ChatGPT answers, unedited

For a professional services firm in the Loop (law, consulting, finance, architecture, healthcare, B2B, etc.), I’d prioritize agencies that understand SEO migration risk, thought-leadership content, conversion paths, and credibility-driven design—not just visual redesign.

Here are several Chicago-area firms worth evaluating:

My shortlist for a Loop-based professional services firm would be:

1. Marcel Digital — if organic search performance and protecting rankings during redesign are top priorities.
2. Digital Authority Partners — if you need a more strategic, enterprise-style engagement.
3. Comrade — if you want an integrated SEO + website + demand-generation partner located in the Loop.

When interviewing agencies, I’d ask:

• “Can you show examples of redesigns where organic traffic was preserved or improved after launch?”
• “Who owns the 301 redirect plan, technical SEO QA, and Google Search Console monitoring?”
• “Will you rewrite service pages around search intent, or only redesign templates?”
• “Do you have experience with professional buyers who need credibility before contacting sales?”

Those answers will usually separate SEO-aware redesign partners from firms that mainly do branding and front-end design.

• Orbit Media Studios - 4043 N Ravenswood Ave #316, Chicago, IL 60613, United States
• Straight North - 200 N Green St Fl 3, Chicago, IL 60607, United States
• Solid Digital - 100 N LaSalle St #1400, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• SEO Design Chicago - 2068 N Western Ave 1F - Front, Chicago, IL 60647, United States
• Mabbly - 640 N La Salle Dr #540, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• SEOLEVELUP, LLC Website Design SEO Company - 1S183 Summit Ave, Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60181, United States
• Alpha Digital Marketing - 4043 N Ravenswood Ave #316, Chicago, IL 60613, United States
• Chicago Website Design SEO Company - 10 S Riverside Plaza #875, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• YourPortal - 2211 N Elston Ave Ste 208, Chicago, IL 60614, United States
• Americaneagle.com, Inc. - 200 W Jackson Blvd Fl 22, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• RedShark SEO - 65 W Erie St #1901, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• 97 Switch - 1 E Wacker Dr #2550, Chicago, IL 60601, United States
• Flamingo Agency - 3752 N Southport Ave, Chicago, IL 60613, United States

For a professional-services firm in the Loop, my first call would be Orbit Media Studios.

Why Orbit is the strongest fit

• Chicago-based: Their HQ is at 4043 N Ravenswood Ave., and they have been designing websites since 2001. Orbit Media Studios Orbit Media Studios
• SEO is built into the redesign process: Orbit explicitly addresses the biggest redesign risk—losing existing organic rankings. Their process includes preserving keyphrase relevance, documenting URL changes and redirects, and establishing a technical SEO foundation. Orbit Media Studios
• Good professional-services experience: Their portfolio includes firms such as Zuckerman Investment Group, The Horton Group, and Challenger, Gray & Christmas, rather than being primarily consumer/e-commerce focused. Orbit Media Studios Orbit Media Studios
• Strong content + UX combination: They handle SEO research, information architecture, content strategy/copywriting, UX, development, analytics, and ongoing optimization under one roof. Orbit Media Studios Orbit Media Studios
• Lead-generation orientation: They aren't treating SEO as simply "rankings"; their redesign methodology is explicitly aimed at qualified leads and conversion. Orbit Media Studios

orbitmedia.com

Two other Loop-area options worth considering

• Straight North — Particularly worth a look if ongoing SEO and lead generation are as important as the redesign. They have a Chicago office at 200 N Green St. and specialize in professional-services SEO, including keyword research, content, technical SEO and optimization. Straight North
• Solid Digital — A downtown option at 100 N LaSalle with a B2B orientation and capabilities spanning redesign, UX/information architecture, SEO, analytics and ongoing support. This could be a good alternative if the project has a substantial B2B brand/UX component.

My shortlist: Orbit first, Straight North second, Solid Digital third.

For your particular project, I'd ask each agency to show you 2–3 professional-services redesigns where they can demonstrate organic traffic/ranking performance before and after launch, not just screenshots of the new sites. I'd also make URL mapping, redirects, preservation of high-performing pages, migration QA, and post-launch SEO monitoring explicit deliverables in the proposal.

• Orbit Media Studios - 4043 N Ravenswood Ave #316, Chicago, IL 60613, United States
• Straight North - 200 N Green St Fl 3, Chicago, IL 60607, United States
• 97 Switch - 1 E Wacker Dr #2550, Chicago, IL 60601, United States
• Chicago Website Design SEO Company - 10 S Riverside Plaza #875, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
• EM Search Consulting, LLC. - 330 N Ashland Ave, Chicago, IL 60607, United States
• Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding - 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
• YourPortal - 2211 N Elston Ave Ste 208, Chicago, IL 60614, United States
• SEO Design Chicago - 2068 N Western Ave 1F - Front, Chicago, IL 60647, United States
• Digital Authority Partners - 420 W Huron St Fl 1, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• Sixth City Marketing - 620 N La Salle Dr Ste 415, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• SEOLEVELUP, LLC Website Design SEO Company - 1S183 Summit Ave, Oakbrook Terrace, IL 60181, United States
• RedShark SEO - 65 W Erie St #1901, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
• Comrade Digital Marketing Agency - 332 S Michigan Ave #900, Chicago, IL 60604, United States

For a Chicago professional-services firm in the Loop, my first call would be Orbit Media Studios.

My shortlist

• Orbit Media Studios — Best overall fit. Chicago-based and unusually strong at combining redesign, UX, content, development, and SEO. Most importantly, they explicitly build SEO preservation into redesigns: protecting keyword relevance, documenting URL/redirect strategy, and establishing a technical SEO foundation. Orbit Media Studios Orbit Media Studios They also show professional/B2B examples including The Horton Group, with a reported 26% increase in qualified leads. Orbit Media Studios

orbitmedia.com

• Straight North — Strong alternative if lead generation is the priority. Their Chicago office is actually in the Fulton Market/West Loop area, and they explicitly integrate SEO, UX and conversion optimization into website builds. Straight North Straight North

straightnorth.com

• 97 Switch — Worth considering for a more boutique, strategy/brand-heavy approach. They're right in the Loop at 1 E. Wacker and combine website work with SEO and broader marketing strategy. Their positioning is more creative/brand-oriented than Orbit's.

What I'd choose

For a law firm, consulting firm, accounting firm, financial-services firm, or other high-value professional-services business, I'd rank them:

1. Orbit Media → best balance of sophisticated redesign + SEO preservation + B2B lead generation
2. Straight North → best if ongoing SEO/lead generation is equally important
3. 97 Switch → best if brand repositioning and a polished new digital identity are major objectives

One thing I'd insist on in the RFP: don't accept “SEO after launch.” Have the agency commit upfront to an SEO migration plan covering current rankings/traffic, URL mapping, redirects, metadata, internal linking, content retention, schema, Core Web Vitals, XML sitemap, analytics/Search Console, and post-launch monitoring. Orbit is particularly explicit about this methodology. Orbit Media Studios Orbit Media Studios

If you tell me what type of professional-services firm and roughly how large the current site is, I can narrow this to the 2 agencies I'd actually invite to pitch, including likely budget range and relevant case studies.

My top recommendation is Orbit Media Studios.

They’re Chicago-based and particularly well aligned with a professional-services website redesign where preserving/growing organic traffic is a priority. Their process explicitly includes SEO audits before and after launch, redirect mapping, SEO-driven site architecture, keyword research, content strategy, and technical SEO. They also say they’ve designed 1,000+ websites and have more than 20 years of experience. www.orbitmedia.comwww.orbitmedia.com

A few reasons I’d put them first:

• SEO is integrated into the redesign, rather than treated as an add-on after the new site launches. www.orbitmedia.com
• Professional-services experience: their portfolio includes firms such as The Horton Group and Zuckerman Investment Group. www.orbitmedia.com
• Strong migration discipline: they specifically discuss preserving rankings, keyphrase relevance, URL structure and redirects during redesigns. www.orbitmedia.com
• Chicago presence: their office is at 4043 N Ravenswood Ave, though they serve clients citywide. www.orbitmedia.comwww.orbitmedia.com

Two alternatives worth interviewing

• Straight North — a Chicago agency with a strong SEO/lead-generation orientation. Its web-design team says SEO, UX and conversion optimization are incorporated into every site, which makes it a good option if the firm's primary goal is qualified lead generation. www.straightnorth.com
• Walker Sands — especially worth considering if the redesign also involves a broader B2B/professional-services positioning and content/communications strategy.

For a Loop-based professional-services firm, I'd shortlist Orbit and Straight North, with Orbit as my first call. The key question I'd ask both in the pitch is: “Show us exactly how you would migrate our existing organic equity—top landing pages, rankings, backlinks, metadata and URLs—without sacrificing traffic during the redesign.” That will quickly separate genuine SEO-led redesign experience from agencies that simply say their sites are “SEO friendly.”

Orbit Media Studios
Straight North

For a professional services firm in the Loop, my first call would be Orbit Media Studios.

Why Orbit is the strongest fit

• Chicago-based and established: Its HQ is on Ravenswood, and it has been doing web design/development since 2001. www.orbitmedia.com
• Redesign + SEO are integrated: Orbit explicitly builds redesigns around technical SEO, site architecture, keyword relevance, redirects, page speed, and post-launch audits—not just visual design. www.orbitmedia.comwww.orbitmedia.com
• Good professional-services orientation: Its portfolio includes B2B organizations and professional-service-type clients, including Duarte and Zuckerman Investment Group. www.orbitmedia.com
• Strong lead-generation focus: They combine UX, content strategy, SEO and conversion optimization, which is particularly useful when your site needs to turn expertise into qualified inquiries. www.orbitmedia.com
• Migration risk is taken seriously: Their stated approach includes preserving keyphrase relevance, mapping redirects and maintaining technical SEO during a redesign. www.orbitmedia.comwww.orbitmedia.com

Orbit Media Studios

Two alternatives worth putting in the RFP

Straight North — particularly attractive if SEO/lead generation is the primary objective. Its Chicago office is in Fulton Market, and its web team combines SEO, content, UX, development and conversion optimization. www.straightnorth.com

Straight North web design services

Walker Sands — worth considering if you're a larger B2B/professional-services organization and the redesign is tied to broader positioning, content, demand generation or brand work. Its Chicago office is actually in the Loop at 55 W. Monroe, and it specifically lists professional services/consulting among its sectors.

My ranking

For the RFP, I'd make SEO preservation during migration a hard requirement: baseline organic traffic/rankings, URL-by-URL redirect mapping, preservation of high-performing pages, metadata/schema, internal linking, Core Web Vitals, and a post-launch monitoring period. Orbit's published methodology lines up unusually well with that checklist. www.orbitmedia.comwww.orbitmedia.com

If you tell me what kind of professional-services firm (law, accounting, consulting, financial services, architecture, etc.) and roughly how large the current site is, I can narrow this to 3 agencies with relevant client examples and likely budget tiers.

For a Chicago professional-services firm in the Loop, I’d shortlist these three:

1. Comrade Digital Marketing Agency — best overall fit.

They’re actually in the Loop at 332 S. Michigan Ave., and their mix of web design, SEO, and lead-generation work makes them a strong candidate for a redesign where preserving organic equity matters as much as the new look. theloopmarketing.com

2. Americaneagle.com, Inc. — best for a larger/more complex firm.

Their Chicago office is at 200 W. Jackson Blvd. and they cover strategy, UX/design, development, SEO, analytics, and hosting. I'd consider them if the firm has a substantial existing site, multiple practices, integrations, or a more enterprise-level budget. loopchicago.com

3. DS&P Digital Marketing & PR Agency — best if brand/PR matters alongside SEO.

They're also in the Loop at 332 S. Michigan and combine website work with SEO, content, branding, and PR—potentially useful if the redesign is partly about repositioning the firm. loopchicago.com

My first call would be Comrade. For your particular brief, I’d make the agency prove it can handle the SEO transition—not just say the new site is “SEO-friendly.” Ask for a concrete plan covering:

• URL mapping and 301 redirects
• preservation of high-performing pages/backlinks
• title/meta and heading migration
• internal-link restructuring
• schema/structured data
• Core Web Vitals and technical performance
• staging-site indexing controls
• pre/post-launch crawling and Search Console monitoring
• a 60–90 day post-launch SEO plan

A Chicago agency specifically advertising redesign + SEO transition work is Chicago Website Design SEO Company; its published material explicitly says its redesigns preserve URLs/metadata, add schema, and include post-launch QA. chicagowebsitedesignseocompany.com

If you tell me what kind of professional-services firm (law, accounting, consulting, architecture, financial services, etc.) and roughly how many pages/current traffic, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 agencies and compare their likely fit, location, specialization, and pricing level.

For a professional services firm in the Loop (law, consulting, finance, architecture, healthcare, B2B, etc.), I’d prioritize agencies that understand that a redesign is not just a visual refresh—it needs information architecture, technical SEO, content strategy, conversion paths, and migration planning.

A few Chicago-area agencies worth considering:

Marcel Digital — strongest fit for B2B/professional services

Marcel Digital
Web
Address: 445 W Erie St #200, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
Phone: +1 312-255-8044

• Chicago-based agency with experience combining SEO, UX, analytics, CRO, and web development.
• Good match if your firm has a complex service offering, multiple practice areas, thought leadership content, or needs measurement beyond rankings.
• Ask them specifically about: SEO migration plans, content restructuring, schema, and lead attribution.

The Loop Marketing Inc — convenient Loop-based option

The Loop Marketing Inc
Web
Address: 159 N Sangamon St Suite 200, Chicago, IL 60607, United States
Phone: +1 312-569-9449

• Located in Chicago and focused on web design, SEO, and digital marketing for professional service organizations.
• Likely a good fit for a mid-sized firm wanting a hands-on local partner rather than a large enterprise shop.

Brand Vision Marketing – Web Design & Branding — brand + website modernization

Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding
Web
Address: 30 N Michigan Ave #504, Chicago, IL 60602, United States
Phone: +1 312-741-0303

• Located downtown near the Loop and focused on web design, branding, and conversion-oriented digital experiences.
• Consider if the current site feels dated and the firm needs stronger positioning, messaging, and visual credibility alongside SEO.

Sixth City Marketing — SEO-led growth approach

Sixth City Marketing
Web
Address: 620 N La Salle Dr Ste 415, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
Phone: +1 312-872-7726

• Chicago agency offering SEO, CRO, PPC, and web design/development.
• A fit if organic lead generation is the primary business goal and the redesign needs to support a broader marketing program.

NEWMEDIA.COM — larger redesign capability

NEWMEDIA.COM
Web
Address: 444 W Lake St Ste 1700, Chicago, IL 60606, United States
Phone: +1 312-416-8466

• Chicago-based digital agency in the West Loop with web design, UX, and development capabilities.
• Worth considering for a more complex corporate site or a firm with many stakeholders.

DS&P Digital Marketing & PR Agency — Loop location + broader communications

DS&P Digital Marketing & PR Agency
Web
Address: 332 S Michigan Ave #900, Chicago, IL 60604, United States
Phone: +1 888-722-1998

• Based in the Loop and combines web, SEO, marketing, and PR capabilities.
• Useful if the redesign is tied to reputation, positioning, media visibility, or thought leadership.

My shortlist for a Loop professional services firm

1. Marcel Digital — if SEO performance, analytics, and lead generation are the priority.
2. The Loop Marketing Inc — if you want a local, approachable partner.
3. Brand Vision Marketing — if brand credibility and website experience need a major upgrade.
4. Sixth City Marketing — if SEO is the centerpiece of the engagement.

When interviewing them, I’d ask:

• “Can you show a professional-services redesign where organic traffic was preserved or increased after launch?”
• “Who owns the SEO migration plan (redirects, metadata, URL changes, indexation checks)?”
• “Will you rewrite service pages based on search intent, or only redesign the templates?”
• “How do you measure qualified leads, not just traffic?”

If you share the type of firm (law, consulting, accounting, architecture, etc.) and approximate site size, I can narrow this to 2–3 best-fit agencies.

For a Chicago professional-services firm in the Loop, I’d put Marcel Digital at the top of the shortlist.

• Marcel Digital — Best overall fit. Chicago-based, with an office at 20 N Wacker, and combines SEO, web development, UX/information architecture, CRO, and analytics in-house. That combination is particularly useful for a redesign where you want to modernize the site without sacrificing existing organic equity.
• The Loop Marketing Inc — Best smaller/local option. Based in Chicago and explicitly serves professional-service organizations. Its site emphasizes search-friendly web design, advanced SEO, WordPress, and redesign case studies, including a Chicago law firm. theloopmarketing.com
• Chicago Website Design SEO Company — Best if SEO preservation is the primary concern. They're downtown at 10 S Riverside Plaza and explicitly describe redesigns that preserve URLs/metadata, add schema, and include post-launch SEO QA. Their published case studies include professional services. theloopmarketing.comchicagowebsitedesignseocompany.com
• SEOLEVELUP Website Design SEO Company Chicago — Worth considering for a more hands-on boutique engagement. They're in the West Loop and position SEO as something built into website design from the beginning rather than added after launch.
• Dabaran — Interesting if you specifically want a Loop-based SEO specialist. Their office is at 332 S Michigan Ave, and their core work includes technical/on-page SEO and SEO audits. I'd verify how much of the actual redesign/development they handle in-house.

My pick

Marcel Digital if this is a substantial professional-services redesign and organic search is strategically important. The Loop Marketing if you want a smaller agency and a potentially more intimate engagement.

For the pitch process, I'd specifically ask each agency to show one before/after redesign where they inherited an established site with meaningful Google rankings. Then ask for their migration plan covering URL mapping/301s, metadata, internal links, structured data, content preservation, Core Web Vitals, staging-site indexing controls, and 30/60/90-day post-launch monitoring. That's a much better test of SEO-redesign competence than simply asking whether they "do SEO."

For a professional services firm in the Loop (law, consulting, accounting, finance, architecture, healthcare, etc.), I’d prioritize agencies that understand B2B trust signals, content architecture, technical SEO during migrations, conversion paths, and reputation-driven buying cycles—not just local SEO for retail businesses.

A few Chicago-area firms worth considering:

Marcel Digital

Best fit: Larger professional services firms that want a strategic SEO + website partner.
Why consider them:

• Strong emphasis on measurable growth, analytics, SEO, CRO, and web development.
• More enterprise/B2B-oriented than many local SEO shops.
• A good candidate if the redesign involves complex content, integrations, analytics, or a significant organic search recovery plan.

Comrade Digital Marketing Agency

Best fit: Professional firms needing a full redesign plus lead generation focus.
Why consider them:

• Based in the Loop area.
• Offers web design, SEO, PPC, and broader digital marketing services.
• Likely a fit if the goal is a polished corporate site that also drives consultations/inquiries.

The Loop Marketing Inc

Best fit: Small-to-mid-sized professional services firms wanting a hands-on local agency.
Why consider them:

• Chicago-based and located near the West Loop.
• Combines website design, SEO strategy, and digital marketing.
• Their positioning emphasizes professional organizations and service businesses. theloopmarketing.com

Sixth City Marketing

Best fit: Firms that want SEO, conversion optimization, and ongoing growth work.
Why consider them:

• Combines SEO, CRO, paid search, and web development.
• A good option if you want the redesign tied closely to pipeline metrics.

SEO Design Chicago

Best fit: Firms where SEO performance is the primary concern.
Why consider them:

• Focuses specifically on SEO, website development, analytics, and optimization.
• Could be a fit for a redesign where preserving rankings and improving organic visibility are top priorities.

What I’d ask during agency interviews

For a Loop professional services redesign, I’d ask each agency:

1. “Show me a redesign where you preserved or increased organic traffic after launch.”

(A redesign can accidentally destroy rankings through URL, content, or architecture changes.)

2. “Who handles SEO strategy—the designer, developer, or a dedicated SEO lead?”

3. “How do you approach professional-services content?”

Look for experience with:

• practice/service pages
• attorney/expert bios
• thought leadership
• case studies
• trust signals
• schema markup
• E-E-A-T-style credibility signals

4. “Will you do a technical SEO audit before designing?”

My short list for a Loop-based professional services firm would be:

1. Marcel Digital — if this is a sophisticated B2B firm with serious SEO goals.
2. Comrade — if you want a corporate-quality redesign plus marketing.
3. The Loop Marketing — if you want a more local, collaborative partner.
4. Sixth City — if growth metrics and conversion optimization matter heavily.

I’d also compare proposals specifically on SEO migration planning, not just design portfolios.

For a Chicago professional-services firm in the Loop, I’d put Orbit Media at the top of the shortlist.

1. Marcel Digital — strongest SEO + redesign fit
   • Their Chicago office is 20 N. Wacker Dr., right in the Loop.
   • Particularly compelling if your firm is B2B/professional services: they combine SEO, technical SEO, web development, CRO, analytics, and measurement rather than treating SEO as an afterthought.
   • They specifically discuss SEO support for website migrations/replatforming, which is important when preserving rankings during a redesign. www.orbitmedia.com
   • My pick if organic traffic and lead generation are the primary objectives.

2. Orbit Media — best proven professional-services redesign specialist
   • Orbit explicitly specializes in professional-services web design, with experience spanning consulting, accounting, legal, financial services and other B2B categories. It reports 1,000+ website launches and 24+ years in the field. www.orbitmedia.com
   • Their approach combines information architecture, UX, content and SEO rather than simply giving an existing site a visual facelift.
   • They're Chicago-based, although their office is in Ravenswood rather than the Loop. www.orbitmedia.com
   • My pick if positioning, content architecture and executive-level polish matter as much as SEO.

3. SEO Design Chicago — good SEO-first alternative
   • Chicago-based agency with substantial WordPress capabilities, including migrations, custom development, performance, accessibility and SEO.
   • A sensible choice if the current site is technically dated and the redesign needs to be tightly controlled around search performance.

4. Comrade Digital Marketing Agency — good Loop-based full-service option
   • Located at 332 S. Michigan Ave., with web design plus SEO and broader digital marketing.
   • Better suited if you want one agency handling redesign, SEO and lead-generation campaigns rather than a highly specialized professional-services web shop.

What I'd ask each agency

For this project, I wouldn't ask simply, “Can you build an SEO-friendly website?” I'd ask them to show you a redesign where organic traffic was protected or increased after launch.

Specifically, ask for:

• A before/after organic traffic and rankings case study from a redesign.
• Their process for preserving URLs, redirects, internal links, metadata and backlinks.
• How they determine the new site architecture and service/practice-area pages before design begins.
• Who owns SEO strategy: strategist, designer, developer, or a separate subcontractor?
• How they handle Core Web Vitals, schema, crawlability and indexation.
• Whether content is rewritten as part of the redesign or merely migrated.
• What happens to rankings for your highest-value existing pages during launch.
• A post-launch monitoring period and rollback plan.

My shortlist would be Marcel Digital + Orbit Media + SEO Design Chicago. I'd invite all three to review the current site and propose a redesign/SEO migration approach before choosing. For a sophisticated professional-services firm, I'd favor Marcel if SEO/revenue measurement is #1; Orbit if brand, positioning and content architecture are equally important.

For a professional-services firm in the Loop, I’d put Orbit Media Studios at the top of the shortlist.

• Orbit Media Studios — Best overall fit. Chicago-based and particularly strong at strategy-led redesigns where SEO, UX, content, technical performance, and conversion work together. They explicitly integrate SEO into redesigns and have experience with WordPress, technical SEO, analytics, accessibility, and post-launch optimization. They’re also more likely than a design-only shop to treat the redesign as a growth project rather than a visual refresh. theloopmarketing.com
• Marcel Digital — Strong B2B/professional-services alternative. Their Chicago team combines SEO, web development, CRO and analytics, with a structured UX/information-architecture process. Good option if your firm has a more complex site or wants rigorous measurement.
• Walker Sands — Best if you're a larger B2B/professional-services firm. They're actually in the Loop at 55 W Monroe and specialize in B2B marketing, including professional services, SEO/GEO, content and demand generation. I'd consider them if the redesign is tied to a broader positioning or demand-gen initiative.
• Straight North — SEO-first alternative. Their Chicago office is in Fulton Market/West Loop, and their offering combines SEO with website redesign/development, content and paid media. They may be particularly appropriate if preserving/growing organic leads is the dominant objective.
• The Loop Marketing Inc — Smaller, potentially more hands-on option. They specifically cite professional-service organizations among their target clients and combine WordPress redesigns with SEO and content marketing. theloopmarketing.com

My recommendation: interview Orbit, Marcel Digital, and Straight North. For an SEO-sensitive redesign, I'd make them answer one question before discussing aesthetics: “Show us your process for migrating an existing site without losing rankings—and give us a recent example with before/after organic traffic and lead data.”

That will quickly separate a genuinely SEO-integrated redesign team from a conventional web-design agency that happens to offer SEO.

For a professional services firm in the Loop (law, consulting, finance, architecture, accounting, healthcare, B2B, etc.), I’d prioritize agencies that understand SEO migrations, content architecture, authority-building, and lead conversion—not just visual redesigns. A few Chicago-based options worth shortlisting:

Marcel Digital — strong fit for B2B/professional services

Marcel Digital
Web
Address: 445 W Erie St #200, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
Phone: +1 312-255-8044

• Best for: established firms that need a strategic redesign tied to measurable organic growth.
• Why consider: They combine SEO, analytics, CRO, and web development, and they specifically discuss SEO-sensitive redesign/migration work (redirects, URL changes, technical preservation).
• Good questions to ask: “Who owns SEO strategy during the redesign?” and “How do you protect existing rankings during launch?”

Digital Authority Partners — good for complex organizations

Digital Authority Partners
Web
Address: 420 W Huron St Fl 1, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
Phone: +1 312-820-9893

• Best for: firms that want strategy, UX, SEO, content, and analytics under one roof.
• Their Chicago team works across digital strategy, SEO, website redesign/development, and analytics.
• Particularly worth a look if the website is part of a broader marketing transformation.

Comrade Digital Marketing Agency — Loop-based integrated agency

Comrade Digital Marketing Agency
Web
Address: 332 S Michigan Ave #900, Chicago, IL 60604, United States
Phone: +1 312-535-9325

• Best for: companies looking for a full marketing partner rather than a pure web shop.
• They are located in the Loop and offer website design plus SEO and related digital marketing services.
• Ask for professional-services case studies specifically.

The Loop Marketing Inc — smaller Chicago-focused option

The Loop Marketing Inc
Web
Address: 159 N Sangamon St Suite 200, Chicago, IL 60607, United States
Phone: +1 312-569-9449

• Best for: small-to-mid-sized professional firms wanting a more hands-on relationship.
• They position themselves around website design, SEO, and professional-service organizations.

Sixth City Marketing — SEO-first orientation

Sixth City Marketing
Web
Address: 620 N La Salle Dr Ste 415, Chicago, IL 60654, United States
Phone: +1 312-872-7726

• Best for: firms where organic lead generation is the main objective.
• They combine SEO, paid search, CRO, and web design/development, with experience across B2B and professional-service-related industries.

A couple of practical filters I’d use before hiring:

1. Ask for a redesign case study where rankings were maintained or improved after launch (not just a pretty new site).
2. Require a pre-launch SEO plan covering:
   • URL mapping and redirects
   • metadata/content migration
   • internal linking
   • schema
   • Core Web Vitals
   • analytics/conversion tracking
3. Make sure they interview subject-matter experts; professional-services sites usually win through expertise content, not generic marketing copy.

If this is a law firm, consulting firm, financial services firm, or another specific professional-services category, I’d narrow the list further because the best agency fit changes quite a bit.

For a professional-services firm in the Loop, I’d shortlist these three:

1. Orbit Media Studios — my top pick.

They’re Chicago-based and specifically market web design for professional services, including consulting, accounting, legal, and financial services. They combine redesign, UX, analytics, and SEO rather than treating SEO as an afterthought. They also cite 1,000+ website launches and 24+ years in the business. www.orbitmedia.com
Orbit Media’s professional-services work

2. Marcel Digital — best if technical SEO is a major concern.

Their Loop office is at 20 N. Wacker, and they combine SEO, web development, analytics/CRO, and paid media. They're particularly experienced with B2B/enterprise websites and migrations, which is useful if your redesign involves a substantial legacy site.

3. Ice Nine Online — good B2B-focused alternative.

They're at 444 W. Lake and focus heavily on B2B, with WordPress website design/development alongside digital marketing. That makes them worth considering if your professional-services firm has a fairly complex B2B buyer journey.

One specialist worth adding: SEO Design Chicago. Their portfolio includes a Chicago accounting-firm redesign where they report a 178% increase in organic traffic and 234% more consultation requests. I'd treat those as agency-reported case-study results rather than independently verified figures, but the vertical experience is directly relevant. seodesignchicago.com

My recommendation

I'd start with Orbit Media, Marcel Digital, and SEO Design Chicago and give all three the same brief. For a redesign, I'd specifically ask each agency to show how they'll preserve/improve:

• Existing rankings and organic traffic
• URL structure and redirects
• High-performing content during migration
• Internal linking and information architecture
• Technical SEO/Core Web Vitals
• Schema/structured data
• Service-area and practice-area pages
• Analytics and conversion tracking
• Post-launch SEO monitoring

That will quickly distinguish a pretty redesign agency from one that understands the risk of rebuilding a site that's already generating search equity.

For a Loop-based professional services firm, I’d shortlist agencies that can handle the redesign and SEO architecture together—not a design shop that bolts SEO on afterward.

My top picks

1. Chicago Website Design SEO Company (CWDSC) — best fit for SEO-first redesign
   • Actually located in the Loop at 10 S Riverside Plaza.
   • Specifically positions itself around professional services, web design, and SEO.
   • Their published case material emphasizes redesigns that preserve URLs/metadata, add schema, and include post-launch SEO QA. chicagowebsitedesignseocompany.com
   • Why I'd call them: Strongest match if protecting existing rankings during a redesign is the primary concern.

2. Sixth City Marketing — best for a more sophisticated growth program
   • Chicago office at 620 N La Salle Dr.
   • Combines SEO, web design/development, and conversion-rate optimization, which is useful if the new site needs to generate qualified leads rather than simply look better.
   • Their offering is broader and more performance-oriented than a pure web-design agency.

3. Brand Vision Marketing - Web Design & Branding — best if positioning/brand is a major part of the redesign
   • Right in the Loop at 30 N Michigan Ave.
   • Stronger emphasis on branding and UX alongside website development; its local profile specifically highlights combining web design and SEO.
   • I'd consider them if the firm is repositioning itself while redesigning.

4. SEO Design Chicago — good technical SEO/web-development option
   • Chicago-based, with SEO and substantial WordPress development capabilities.
   • Their services include migrations, custom WordPress development, performance, accessibility, and SEO optimization.
   • A good candidate if the current site has technical debt or you're contemplating a CMS migration.

5. The Loop Marketing — worth interviewing for a professional-services-focused project
   • Their own site explicitly combines website design with search-engine friendliness and advanced SEO.
   • More importantly, they show relevant professional-services work, including a Chicago law firm, and case studies involving website redesigns and organic-traffic growth. theloopmarketing.com

Who I'd contact first

I'd probably send the same brief to CWDSC, Sixth City, and The Loop Marketing and compare their proposed redesign methodology.

For this kind of project, I'd specifically ask each agency:

• How will you preserve existing organic rankings during the redesign?
• Will you inventory every existing URL and provide a 301 redirect map?
• Who owns the keyword research, information architecture, and new page strategy?
• Will SEO be involved before wireframes, rather than after design?
• How will you handle title tags, canonicals, schema, internal linking, Core Web Vitals, and crawlability?
• Can you show me 2–3 professional-services redesigns where organic traffic/rankings were maintained or improved after launch?
• What is your 90-day post-launch SEO/QA process?

That last question is particularly important. A pretty new site isn't a successful redesign if six months of accumulated search equity disappears at launch.

If you tell me what type of professional-services firm it is (law, accounting, consulting, financial services, architecture, etc.) and roughly how many pages/current organic traffic, I can narrow this to the best 2–3 agencies and compare their relevant case studies, location, reviews, and likely fit.