You’ve done everything right for your SEO Marketing company. You rank at the top of the search engines for affordable SEO services, you got killer PPC and social media campaigns going on and the leads are coming in like never before. Despite all that, you just can’t seem to Land that SEO client and are struggling to convert SEO Leads.
Somehow, you are not able to close that SEO deal and convince them that YOU are the right person/company for the job.
Yes, it is can be frustrating and discouraging. However, trust me when I say that the more you do it, the better you will get at it. I’ve been exactly where you are, and I know how disheartening this can be. The good news? This is a fixable problem as long as you have the right sales strategy to convert those SEO leads.
In this tutorial, I am sharing what I have learned after 16 years of closing SEO deals with client and hope it will help you out.
Steps to Convert SEO Leads and Close that SEO Deal
Whether you get that first bite from a phone call or from someone filling out your submission form, there are specific questions every good sales person must ask when they first communicate with a lead. They are:
- Thank them for reaching out to you
- Ask them How they heard about your company (If that question was not in form. It is always good to know as it will tell you how well your marketing campaigns are doing.)
- Ask them about their website and business. Assuming that they called or do not have that info yet)
- Ask them why they want to do an SEO campaign (their goals for their business) and what they expect from it.
First Contact – Initial Conversation/Interview
Ok, convincing someone that you are the right business for the job is the same as interviewing for an SEO job. Therefore, your goal is to show and answer questions that prove that:
- You are an expert it the field of SEO (knowledge testing)
- You have proven results measurable results (your portfolio of SEO clients)
- You have to show your enthusiasm
- You have to highlight what makes you different from the competition
- LISTEN TO WHAT THEY WANT AND EXPECT FROM SEO
The Most Important Question to Ask a Potential SEO Client
To convert SEO leads, there is key question to ask them at the start of the SEO sales or interview conversation is:
“Tell me what you know about SEO and what expectations do you have from it?”
Why is this question so important? This is because it will tell you what you need to address in order to get that sale. It is a critical part of an SEO agency’s discovery process, and it serves several strategic purposes that directly influence how you position your services and ultimately close the sale. Thus, their answer will allow you to:
- Assesses Client Knowledge Level
Understanding how much a client already knows about SEO helps you tailor your communication. A novice may need education and reassurance, while a seasoned marketer may expect technical depth and data-driven strategy.
- Uncovers Misconceptions Early
Many clients come with unrealistic expectations (e.g., “We want to be #1 on Google next month”). This question helps bring those to the surface so you can reset expectations before they become obstacles to satisfaction.
- Clarifies Business Goals
SEO is a means to an end, not an end in itself. By asking about their expectations, you’re really uncovering whether they want more leads, brand visibility, local traffic. Each of which requires a different SEO approach.
- Reveals Pain Points and Prior Experience
If they’ve worked with other agencies or tried SEO themselves, you’ll learn what went wrong, what they liked, and what they’re wary of. This gives you a chance to position yourself as the solution to past frustrations.
- Qualifies the Lead
The depth and realism of their answers can help you determine if the client is a good fit, ready to invest, and willing to collaborate over the long term.
Thus, knowing that information will give you all of the knowledge you need to convert SEO Leads into Clients.
From a Strategic Sales Point of view, knowing the answer to the question will allow you to:
- Tailored Proposal: With insights from this question, you can craft a proposal that speaks directly to the client’s goals, education level, and prior experience, making your pitch more persuasive and relevant.
- Expectation Management: Setting realistic timelines and deliverables becomes easier when you know what the client is expecting. I short, it reduces churn and helps ensure satisfaction post-sale.
- Value Positioning: If the client undervalues SEO, you know to focus on education and ROI. If they overestimate what SEO alone can do, you can cross-sell complementary services like PPC or content strategy.
- Trust Building: Asking thoughtful, client-centered questions builds credibility and trust. It shows you care about results, not just selling a package.
- Objection Handling: You can preemptively address concerns or objections that often arise from misinformation, such as time-frames, pricing, or deliverables. Once you know the answer you can then respond to their concerns
Potential SEO Client has Limited SEO Understanding
A little knowledge about SEO can be very dangerous
If the person only has rudimentary knowledge about SEO, no clue about it or incorrect and outdated notions then it can destroy the entire sales process. This is because it will lead to misunderstandings and unrealistic expectations
Therefore, it is your job to properly explain what SEO is and what to expect from SEO in 2025.
I often use this analogy to explain potential SEO client why hiring an SEO expert is imperative.
Imagine your website is like a car.
- SEO is like the engine tuning. If you know what you’re doing, you can make it run faster and smoother.
- But if you only kind of know what you’re doing, it’s like pouring the wrong oil into the engine thinking it’ll help when it actually causes damage.
- It is important to make the point that search engines today are focused on quality, relevance, and user experience. When someone knows just a little, they often miss the bigger picture. Thus, they can inadvertently make changes that work against their goals.
The Bottom line is that with SEO, a little knowledge is like a little fire. It can cook your dinner or burn down your house. It’s better to get good advice or work with someone who understands both the technical side and what Google is really trying to reward: useful, well-structured content that helps people.
Answering Client SEO Concerns to Land that SEO Client
Question: How Long until I See SEO Results?
By the time that question comes, you should already know how much they know about SEO and have thoroughly explained how SEO works in 2025.
All SEO experts know that every SEO campaign is different. This is because there are hundreds of factors that can affect how fast SEO results can take place. Therefore, it makes it very difficult to pinpoint an exact time frame.
This is where transparency is essential if you want to close the SEO deal. The important point to make is explaining that SEO, is a long-term commitment and that before you can answer that question, you would have to create a basic SEO strategy
That depending on the competition and the keywords you are targeting, they could see some results as fast as 2 months if all the right conditions are met. You must emphasize that these cases are rare as it depends on how much SEO work they have already and how much SEO work their competition has done.
On average, it usually takes 3-6 month before clients begin to see growth in traffic volume and 6 to 12 months before they can start seeing their website rank in searches for certain keywords.
SEO experts are not all knowing. In the end, it all depends on what they are targeting, competition and budget.
This is where you can go into your SEO strategy.
Question: What Makes you Different?
Answer by focusing on your personalized approach and past results. Personally, I use a derivation of this answer that works quite well.
How do I know this will work or How Long Until I See Results?
Learn to read between the lines. What they’re really asking for is proof, reassurance, and risk reduction. Your goal is to acknowledge their concern, show evidence, and explain the process clearly.
Of course, the best answer will depend on how much they know about SEO.
The generic answer that SEO consultants give is something like this:
That kind of answer will works well with only half of the potential clients you talk to.
This because they do not yet trust you or have been burned in the past making it a challenge to land that SEO Client. So how do you gain their trusty when you just met them? There are people where throwing facts and success stories at them will not work. What they feel comfortable with are time lines with hard numbers. They are usually not impressed with how many visitors you can get them.
Instead, they want to know how many leads or clients you can bring them with SEO and how it translated to revenue.
In my 2 decades of experience selling my SEO services, I have found that answering like this to their rebuttal or need for a more concrete answer works best.
“I totally understand wanting more concrete numbers. The reality is, without analyzing your site’s data and competition in detail, it is impossible for me to give you exact traffic or ranking projections. SEO is a long-term strategy, and there are many factors that influence how quickly results show up, such as the current state of your website, competition, and the keywords we’re targeting. Without diving into the specifics of your site, I can give you a general idea based on typical SEO timelines:”
- Initial improvements like technical fixes (site speed, mobile optimization, etc.) and on-page SEO can take anywhere from 1 to 2 months.
- Ranking improvements (moving up in search engine results) usually take 3 to 6 months, depending on competition and how quickly we implement changes.
- Sustained traffic growth can take 6 months or longer, as it takes time for search engines to fully recognize and reward my efforts.
- Basically, once I have more data, I can give you a better estimate on future leads, conversions, and revenue.
“With that in mind and based on my personal experience with similar businesses, I can say that most clients will begin to see noticeable improvement in visibility and traffic with 3-4 months.”
“While this is a general timeline, I’ll be able to give you more refined projection after I conduct a detailed SEO audit and understand the challenges and opportunities your site has.”
“One thing I can promise is that throughout this process, I’ll provide you with regular reports so you can see how we’re moving toward our goals. From there, I’ll adjust the strategy based on data we get from these reports. This way, we ensure your investment is always on track.”
The Final Push to Get Them to Use Your SEO Services
If that is still not enough, adding similar sentences to the conversation helps:
Social proof: “Here’s a case study where we doubled traffic in 4 months for a similar company.”
Process transparency: “I provide regular reports where I show you exactly what’s being done and how it’s impacting rankings and leads.”
Realistic expectations: “SEO is long-term. You’ll likely see traction in 2–3 months, with compounding growth after that.”
Low-risk offer: “If you’re not seeing clear progress after [X] months, we can reassess or pivot based on data.”
SEO Leads Closing Rate: “Leads that come from SEO have an average close rate of 14.6%, which is 8.5 times higher than the closing rate for outbound leads.”
Closing the SEO Deal
Present your SEO Packages and Offers
Based on their answers, you will have a good idea of their budget and what they expect from running an SEO campaign. Therefore, you will know which of your affordable SEO packages to suggest to them.
If they still not sold, then offer to make them a Mini SEO Audit. Tell them that you usually charge for it but are willing to do it for FREE to get his business. This way, the potential client will feel he is getting special treatment.
Conclusion
I have found that by using this method to close an SEO Deal, I average a 32.3% closing rate when a potential client contacts us directly.
Some people asked me why I am sharing my SEO sales method as it seems it would be counter-productive. The answer is that every business need SEO done. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, in 2024, they were over 33 million small businesses in the U.S. In Georgia alone, there are over 1 million small businesses. Needless to say, there is plenty of work for all of us!
So, feel free to take my SEO sales material, tweak it to fit your company and watch your SEO sales closing rate increase!
About the Author
Frederick Saint-Jacques is an internet marketing guru with over 20 years of online marketing experience. He has a proven record at creating and executing marketing campaigns for some of the top companies in the world. When he is not managing an advertising campaign or consulting about online marketing, you might find him camping in some unknown part of the world with his son and his dog.
