This article is from our Agency Growth Handbook—a collection of guides created to help local SEO agencies grow and succeed. It is chapter three of ‘Part 3: Retention & Growth’.
SEOs are always sharing advice, so if you keep up with newsletters or articles, you’ll be regularly running into something new to try. Whether it’s trying to get your website or businesses included in a new SERP feature, testing out a method to appear in AI Overviews, or even connecting social media posts to SEO strategy. Lots of things are changing, and many SEOs are sharing their insights, testing new strategies, and refining what works in real time.
Clients who like to educate themselves on SEO aren’t ignoring the new information, either. They want to keep up with the times, read about case studies, and see what SEOs with big followings are sharing. There’s nothing wrong with that.
When you’re client-facing, you’ll inevitably have one come to you about a new thing they read about, and they want to know why you haven’t tried this new thing out for them. It causes FOMO (fear of missing out), and whether that new thing is right for them or not, they can make an impulsive decision to do it anyway.
So, how do you cut through the noise and get the client to focus on what really matters? How can you make your point and get the win, both for yourself and the client?
It’s all about education, managing expectations, and preparing for the aftermath if you can’t get the client on board.
“Shiny new object” syndrome
“Shiny new object syndrome” occurs when businesses jump on new trends without fully evaluating their impact or necessity. With the SERPs and AI changing up the SEO industry on a near-weekly basis, there is a lot more trepidation around what makes for the best approach and a sense of urgency to hop on to the latest new thing someone’s shared. Many companies see a new approach, hear a success story, and assume they must implement it immediately without considering whether it fits their needs.
A great example of this is programmatic SEO (a method that uses automation and technology to create search-engine-optimized web pages at scale). As of December 2024, ChatGPT had 300 million weekly active users worldwide. With the possibility of making things easier, faster, and more efficient, you’ve likely had or will have clients who want to figure out how to use ChatGPT for everything. The popularity of ChatGPT and the allure of programmatic SEO can lead a client to think that just because this technology exists and works for some companies, it can be the perfect opportunity to use this method for creating hundreds of business location pages, for example, at once.
However, just because you can, it doesn’t mean you should. By blindly following the promise of hundreds of local landing pages created instantly that can rank, clients overlook many factors: no consideration of content quality, risks around duplicate content, and the fact they’re likely to be creating a negative experience for their potential customers. The example below from this excellent guide on the pitfalls of programmatic SEO highlights what can happen after the initial short-term gains.
Another example of “shiny new object” syndrome with local business clients is the rush for SEO testing. The client may have seen a recent case study or even read something you’ve published about another client’s results with testing and want to know why they haven’t been given the same plan. But the truth is that they don’t even have their foundation set up in such a way that testing is justified. It could be a brand new site, or there could be a lot of work to be done just redoing the work of the previous agency.
When clients are showing you other people’s success and recommendations, managing their “shiny new object” syndrome can be overwhelming. You must be prepared to discuss and handle requests for random things like the examples mentioned.
How to Say No
Saying no to a client’s idea in the best possible way isn’t just about managing the rejection they’ll feel—it’s about guiding them toward a better decision, too. By approaching the conversation with clear explanations, relevant data, and a focus on their long-term success, you can turn a tough conversation into an opportunity for education and trust-building.
Explain
When a client wants to try something new, the best approach is to help them understand whether it’s truly beneficial for their site. Just because a strategy worked for one business doesn’t mean it will work for another.
The industry they operate in, the current state of their website, and the competitiveness of their market all impact whether a tactic will deliver results. A strategy that helped a large eCommerce brand won’t necessarily translate to success for a small local business.
It’s also important to explain the risks. Some trends might bring short-term success but cause long-term damage. For example, a client might see a case study about a website ranking quickly by purchasing many links and assume they should do the same.
First, you would want to address the case study, social media post, or idea they’ve shown you. Be specific in your approach to debunking its success, and explain that search engines can detect and penalize manipulative link-building tactics. Cite your sources, and if you can find the same source or publication making a debunking argument, then all the better! Google Search documentation is your friend in explaining away any of these spammy tactics they might bring up.
Educating clients about the potential consequences of trend-chasing helps them make more informed decisions. If you tell them they’ll lose out on money, they aren’t likely to suggest this again.
Tie it Back to Business Goals
When clients are uncertain, reassurance always comes from connecting SEO efforts to their business goals. A local business’s goals are to drive local traffic, improve leads, and increase revenue. Showing how the current strategy supports those objectives is key. When they push for a trend that doesn’t align with their goals, put things into perspective by comparing the return on investment of their existing plan versus the new idea. Sometimes, the numbers alone are enough to shift their thinking.
Data-driven insights work wonders in these conversations. Instead of simply telling clients that a strategy won’t work for them, showing them performance trends, competitor insights, and past case studies provides concrete evidence. This shifts the discussion from opinion to fact, making it easier to keep it on track.
Reassure
Managing clients is all about proper communication and developing and executing an SEO strategy that actually works. Part of your job is empathy and understanding your client’s situations and requests. Their SEO budget can be everything to them, especially when you’re working with small-to-medium-sized businesses. Every dollar matters, and they are bringing these new ideas to you because they just want to get a return on their investment as soon as possible.
When discussing this with the client, keep the client’s perspective at the top of your mind. Remind them of the past results you’ve achieved for them and that they have trusted you before to create the best path forward for them. Align yourself with their point of view and match their communication style in your approach.
What if they insist?
Even with the best explanations, some clients still insist on trying a new trend. Instead of fighting them on it, finding a middle ground can help them see the reality of their choice without risking their entire SEO strategy.
Compromise
Sometimes, a client just won’t take no for an answer. In these cases, a compromise can be the best way forward. If the new idea isn’t likely to cause harm, framing it as a test allows the client to explore it while maintaining control over the outcome. Setting clear metrics and a defined time period ensures the results are measurable and actionable.
Going back to our programmatic SEO example, if a client insists on this approach for location pages despite you sharing your concerns, testing a small batch of pages first allows for an assessment of performance without making large-scale changes. If the results are positive, adjustments can be made before expanding further. If they are negative, the impact is contained, and the client can see why the approach may not be the best fit.
Let Them See the “Fruits” of Their Labor
If a client is determined to move forward with a risky idea despite your warnings, sometimes the best approach is to let them see the results firsthand. When performance declines or the expected results don’t materialize, presenting this information objectively makes it easier to guide them back to a more effective approach.
Letting a client fail isn’t necessarily the best approach, but in some extreme cases, it’s the only way for them to understand a trend’s limitations. Instead of debating opinions, the conversation becomes centered on real-world outcomes, making it easier to refocus on proven strategies.
It’s About Educating, Not Just Explaining
By balancing education, expectation management, and strategic compromise, you can help clients navigate the “shiny new object” syndrome. The goal isn’t just for you to say “no” and have the client accept that—a client engaged with your work and industry is always a good thing—instead, it’s to educate clients with the knowledge needed to make informed decisions that drive real results.
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