Why I rejected an SEO consulting opportunity (and the prospect thanked me for it)

I often get intros to companies that are hungry for SEO services. While the typical SEO agency pursues every lead they get... I don't... and here's why.

Jun 29, 2025

Actual prospect inquiry (and my reply below)

Hey Gaetano,

We are currently contracted with [unnamed agency] for all things Digital Marketing but we are looking for someone solely focused on search. We are also talking to [another unnamed agency.]

Sorry, but you’re not ready for SEO

Hey [prospect],

I have done SEO in this category before [cybersecurity awareness training] and it’s a BRUTAL space. One of the most competitive out there.

I share this not to discourage you, but to ultimately recommend that you’re not ready for SEO yet.

Why?

Because you have a lot more foundational marketing work to do before SEO can make a meaningful impact.

According to Ahrefs, you only have 36 referring domains and 266 total backlinks. The site has been alive for less than 1 year.

So what needs to happen?

Well, you need a stronger "brand base" before investing in SEO, otherwise you are going to get dominated by all the mega domains out there.

Why no agency can help you at this stage

Because they are probably going to be expensive and hit you with the “it takes time” agency scripting.

And they’re not wrong, but it’s going to be a frustrating engagement.

You’re unlikely to get meaningful results, especially given the advent of AI.

We are legitimately in the biggest SEO disruption period ever. It's the wild west with LLMs and no one has it figured out yet.

Why I can’t help you either

Even if you wanted to write me a check tomorrow, I wouldn't accept it because I don't believe you are at the right stage for SEO.

While I do believe you have search market fit, I think you have a few years of brand building to do before investing in SEO.

Prospect says that’s exactly the info they needed, with a follow up question

So when is a startup “ready” to compete in tough SEO categories?

My reply:

While there are no hard fixed rules on this, a general recommendation is at least 250 referring domains and around 2,000 monthly organic traffic to your domain. (mix of brand and non-brand).

As a reference point I found this company while searching for phishing awareness training:

https://hoxhunt.com/product/phishing-training

I think they are a good example of how to grow efficiently.

They went from zero to "ready for SEO" in about 2-3 years. I think you're looking at a similar timeline.

Yes, I actually took the time to explain this to a confused prospect

Sure, I could have convinced this prospect to sign an “AI SEO” program contract with me.
Sure, I could have pitched “LLM optimization” or some other type of gimmick.
Sure, I could have pitched ways to help them "grow their domain authority” etc.

But I didn’t. You know why?

Because that’s a scum bag move.

And any experienced SEO knows it’s not going to work.

Just do the right thing in life.

And you will be rewarded later.

Thanks for reading,

Gaetano