Before we can start improving your search rankings, we need a few things in place. Here's the full checklist.
Website access
We need to be able to make changes to your website — updating page titles, meta descriptions, content, and technical settings. How we get this depends on your platform:
- WordPress: An Editor or Administrator account
- Squarespace / Wix / Shopify: Contributor or staff access
- Custom site: We'll discuss what's needed on your kickoff call
Google Search Console access
Search Console shows us exactly how Google sees your site — what keywords you rank for, any crawl errors, and which pages are indexed. If you don't have it set up yet, we'll handle that.
- Go to search.google.com/search-console
- Click Settings → Users and Permissions → Add User
- Add [email protected] with Full access
Google Analytics access
Analytics tells us how many people visit your site, where they come from, and what they do when they get there.
- Go to analytics.google.com
- Click Admin → Account Access Management
- Add [email protected] as Editor
Google Business Profile access
If you serve local customers, your Google Business Profile is a major part of local SEO. See our article on sharing Google Business Profile access for step-by-step instructions.
Your business goals and target customers
The most important input we need is from you — not a tool. Tell us:
- Who is your ideal customer? Location, industry, situation?
- What services or products do you most want to grow?
- Who are your main competitors?
- What does a good lead or customer look like for your business?
This shapes everything — keyword strategy, content topics, and what we prioritize first.
Timeline
Once we have access to everything above, we can typically complete an initial audit and strategy within 1–2 weeks and begin implementation from there.