Before firing the agency, work out which of the four failure modes you are in. Two are fixable inside a month, one takes a strategy reset, and only one justifies leaving.
Step 1: Check whether it is actually too early
| Month | What should be visible |
|---|---|
| 1-3 | Technical fixes shipped, content on cadence, indexation improving. No traffic change expected. |
| 4-6 | Impressions rising on commercial queries, average position improving on a fixed keyword set. |
| 7-12 | Organic sessions to commercial pages, conversions, pipeline. |
If you are at month four expecting revenue, the engagement may be fine and the expectation wrong. Genuine underperformance at month four looks like flat impressions, not flat revenue.
Step 2: Identify the failure mode
Mode A: Execution is not happening
Symptoms: deliverables late or missing, the same items “in progress” for consecutive months, reports arriving later each cycle, the named strategist absent from calls.
Diagnosis: ask for a written list of every deliverable committed and delivered for the last three months. The gap is the answer.
Fix: one written escalation with specific asks and a 30-day deadline. If it does not correct, leave. This is the one mode that justifies exit quickly.
Mode B: Execution is happening, strategy is wrong
Symptoms: content ships on time, technical work is done, rankings improve on terms nobody commercially cares about, no movement on terms that matter.
Diagnosis: list the ten terms that would actually generate revenue. Ask what the plan is for each. Vagueness confirms it.
Fix: a strategy reset, not a new agency. Bring commercial priorities to the table explicitly — most agencies optimise for what you told them mattered.
Mode C: You are the bottleneck
Symptoms: drafts sit unapproved for weeks, developer tickets are unactioned, briefs go unanswered, calls get rescheduled.
Diagnosis: ask the agency directly what they are blocked on. Then check how long each item has waited on your side.
Fix: a five-business-day approval SLA on yourself, approval delegated below the founder, and a standing developer slot. This is the most common mode and the most commonly misdiagnosed as agency failure.
Mode D: The market moved
Symptoms: rankings held, then dropped across the board. Or impressions held while clicks fell.
Diagnosis: check for a core update in the period, check whether AI Overviews now occupy your SERPs, check whether a well-resourced competitor entered.
Fix: a re-plan, not a blame allocation. Falling clicks on stable impressions usually means SERP layout changed, which needs a different content response rather than more of the same.
Step 3: The conversation to have
Put it in writing before the next call, with four questions:
- What was committed and what was delivered in the last 90 days?
- Which commercial terms are we targeting, and what is the plan for each?
- What are you blocked on from our side?
- What would you do differently if you were starting this engagement today?
Question four is the most revealing. A good agency has a real answer. A weak one says everything is on track.
When to leave
- Execution gaps persist 30 days after a written escalation
- You cannot get live URLs for links they claim to have built
- The named strategist has been replaced without notice and quality dropped
- Reporting changes to hide a decline — particularly a changed keyword set
- They will not answer question four honestly
Before leaving, secure your assets: confirm you own all accounts, export all documentation and briefs, and give notice in writing per the contract.
Frequently asked questions
My outsourced SEO is not working. What should I do first?
Check whether it is too early. At months 1-3 expect technical and cadence progress only. Then identify which of four failure modes applies: execution, strategy, your own bottleneck, or a market shift.
How long before I should worry?
Flat impressions on commercial queries at month six, after consistent delivery, is a genuine problem. Flat revenue at month four is a normal timeline, not a failure.
What is the most common reason it fails?
The client is the bottleneck — unapproved drafts, unactioned developer tickets, unanswered briefs. It is frequently misdiagnosed as agency underperformance.
Should I switch agencies?
Only for persistent execution failure after a written escalation, unverifiable links, or reporting manipulation. Strategy problems are usually cheaper to reset than to re-onboard elsewhere.
What should I secure before leaving?
Confirm you own all accounts, export documentation, briefs, and data, and serve notice in writing. Then revoke delegated access on the final day.
Part of our complete guide to SEO outsourcing.
Serpwize runs outsourced SEO from India for businesses and agencies in the US, UK, and Australia. See how our engagements are structured.
