There is a lot of controversy in the SEO fraternity and outside on whether an SEO company should provide Guarantees. The vote is divided with majority of the SEO companies choosing not to provide Guarantees. They reason that if an SEO company has no control over the changing search engine algorithms, then how can itn provide a Guarantee? The rationale is sound!
Now look at this from the point of a small business owner who is going to invest in the services of the SEO company. Depending on the plan he/she goes with, the business owner may be investing a significant portion of the annual marketing budget into SEO. What if the person makes the investment and at the end of the 12 month agreement, there is no return whatsoever. It will surely affect the business owner’s profitability. The absence of results could put the small business behind. If the SEO company offers a money back guarantee, the business owner has the peace of mind that in an eventuality of the results not coming, he or she will atleast get the investment back.
Why in my opinion should an SEO company offer a money back Guarantee?
Risk Sharing : Let us say that in 2% of the cases, the SEO company is not able to deliver results. If it returns the money back to these clients, it is making it easier for all the clients to invest in the service. Many of these clients to whom the company returns back money may reinvest the money later on with the SEO company, because it is honest and straight forward.
Taking Pressure : The fact that there is a Guarantee puts pressure on the SEO Company and it’s team to deliver results. We at Arrow often work harder to make sure that we meet our deliverables atleast one month ahead of the agreed timeframe.
Ownership : When we share risk, the ownership is at our end to drive results. This makes it imperative for us to push clients to provide us with the information and resources we need to deliver the results.
