There are many ways to propel your business beyond the competition. One of them is to leverage search engines by incorporating SEO. You can do it yourself if you’re familiar with the strategies or hire an agency. The latter requires choosing a payment model, and here we come across SEO services packages… What are they and can they actually help your business?
Every company needs SEO whether it’s an online or a brick-and-mortar business. Did you know that 53% of traffic comes from organic search results and only about 15% from paid ads? No wonder we are witnessing a real increase in the marketing industry. This may look quite convenient at first glance but greater choice entails copying the same old patterns. We’re talking about SEO packages.
For a client, fixed price SEO seems financially smart. They know exactly what they’re paying for and the marketing budget is the same every month which makes it easier to plan other spendings. BUT doesn’t it also mean that such agencies take the easy way out by offering the same services to every company regardless of their industry, let alone individual needs?
So let’s dive into this topic to find out whether it’s an ocean of endless possibilities or a trick to sell you down the river.
Different SEO payment models
The first thing you need to decide is your budget. Don’t bother looking for some sort of standard when it comes to SEO pricing – it all depends on what you want to achieve. And let’s not forget about ROI (return on investment). You want to make sure that the money you invest will bring more revenue, correct?
Most agencies offer various payment models depending on the scope of work and the size of your website. Here are the most popular ones:
- Monthly SEO packages – client chooses one of the plans offered by the agency and pays the same price every month. The scope of work is clearly stated in the contract and you should not expect any extra effort.
- Hourly rate – the agency charges you per hour which can cost between $100 and $300 (and we’re talking about professional companies with years of experience in the field and proven record). A thing to remember here, however, is that SEO can take months, therefore, this model may not be financially efficient to start with.
- Consultation model – here the goal is to create a basic infrastructure within a company to allow its employees to optimize the website themselves. An agent analyzes the current situation, selects a team, and creates a strategy and a plan with specific goals in mind.
- Fixed price contract – client only pays for services they require or want to focus on. In this model, you can expect a contract with specific activities listed and this can vary depending on the agency.
- Position-based model – you pay for an achieved position based on particular keywords. This bonus is usually calculated daily. The downside? It motivates agencies to achieve such a position in the least time possible which can lead to Google Penalty.
- Traffic-based model – let’s get something straight here first – not all traffic means conversion. In fact, the average conversion rate equals 2.35%, which means for every 100 people visiting your website only about 2-3 will purchase your product or services. The traffic-based model has a very serious con – not only will it encourage agencies to attract fake traffic but is also difficult to measure its performance.
- Individual pricing – perhaps the most reliable and result-driven approach. You pay a monthly fee based on the scope of work. The agency will audit your website and prepare a very specific strategy that’s tailored to your business. Good SEO, in this case, costs a minimum of $2000 a month but you can expect great commitment, regular reports, and a dedicated team that will focus on your goals and help you achieve them.
What are SEO packages?
SEO packages have been designed to help clients with their marketing efforts. Every package focuses on a particular area making the whole decision process much easier. Even though such a model has a lot of clarity – you know exactly what you’re paying for – it may not utilize the best approach for your business.
There has been a lot of discussion on whether or not SEO pricing packages make sense. After all, you would expect the agency to come up with a strategy that fits both your budget and meets your requirements. Unfortunately, even the best SEO packages will never be tailored to your very specific needs.
Think of it this way – you pick one of the packages offered by an agency but… so do hundreds of other companies. Implementing the same strategy, therefore, may not help your business stand out. Individual approach, on the other hand, is much more justified. Nevertheless, the majority of agencies offer fixed price packages so let’s have a look at some most popular ones.
SEO packages for small businesses
Small business SEO packages are usually called basic SEO packages. They aim at companies with a very limited budget and focus almost entirely on keywords. It is the cheapest option compared to other plans and you are better off without it. If you are seriously looking to expand your business and gain visibility, traffic and convert, money should not be the decisive factor.
SEO marketing packages
These packages, also known as website and SEO packages, do not focus on a specific area such as link building or local SEO but aim at incorporating a more holistic approach. You usually have 3 packages to choose from and the most expensive one includes everything (not necessarily everything your company needs per se).
The main goal of SEO is to choose a strategy that’s best for your niche, not implementing all the resources including the ones you don’t need at all. By choosing a fixed price package you need to be aware of the fact you may be paying for efforts that are irrelevant for your business.
E-commerce SEO packages
E-commerce is a very specific industry and the SEO efforts should be put accordingly. Most packages, therefore, focus on performing an audit and research, analyzing competition, optimizing product page, images, categories, rich snippets, correcting on-page crawl errors etc.
One thing to watch out for is the fact that not all the platforms are supported in such packages. The majority of websites are built in WordPress but if you operate your store using a less common CMS such as Magento or Prestashop, you may encounter optimizing issues.
National SEO packages
This package is for companies that do not operate locally but nationally or even internationally. This market is very competitive and requires manifold efforts. You can expect an audit, competitor analysis, keyword research, on-site and off-site SEO, content creation, press release and a lot more. Of course, all the activities are limited, i.e. up to 100 keywords, 20 blog posts, 5 authority blog posts etc.
Local business SEO package
If you run a brick-and-mortar business, then local SEO packages are something you may be interested in. They include almost everything you need to optimize your business locally. The agency will take care of your Google My Business listing, link building, and the UX. But, which is a case with any SEO packages, there is a limited number of keywords and blog posts.
SEO link building packages
The importance of link building is quite clear – it aims at improving your position in SERP, targeting the right audience and generating revenue. The efforts will solely focus on 3 types of links:
- inbound links (backlinks)
- outbound links
- internal links
And while you may think this is enough, you’re wrong. Packages that single out only one element of successful SEO are as good as a pizza with no toppings. It will feed but serving it to your customers is not going to encourage them to come back.
SEO focused on link-building will, therefore, bring you traffic but it is highly doubtful those visitors will convert if, for instance, the content on your website is poor quality or the navigation is highly complicated.
Fixed price SEO packages – pros and cons
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Why should you avoid cheap and affordable SEO packages?
For the same reasons you should avoid cheap equipment, tools, toys etc. If you are stingy and prefer not to spend too much on SEO, then you’ll most likely end up paying double when you realize that “cheap and affordable package” wasn’t the best investment.
A lot of clients, especially those who just started their business, wonder how much you should pay for monthly SEO packages. The real question they should be asking, however, is how much you need to invest in SEO in order to reach a good conversion rate. SEO packages may come in a variety of prices and it’s easier for a client to simply pick one and relax. But when has any enterprise been built by resting on their laurels?
How much does good SEO cost?
Good SEO takes care of various key factors that increase your page rank. Those factors are also offered in some SEO packages. So what’s the difference? The answer is simple – the strategy. While agencies that sell fixed-priced packages do not put extra effort (since they’re not being paid for it), professional SEO agencies will always go that extra mile and will never fail to inform you about it.
So how much is good SEO per month? As you may have guessed, it all depends on the scope of work and the size of your website. The initial investment is normally bigger, and after a few months, you usually pay for upkeep and regular content. The minimum cost you should be looking for is about $2000 a month.
The range could be between $2000 and $10 000+. It may look like an investment that’s unreachable to you at the moment but clients who spend at least $500 a month on SEO are 53.3% more satisfied with the results than those with a much lower budget.
What’s the best solution for your company?
SEO packages are not always the best idea and it doesn’t matter if you’re running a small business or a big enterprise. When choosing your marketing agency you should focus on good communication and proven records. Don’t be afraid to ask for success stories so that you get a clearer picture of the agency’s achievements.
At Miromind, we equip you with everything you need to help your business rank high and thrive. After a very detailed discussion, we will offer you an individual strategy (or a few options to choose from) that aims at your very specific goals. Do not hesitate to contact us and schedule a consultation.