Byron Gordon, SEO-PR, interviews Paul Mead, VCCP Search, about his participation on the IAB Search Council panel, Search Marketing Best Practice at SES London 2009. Paul reviews best practice procedures for properly identifying and hiring a reputable search agency. Paul stresses that before a company considers hiring a search agency, it should review its own skill levels, its own in-house resources, and, in particular, review the quality of the people who will be working on the account. In addition, companies should ask for an agency's case studies to review, contracts, and any specific particulars that would make the agency a suitable candidate for a solid partnership. Paul also lists some resources for companies to access to help them in their decision making.