad answer so you know what you are listening for. You will not need all 25 with every firm. Pick the ones that match the criteria you are least sure about on the scorecard.
Stage 1: the first call (fit and honesty)
1. What kinds of businesses do you do your best work for?
Good answerNames two or three categories, explains why, and volunteers a type of business they turn away.
Bad answer"We work with everyone." No firm is equally good at a dental practice, a SaaS startup and a roofing company.
2. Who would actually be working on my account, and can I meet them before I sign?
Good answerA name, a role, how many other accounts that person carries, and a yes to meeting them.
Bad answer"You'll be assigned a team after onboarding." Translation: the person you are talking to disappears after the contract is signed.
3. What would you need to know about my business before quoting?
Good answerAsks about your margins by service, your service area, your current lead sources and what a good month looks like in revenue.
Bad answerQuotes a package on the spot. A price without a diagnosis is a menu, not a plan.
4. What does SEO realistically do for a business like mine in Denver, and what does it not do?
Good answerTalks about the map pack versus organic listings, how long each takes, and names a limitation, such as low search volume for a niche service.
Bad answerOnly upside, no timeline, no limits. Or a promise of a specific ranking by a specific date.
5. Can you walk me through a client you lost and why?
Good answerA candid story with something they changed afterwards.
Bad answer"We've never lost a client." Every agency has.
6. How do you keep up with changes in search, including AI Overviews and answer engines?
Good answerDescribes what they actually monitor (Search Console, AI citation tracking, Google's published documentation and spam policies) and admits what nobody knows yet.
Bad answerClaims a proprietary method that guarantees AI visibility, or dismisses AI search as irrelevant.
Stage 2: how the work happens (process and ownership)
7. Which accounts will be created, and in whose name?
Good answerEverything in your name: Google Business Profile, Search Console, Analytics, Tag Manager, call tracking, hosting, domain. They are added as managers and can be removed by you.
Bad answer"We manage that for you from our master account." This is the single most expensive sentence in SEO.
8. Who owns the content, pages, code and data you produce, and from when?
Good answerYou do, on delivery, and it says so in the contract.
Bad answerOwnership transfers at the end of the term, or on payment of a "release fee", or is simply not addressed.
9. What happens in the first 30 days?
Good answerAccess handover, baseline measurement of calls and leads, technical audit, keyword research tied to your money services, and a written plan you approve.
Bad answer"We'll start optimizing right away." Without a baseline, you will never know what the work produced.
10. Who writes the content, and what is the review process before it goes live?
Good answerA named writer or editor, a fact-check step, your approval, and a clear policy on AI assistance.
Bad answer"Our content team handles it" with no approval step. For a medical, legal or financial business, unreviewed content is a compliance risk.
11. How do you build links, and can you show me three links you earned for a client last quarter?
Good answerShows real examples: a local news mention, an industry association page, a supplier's partner list, a sponsored community event with a disclosed link.
Bad answerA number per month ("40 backlinks"), private blog networks, or anything they would rather not show you. Google's spam policies describe link schemes in detail; buying placements at volume is one.
12. What technical changes will you need to make to my site, and who implements them?
Good answerExplains whether they have developers, whether they will work with yours, and how changes are tested before and after deployment.
Bad answerTechnical work is "handled by a plugin", or every change requires you to rebuild on their platform.
13. How will you handle my Google Business Profile, and can you show me one you manage?
Good answerScreen-shares a profile, explains category and service choices, review response practice, photo cadence and how they watch for suspensions and competitor spam.
Bad answer"We'll optimize your listing" with no specifics, or a plan to create additional listings at addresses where you do not operate.
Stage 3: measurement and reporting
14. What will the monthly report show, and can I see a redacted one from a current client?
Good answerShows one. It leads with calls, forms and direction requests by source, lists the work completed, and names next month's priorities.
Bad answerA dashboard of rankings and traffic graphs with no conversions, or a refusal to show any report.
15. How will you track calls and form fills so we know which came from SEO?
Good answerCall tracking numbers that keep your main number consistent on your listing, form event tracking, and GBP insights, all in accounts you own.
Bad answer"We'll report on traffic and rankings; leads are hard to track." They are not.
16. How long until I should expect to see leads, and what would make you worried?
Good answerA range (map-pack movement in one to two months, competitive organic terms in four to nine), plus specific early indicators they watch.
Bad answerA precise date, or "SEO takes time" used to deflect every question for a year.
17. What does a bad month look like, and how will you tell me?
Good answerDescribes a drop they have handled, how they diagnosed it, and that they report it proactively.
Bad answerCannot recall ever having one.
18. How often will we talk, and what is your response time if my site goes down or my listing is suspended?
Good answerA scheduled monthly call, a named contact, and a stated response window for urgent issues.
Bad answer"Email us any time." No named person, no commitment.
Stage 4: money and terms
19. What exactly does the monthly fee buy, in hours or deliverables?
Good answerA written scope you can hold them to, and a process for when priorities change.
Bad answerA package name. See the pricing benchmarks for what each tier should contain.
20. What is the initial term, and what is the notice period after it?
Good answerThree to six months initial, then 30 days' notice. They explain why the initial period exists.
Bad answerTwelve months, auto-renewing for another twelve unless you cancel within a narrow window.
21. If we part ways, what do I walk away with, and what does the handover look like?
Good answerEverything: accounts, content, a document of what was done, and a short transition period at no charge.
Bad answerContent is removed, links are taken down, or access is revoked when the contract ends. Read the contract red flags before accepting any of this.
22. Are there costs outside the retainer: tools, ads, development, content?
Good answerA complete list with estimates and who pays whom.
Bad answerSurprises in month two.
23. Do you also work for my direct competitors in the Denver metro?
Good answerA clear policy, whether that is exclusivity by category and area or a disclosure of overlap so you can decide.
Bad answerEvasion, or a yes with no view on the conflict.
Stage 5: proof (ask these before you sign)
24. Can I speak to two current clients in a business similar to mine?
Good answerYes, with introductions within a few days. When you call, ask the references what went wrong, how it was handled, and whether they would hire the firm again at the same price.
Bad answerWritten testimonials only, or references in unrelated industries, or a delay that outlasts your decision.
25. Can you show me data, with the domain visible, for a client that grew?
Good answerA Search Console or Business Profile screen, dates visible, with the client's permission, and an explanation of what caused the growth.
Bad answerA chart with no axis labels, no domain and no dates. Or awards from directories that charge for listings.
Turning answers into a score
Each of the five stages maps onto criteria in the vetting scorecard. Stage 1 informs communication cadence and AI readiness. Stage 2 informs ownership, content and technical depth. Stage 3 is reporting and GBP competency. Stage 4 is contract terms and pricing transparency. Stage 5 is local proof. Score the agency on the interactive scorecard the same day, while the answers are fresh, and write down the evidence for anything you rated above a 3.
One more suggestion: ask the same five or six questions of every firm on your shortlist, in the same words. Differences in the answers are far more informative than the answers themselves.