When you sign a new SEO client, the work starts from day one. You need to set yourself and your client up for success and make a good, lasting first impression. And a structured onboarding process for your new SEO clients does that.
Your onboarding process also helps reassure the client that they are working with the right SEO agency since it’ll explain your processes and set accurate goals and expectations.
This helps you improve client retention, client referrals, and revenue.
80% of company executives agree that client onboarding needs to be streamlined and effective.
Here is a 9-step onboarding checklist for SEO clients. Use this to smoothly integrate a new SEO client into your agency and immediately establish a productive working relationship.
1. Send a welcome email
The first step on your SEO client onboarding checklist is to send a welcome email.
The email should express how excited you are to collaborate or work with the new client.
It should also outline the next steps so your client knows what to expect and isn’t left hanging.
Your welcome email can also include a welcome pack with a summary about:
- The SEO services they signed up for
- The cost
- Who their point of contact is (the account manager)
- Contact details for their account manager
- Timelines for reports
- Here’s an example of a welcome email to send your new client:
Subject: Welcome to [Name of Your Agency] & the Next Steps
Hi [Client’s Name],
We’re looking forward to working with you to help grow your business, improve your SEO, and more.
Thank you for signing the contract. I’ve attached a copy for your records.
The next step is scheduling a kickoff meeting. We prefer a video call via [add platform of your choice; e.g. Slack, Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, etc.].
Here’s a link to our scheduling tool with our availability; please see what date and time suits you and your team best. Or, you are welcome to propose a date and time that works better for you.
We propose a 60-minute kickoff meeting to review project goals, timelines, and expectations and learn more about your business and specific audience.
Kind regards,
[Your Name]
2. Schedule a kickoff call
As mentioned in the welcome email, the next step is the kickoff meeting. The meeting can be via phone call or video call, but if you can, an in-person meeting works well, too.
The meeting is the official start of the SEO project. The purpose of the kickoff is to spend time with your new client.
It helps ensure everyone is on the same page since you’ll clarify expectations.
Here’s what the agenda for the kickoff meeting should cover:
- Introduce your team members and meet the client’s team involved in the project
- Learn about your client and their business goals
- Align the SEO goals and expectations with the client’s needs
- Confirm the project budget
- Clearly define the scope, timeline, and key deliverables of the project
- Identify the key performance indicators (KPIs)
- Establish the communication methods for the various types of interactions (regular check-ins, progress updates, regular reporting, and feedback sessions)
- Discuss the next steps, such as the invoice, the completion of a client onboarding questionnaire, and gaining access to client assets
Send your client a follow-up email after the kickoff meeting.
Summarize what was discussed or share the meeting minutes. Also, touch base on the “next steps” you talked about in the meeting.
3. Set goals and expectations
A vital step in your client onboarding process is setting clear goals and expectations.
Your new client may expect to see results in an instant, not understanding that it takes time or is not always a linear process before SEO efforts bear fruit.
Thus, it’s essential to identify opportunities and issues at the assessment stage.
This helps you iron out challenges that you can tackle quickly.
And you can make sure that your SEO strategy is aligned with the client’s overall digital marketing objectives.
Your SEO work will then be focused on the right areas, and the results will be measurable and attainable.
Some tips to keep in mind when setting goals and expectations:
- Define goals using the SMART strategy so they are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and timely.
- Clearly outline the SEO strategy that will act as a roadmap to optimize your client’s website
- Set a schedule for when and how you’ll communicate
- Create target milestones to keep your team on track
- Set turnaround times for project deliverables
Keeping clients informed on realistic results can greatly aid your relationship because they're not expecting a 300% growth like they may have read on some case study.
4. Gather information
You need to gather preliminary information about your client’s business. This will help you better understand your client.
It also helps you create the best SEO campaign to meet your client’s goals.
An easy way to get this basic information is to compile and share a client onboarding questionnaire.
Ask questions about these aspects in your SEO client questionnaire:
- Unique value proposition (UVP)
- Business goals (both short and long-term ones)
- SEO budget
- Target audience and ideal buyer personas
- Top competitors
- Current SEO goals
- Past SEO campaigns
The more information you have about your client, the better your marketing efforts will be.
Especially when it comes to building and attracting their target audience.
5. Assign an account manager
There are two main reasons why you need to assign an account manager for new SEO clients.
There should be a specific person on your team or from your agency working with the client. The account manager can delegate SEO tasks to other team members, but they are in charge.
This will ensure a smooth streamlined workflow for your clients.
In a way, your account manager is a seasoned SEO strategist who will be in charge of delivering and communicating results for your agency.
Having an account manager can also help improve your client relationship. The client has transparency over the SEO processes via the account manager.
And they have a point of contact for reassurance.
The account manager is also responsible for keeping the client updated and sharing progress reports. They can answer any questions the client may have and address any concerns.
6. Acquire access
To implement your SEO strategy and assess the current SEO health of your client’s site, you need access to it.
You also need access to various other client assets.
Here’s a summary of what you need access to:
- Their website and other domains they own (the content management system)
- Google Search Console
- Google Analytics
- Google Ads
- Bing Webmaster Tools
- Reports, like keyword research, SEO audits, competitor research reports, and any others done by an in-house team or previous SEO agency
- SEO tools or platforms the client uses
You can request the login details in your client onboarding questionnaire.
7. Perform an SEO audit
Before you present an SEO plan to meet your client’s online objectives, do an SEO audit during the SEO client onboarding process.
The search engine optimization audit gives you comprehensive insights into the potential areas for improvement on a client’s website.
An SEO audit is especially important in the planning stage of your client agency relationship.
This is because it can uncover low hanging opportunities that you can fix quickly.
Doing so can demonstrate the role SEO plays in your client's digital marketing strategy.
Use these insights to create your overall SEO campaign and show the client where they can do better.
And how that translates into monetary value for them.
You can use Surfer Audit to generate quick reports on specific URLS of your client's website. For example, improving the Content Score of this article on Search Engine Journal can improve its current ranking from position 10.
SEO audits involve evaluating the existing status and ranking of a client’s website, including aspects such as:
- Meta tags
- Meta descriptions
- Internal links
- URLs
- Existing content quality
- Duplicate content
- Page load speed
- Mobile-friendliness
- Site structure and navigation
- Other key on-page SEO elements
- Site crawl
- Canonical tags
- Structured data
- Indexation errors
8. Analyze competitors
Part of the onboarding process involves analyzing your client’s competitors. You need to know what other similar businesses are doing to identify gaps, weaknesses, and opportunities you can exploit in your SEO plan to give you a competitive edge.
Identify the top three to five competitors by asking your client.
You can also see what pops up in the search engines for specific keywords that your client is or should be ranking for.
Then, check the overall SEO health of the competition and what keywords they target.
Plugging in the competitor's URL into Surfer Audit will reveal several aspects of their search engine strategy for the page.
For example, you can you export the Terms to use report to uncover which keywords your competitors are targeting, and which are missing.
Including keywords they are missing can help improve your client's search engine rankings.
Competitor analysis allows you to take advantage of industry trends and stay ahead of the curve, ensuring that your clients receive the best possible results from your SEO efforts.
9. Integrate your workflow
You’ve locked in your client, and now it’s time to integrate them into your workflow. This helps you effectively manage the client accounts so you can stay on top of the campaign.
Add the client and their SEO project to your project management tool, client reporting software, and Slack, ensuring flawless execution when you assign tasks.
To integrate the client:
- Add them to your workflows
- Invite the relevant team members and account manager to the project
- Upload all the applicable information (scope of work, access details, contracts, and contact details)
- Create milestones to engage the team and ensure the client gets regular updates
Inviting a client to your project workflow will ensure that both sides are well informed and prevent any miscommunication.
It's better to have everything consolidated in a single tool rather than having your information spread across multiple platforms.
Key Takeaways
- Onboarding new SEO clients requires a streamlined and effective process so you can start off on the right foot and set yourself up for a successful SEO process.
- Use this 9-step checklist for a smooth onboarding process, starting with a welcoming email and a kickoff call to set things in motion.
- During this preliminary stage, set the right expectations with clear goals and gather as much information about your client's business, digital marketing strategy, competitors, and ideal audience as you can.
- Assign an account manager to be the client's point of contact, acquire access to client assets, do an SEO audit, and analyze the competitors.
- You also need to integrate the client into your workflows so the SEO progress can be tracked and the client kept updated.
Conclusion
Optimizing your onboarding process for SEO clients is crucial for establishing strong working relationships, ensuring client satisfaction, and improving retention rates. It also helps set the stage for long-term success.
By keeping clients informed and engaged throughout the onboarding process, you can ensure that their expectations are met and their goals are achieved. You'll find that clients will stay longer and bring you referrals if you nail the onboarding process.
