When SEO Gets Serious: What I Look for in the First 20 Minutes of Any Real Discovery Call

The First 20 Minutes: What I Ask, Watch, and Sniff Out Fast

I’ve been in this game since before “Google” was a verb. These days, discovery calls are part technical triage, part strategic gut check. If someone books with me, here’s what I’m watching for within the first 20 minutes:

1. Is This Site Even Healthy? (A Quick Crawl)

• Core Web Vitals pass/fail?

• Indexed pages vs. published?

• HTTPS/SSL working right?

• Is WordPress neutered by a drag-and-drop page builder?

• Does the CMS generate parameterized garbage URLs?

If your site feels like a Frankenstein build of plugins, half-migrated templates, and Google Search Console errors galore, I’ll see it — fast.

2. What Are We Really Selling? And to Whom?

I ask this early and often:

“If I gave you 100 perfect clicks tomorrow — the right people, right intent — what would you want them to do?”

That single question reveals:

• Whether you have a clear offer

• If you’re funnel-ready or leak like a sieve

• If we’re optimizing for buyers or browsers

3. Are You a National Challenger or a Local Heavyweight?

This matters hugely. The strategy for ranking a roofer in Columbus is completely different than pushing a national SaaS up the SERPs. I want to know:

• Are we going to war with Yelp and Angi’s, or G2 and Capterra?

• Do we need local map pack dominance or organic blog traffic?

4. Do You Have Content That Can Rank — or Just a Brochure?

This is where most sites fail.

You might have 20 “pages” but no actual content. That means:

• No topical authority

• No long-tail rankings

• No structured data (schema)

• No reason for Google to keep visiting

I’ll check your content architecture and ask if you have writers, editors, or a ghost content agency on hand — or if we’re building from scratch.

5. What’s Your SEO History — and Who’s Touched the Site?

Sometimes I uncover:

• A prior agency that “optimized” by keyword stuffing H1s and buying junk backlinks.

• A dev who blocked everything with noindex,nofollow.

• A marketer using Wix, hoping SEO is just vibes.

I ask about past spend, tools, internal ownership, and history with:

• GSC (Google Search Console)

• GBP (Google Business Profile)

• Analytics (GA4 or stuck in Universal?)

What I Actually Offer (That Most Freelancers Don’t)

🎯 Hands-on technical fixes
🎯 Local + national hybrid strategy
🎯 Schema markup, URL rewrites, tracking installs
🎯 Crawl budget management
🎯 WordPress rehab
🎯 GBP reinstatement (if you’ve been suspended)

I’m not an “SEO content writer.” I’m the guy you call when your rankings stall, your leads dry up, or Google nukes your map listing. You can hire me right now via my freelancer page on Upwork or set up a 30-minute call with me via Calendly.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: What makes your SEO approach different from others?

A: I’m hands-on, technically fluent, and laser-focused on conversion-centric search visibility. No fluff, no outsourcing, no snake oil.

Q: How soon do I start seeing results?

A: Technical fixes can boost visibility within days. Content-based strategies take 4–12 weeks to show traction — depending on competition and crawl frequency.

Q: Can you fix my suspended Google Business Profile?

A: Yes. If it can be recovered, I will get it back — no recovery, no payment.

Q: Do you build backlinks?

A: Not the shady kind. I’ll recommend organic link-building, but I won’t risk penalties with spammy PBNs or Fiverr-tier “placements.”

Q: Do you offer reports or dashboards?

A: Yes — I provide a Looker Studio dashboard that connects to GA4, GSC, and keyword rank trackers. You’ll have 24/7 visibility into performance.

Glossary

• Core Web Vitals: Google's metrics for page speed, interactivity, and visual stability.

• Crawl Budget: How many pages Googlebot will crawl on your site, and how often.

• GSC: Google Search Console — used for tracking indexing, errors, and SEO insights.

• GA4: The latest version of Google Analytics — tracks user behavior and conversion.

• Schema Markup: Code that helps search engines better understand your content.

• SERPs: Search Engine Results Pages — where your site shows up in Google.

• Parameter URL: A messy URL like example.com/page?=id123, usually bad for SEO.

• Map Pack: The local 3-pack of businesses that show up in Google Maps results.

• GBP: Google Business Profile — essential for local SEO and map visibility.

You can hire me right now via my freelancer page on Upwork or set up a 30-minute call with me via Calendly.