The name covers Washington State and Washington DC, and they are not the same market in any respect that matters: different industries, different competitors, different buyers and, in the capital, a large share of organisations selling to government. Any brief that does not say which one it means will produce a proposal aimed at neither.
Say which Washington in the brief and on the page
Searchers disambiguate with the state abbreviation, the city or a neighbourhood, and your pages should do the same. A page that simply says Washington will be read as the wrong one by half its audience and by the search engine some of the time. Name the city, the county or the district you serve, and put the address and service area in the business listing so the map results resolve correctly.
The capital's market is largely institutional
Associations, contractors, non-profits, legal and policy firms dominate, and much of the buying runs through procurement rather than a form on a website. Search work there is about being the credible answer when someone researches a supplier, and about the pages that serve a procurement reader: capability, past performance, certifications and contract vehicles. That is a different content plan from a consumer one.
The state's market is metro by metro
Seattle, Tacoma, Spokane and Vancouver are separate competitive sets, and a statewide page competes with none of them well. For a business serving one metro, that metro is the market. For a business serving the whole state, the honest structure is a strong page per metro you can genuinely serve, and nothing for the ones you cannot.
What to hold the agency to either way
Own the accounts, agree the definition of a qualified enquiry, and require a ninety-day plan with named deliverables rather than a ranking report. If your market is the capital and the agency's examples are all local trades, or your market is a Seattle trade and the examples are all federal contractors, the portfolio is telling you something.
Questions people ask about seo company washington
Should I target both Washingtons?
Only if you genuinely serve both, and then as separate pages with separate listings. Trying to rank one page for both usually ranks it for neither.
Does a DC address matter for federal buyers?
For local search visibility it helps. For procurement it matters far less than registrations, past performance and contract vehicles.
How competitive is search in Seattle?
Competitive in technology and professional services, much less so in most trades. The honest answer comes from looking at who currently ranks for your specific terms.
What should a first engagement cover?
Listing and service area, the two or three pages that carry your highest-intent queries, and enquiry tracking so the next decision is made on data.