What to ask an SEO agency on a discovery call — 15 questions that separate legit agencies from scams. Free 30-min audit.

The 5 most important questions to ask any SEO agency on a discovery call: (1) Show me 3 client case studies with real names. (2) What’s your monthly deliverables list? (3) Who specifically writes the content? (4) How do you measure success — rankings or revenue? (5) What’s your cancellation policy? Anyone who dodges these is not legit.

Quick Answer:

Top 5 questions: real client case studies, monthly deliverables list, who writes content, success metric (rankings vs revenue), cancellation terms. Dodging any = red flag.

The 15 Questions That Separate Legit From Scam

1. Show Me 3 Client Case Studies With Real Names

Not “we increased traffic 300% for a client.” Real names, real metrics. Sprout Sage has 9 NZ case studies and 65+ active clients on record.

2. What’s Your Monthly Deliverables List?

Should be specific: “4 long-form posts, 1 technical audit, 5 internal links, 2 outreach attempts, 1 monthly report.” Vague = wasted money.

3. Who Specifically Writes The Content?

Named writers. In-house or known freelancers. “We have a team” is dodge language for offshore outsourcing.

4. How Do You Measure Success?

Right answer: “Leads, revenue, qualified inquiries.” Wrong answer: “Rankings and traffic.”

5. What’s Your Cancellation Policy?

30-60 day notice, no penalties, full asset handover. Lockups beyond 6 months = red flag.

6. What Tools Do You Use?

Should mention: Ahrefs or SEMrush (keyword research), Screaming Frog (technical audits), GSC + GA4 (reporting), Surfer or Clearscope (content optimization). Lacking any of these = amateur stack.

7. How Do You Approach Backlink Building?

Right: “Digital PR, broken-link building, guest posts on real sites, partner outreach.” Wrong: “We have a network of sites we’ll link from” (PBN — toxic).

8. What’s Your Approach To Technical SEO?

Should mention: Core Web Vitals, schema markup, internal linking, faceted navigation, robots.txt, sitemap optimization. Skipping technical = content-mill agency.

9. How Do You Pick Keywords?

Right: “We map to your funnel, balance volume + KD, prioritize buyer-intent terms.” Wrong: “We use [tool] and pick high-volume terms.”

10. Will I Have Direct Access To GSC And GA4?

Yes, always. You should own those accounts. Agencies controlling them = lock-in tactic.

11. How Often Will We Communicate?

Standard: monthly strategy call + weekly Slack/email. Below that = ghosting risk.

12. What Clients Have You Fired And Why?

Trick question — only legitimate agencies have fired clients (for abusive behavior, requesting black-hat work, etc.). “We’ve never fired a client” usually means they take anyone with a credit card.

13. How Will You Handle My Existing Site Content?

Right: “We’ll audit, optimize what’s working, prune thin content, expand top performers.” Wrong: “We’ll just publish new content.”

14. What Happens In Month 1, 3, 6, And 12?

Real agencies have a roadmap. Vague timelines = no plan.

15. Why Should I NOT Hire You?

Brilliant question. Legit agencies will tell you: “If your budget is under $X, your timeline is under 6 months, your customer LTV is under $Y — we’re probably not the right fit.” Scams pitch everyone.

Red-Flag Answers To Watch For

• “We can guarantee page 1 rankings”
• “$99/month full SEO package”
• “We have a network of high-DA sites for backlinks”
• “Don’t worry about the details, just trust the process”
• “All our clients sign 12-month contracts”
• “We can’t share client names due to confidentiality” (sometimes true; usually evasion)

See how to tell if your SEO agency is legit for the full red-flag list.

What Their Questions Reveal About Them

Legit agencies ask YOU questions like:

• What’s your average customer LTV?
• Who is your best-fit customer?
• What does a “good month” of leads look like?
• What’s converting on your site today?
• What’s worked and not worked previously?

If they only talk about themselves on the discovery call, they will only think about themselves during the engagement.

How Long Should A Discovery Call Be?

30-60 minutes. Under 30 = surface-level pitch. Over 90 = wasting time. Sprout Sage discovery calls are 30 minutes free, then 30-min strategy session if both sides want to continue. See our consultation.

Pricing Should Come Up — But After Strategy

Real agencies discuss strategy first, pricing second. Anyone leading with “Here’s our $X/mo package” is selling a commodity service, not a custom strategy.

For pricing benchmarks, see best SEO package under $1000/mo 2026.

FAQ

Is it OK to ask the same questions to 3 different agencies? Yes — comparing answers is the whole point. Notice which agency engages thoughtfully versus deflecting. Three discovery calls in one week is the right amount of work for a 12-month $20k+ commitment.

Should I share my budget on the discovery call? Yes, generally. Agencies will custom-fit recommendations to your budget. Hiding budget often means you get pitched the most expensive option. Be honest: “I have $1,500-2,000/mo to spend” gets you the right plan.

What if the agency seems great but is way over my budget? Ask for their lowest-tier plan or a referral to a smaller agency they trust. Real agencies have referral networks. We refer SMBs we cannot serve to specialist freelancers all the time. Burning a relationship over a poor budget fit is dumb on both sides.

Should I ask for references before or after the discovery call? After the first call, before signing. References are a serious time commitment for the existing client — wasting that on every prospect is rude. Once you are seriously considering, request 2-3 client calls. Always do at least one.

Book A Discovery Call With Sprout Sage

We will answer all 15 questions honestly, ask about your business, and tell you straight whether we are the right fit. No pitch, no pressure. Book a free 30-min audit.