SEO work with
a clear priority.
What should your website help a customer understand or do? Bring that question to Webb Flow, along with the pages involved and what you can observe today. A useful SEO discussion starts there.
/ Make the problem specific
A better starting
question.
A vague request
“We need more traffic.”
- No identified service, audience or page
- No account of where visitors get stuck
- No distinction between search visibility and inquiry quality
- No record of recent website changes
A useful inquiry
Name the customer’s decision.
- Which service needs a clearer explanation?
- Which existing page should answer that question?
- What search or inquiry evidence is available?
- What would a useful next step look like for that visitor?
/ Planning the work
Five decisions
before adding pages.
These are planning questions. The actual work, responsibilities and fees need a defined scope.
01
Establish a baseline
Identify the important URLs, known problems and available search data. Keep an observation such as “this page receives few clicks” separate from an explanation for why.
02
Choose the priority
Select a customer task that matters to the business: understanding a service, checking fit or sending a relevant inquiry. Name the page that should support it.
03
Review existing content
Check accuracy, missing answers and overlap before commissioning more pages. A topic group is a way to organize useful coverage; its shape does not guarantee a ranking.
04
Define implementation
List the changes, who can make them, required access and approvals. A recommendation, written copy and a change implemented on the site are different deliverables.
05
Set the review
Record what was completed, then examine search observations and relevant inquiries against a stated baseline. Allow for seasonality and other changes when interpreting the comparison.
/ Bound the scope
Ask what is
included.
Use these questions to describe possible work. Inclusions, quantities and cadence depend on the agreed project.
?
Diagnosis
Which technical or content questions will be examined, and what evidence will support the recommendations?
?
Page priorities
Which existing URLs are in scope? Which questions need a distinct new owner, if any?
?
Content changes
Does the work cover recommendations, drafting, fact review, implementation or some combination?
?
Site organization
Which navigation or internal links would help a visitor reach the next relevant answer?
?
Technical changes
Who can change the website, hosting or redirects? Which dependencies need separate approval?
?
Structured data
Where is markup appropriate, and does it accurately describe the visible page? It does not assure a rich result or AI citation.
?
Measurement
Which accounts and baseline periods are available? How will search activity and inquiry quality be distinguished?
?
Review points
What will be reviewed, by whom and when? What work would require a separate decision?
For a side-by-side comparison, use the SEO cost and scope worksheet. Ask for clarification where a proposal leaves a responsibility open.
/ Prepare the conversation
Bring what you
know.
· Useful starting information
What is happening today?
- Your website and priority services
- The customers and areas you actually serve
- Important pages and recent changes
- Available search data and recurring customer questions
· Questions to leave open
What needs investigation?
- Why visibility or inquiry patterns changed
- Whether a page needs repair, expansion or consolidation
- Who can implement and approve the work
- Which budget and review dates fit the defined scope
/ Common questions
Before we
talk.
What can SEO work address?
A scope can address problems with site structure, existing content and technical access to pages. The useful question is which problem is evidenced on your site and who can implement the change. Google’s guidance on hiring an SEO describes possible services and cautions against ranking guarantees.
Do I need new pages?
Start with the pages you already have. If a page already answers the customer’s question, improving that owner may be more useful than adding another. A new page needs a distinct visitor task, accurate business information and a reason to exist beyond a keyword variation.
What does SEO cost?
This page does not set a fee or package. Define the pages, deliverables, implementation responsibilities and review points first. Use the SEO scope worksheet to compare what a proposed price covers and what remains excluded.
When should we judge the work?
Separate delivery dates from dates for reviewing search observations. Agree what will be completed, which baseline will be used and when to revisit it. A completed change does not establish that rankings, traffic or inquiries will improve on a particular schedule.
Does SEO guarantee a link in AI answers?
No. Google’s AI feature guidance distinguishes eligibility from selection and says indexing and serving are not guaranteed. Its generative AI guide keeps the focus on useful content and sound SEO. Neither a topic cluster nor schema markup purchases an AI citation.
What should a review measure?
Choose measures that answer the business question. Search Console can show search queries, pages, impressions and clicks. Review actual inquiries separately for relevance and quality. Record the comparison period and other changes so a traffic movement is not automatically credited to one edit. See Google’s Search Console introduction.
/ Connected website decisions
Choose the relevant
next question.
Website design, local business information and search content can involve different work. Follow the relevant service page, then confirm scope for your site.
04
AI Search
Discuss your questions about AI search visibility.
→
03
Local SEO
Discuss the local business information involved.
→
02
SEO
You’re here: priorities for content, structure and review.
Current
01
Web Design
Discuss the website and the task it needs to support.
→
Serving Richmond? The Richmond SEO inquiry page helps you describe your actual service area and customer needs.
/ Start with the question
What should your
site do better?
Send your website URL, priority service and the question you want help investigating. Include what you know today and what remains uncertain.