SEO Interview Questions - What I Ask

There have been a lot of talk over the last year about “Interview Questions” in the SEO space and I even reviewed a HUGE list of SEO Interview Questions, but let’s face it, you don’t have a lot of time to ask those, let alone review the answers. So, here is what I do because I have adopted the Howie Schwartz method: hire fast and fire faster.

I want to know their knowledge and ability to learn and grow. I also want to uncover their ability to bullshit too. I always give a test project, one that should be completed in about 5-10 minutes to gauge their ability to analyze, process and recommend a solution.

And if they cry because I was too mean, that’s a bonus.

Here are a list of questions I ask in either a live interview, over the phone, or post on a job board. This is especially helpful when outsourcing overseas as it will give you an understanding how well they can communicate and write in English.

SEO Interview Questions

What SEO tools do you use on a weekly basis? (I want to know how well versed they are in the market and an SEO’s toolset say a lot about them, the same way a carpenter’s toolbox does).

What kind of strategies have you implemented to achieve at least a PR5 for a current client and what is the domain? (Run a backlink check on the site with SEO Elite or another link analysis product. Are there shady links? Paid links? Link Farms? If it looks solid, ask them to put your name as the author (temporarily) in the meta author tag, or place your name somewhere on the home page to verify they have control over the site).

What’s the difference between PageRank and ToolBar PageRank? (I love this question. If you get “Aren’t they the same?” end the interview immediately).

How do you evaluate whether an SEO campaign is working? (Hopefully the answer here is “conversions” and not “traffic” or worse, “ranking”)

Why does Google rank Wikipedia for so many topics? (Great question which should produce insightful answers)

Do a Google search on this candidates name (If you cannot find them, that’s a red flag. And if you can’t find them ask why not).

Of the well-known SEOs, who do you pay attention to and who are you not likely to pay attention to? (I love this one.)

What industry sites, blogs, and forums do you regularly read? (This is a great question and they better rattle off less than a dozen or it is a warning that they spend too much time reading and not enough time working)

Tell me your biggest failure in an SEO project (good question - watch them “shift” in their seat)

In what areas of SEO are you strongest? (test these areas heavily to make sure they are really strong in those areas)

In what areas of SEO are you weakest? (make sure they actually admit to a weakness. Those who state “I’m too organized” or “I have too much attention to detail” are red flags. Everyone has weaknesses.)

There you go. That should give you plenty of information to really get their worth, and not bury them with too many unneeded questions.