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leadengineROOFING SEO

Guide · Buying & ROI

Roofing SEO Contracts and Ownership: A Procurement Checklist

Most SEO disputes come from unclear deliverables or accounts held in the provider's name. Settle both before work starts.

By the Lead Engine Sales and Marketing team · Updated

Quick answer

Before signing a roofing SEO agreement, confirm in writing what will be delivered, who owns and controls each account (domain, hosting, website, Business Profile, analytics, Search Console, call tracking), who owns content and photos produced, how reporting works, and what is handed back if you stop. This is an operational checklist, not legal advice; have an attorney review the agreement itself.

Accounts

Account ownership and access

AssetWho should own itWhat the provider needs
Domain registrationYour companyUsually nothing, or DNS access when required
Website / CMSYour companyA user account you can remove
HostingYour companyAccess only if they manage the site
Google Business ProfileYour company as primary ownerManager access
Search Console & analyticsYour companyUser access
Call tracking numbersYour company where possibleReport access

If any of these are in a provider's name today, fix that before changing anything else. The switching guide explains how.

Deliverables

Deliverables you can verify

  • A list of first-period deliverables (for example: audit, fixes, pages, profile updates).
  • How ongoing monthly work is defined and shown to you.
  • What the provider needs from you, and by when.
  • How changes to scope are agreed.

Vague items like "ongoing optimization" make it impossible to tell whether work happened. Ask for examples of past monthly reports.

Content

Content, photos and work product

Clarify whether pages, articles, images and design files created under the agreement belong to your company once paid for, and whether anything is licensed rather than owned (for example stock photos or a theme). Your own job photos should remain yours regardless.

Offboarding

Offboarding: what happens when you stop

  1. Notice and term. Know the notice period and any minimum term before you sign.
  2. Access returned. Provider access removed; your ownership confirmed on every account.
  3. Data exported. Reports, keyword tracking history and baseline records handed over.
  4. Nothing removed. Pages, redirects and tracking stay in place unless you agree otherwise.

Questions

Common questions

Related reading

How to choose a roofing SEO company Evaluation worksheet, proof checks and red flags.Switching roofing SEO companies Ownership, access and baseline exports before you change.Agency vs freelancer Compare coverage, accountability, continuity and specialization when choosing between an agency and a freelancer.Business information consistency Inventory your company facts across your site and listings, and resolve conflicts systematically.Agency vs in-house SEO Decide whether to hire an agency, build in-house capacity or split the work, based on skills and management time.Agency vs freelancer Compare coverage, accountability, continuity and specialization when choosing between an agency and a freelancer.

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We'll go over who owns your accounts today and what a clean setup looks like.

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