by John Eberhard
If you own a small business and are considering search engine optimization (SEO), one of your first questions is probably: How much does SEO cost?
SEO pricing varies considerably depending on your market, competition, website, geographic target and goals. However, understanding typical pricing can help you determine a realistic budget.
But the short answer is that small businesses may spend anywhere from $500 to several thousand dollars per month on SEO. And it is important to continue to have SEO actions done for at least 6-12 months. One or two months isn’t going to do anything significant.
Typical Small Business SEO Costs
A local business operating in one city will usually require a smaller investment than a company trying to rank nationally for highly competitive keywords.
We commonly use two pricing models:
Monthly retainers: Many SEO agencies charge a monthly fee for ongoing services. Small-business SEO packages often start around $500-$1,000 per month, while more extensive campaigns may cost $2,000-$5,000 per month or more.
Project-based SEO: A business might hire an SEO company for a specific project, such as writing metatag titles and descriptions for all the pages, an SEO audit, keyword research, website optimization or fixing technical problems. Projects can range from several hundred dollars to several thousand dollars.
What Are You Paying For?
SEO involves much more than simply adding keywords to your website.
A comprehensive SEO campaign may include keyword research, competitor analysis, optimization of page titles and content, technical SEO, internal linking, local SEO, Google Business Profile optimization, content creation and link building.
An SEO company should also monitor rankings and website traffic and make adjustments based on the results.
The amount of work required depends heavily on the current condition of your website. A well-designed website with good content and a solid technical foundation may require less initial work than a site with hundreds of technical problems, thin content or poor organization.
Competition Affects SEO Costs
Competition is one of the biggest factors affecting the cost of SEO.
Suppose you are a plumber trying to rank in a smaller city. You may only be competing against a few dozen serious competitors. A personal injury attorney trying to rank in Los Angeles, on the other hand, is competing in one of the most aggressive SEO markets.
The more competitive the keywords, the more content, optimization and authority-building may be required.
Beware of Extremely Cheap SEO
You may encounter companies offering SEO for $99 or $199 per month. Before signing up, find out exactly what they are going to do.
Effective SEO requires research, skilled labor and ongoing attention. At extremely low prices, there may simply not be enough time allocated to your account to accomplish meaningful work.
Also be cautious of anyone guaranteeing a #1 Google ranking. No SEO company controls Google’s search results. And they may be “guaranteeing” a #1 Google ranking for a keyword that has basically no searches and so is meaningless.
How Much Should Your Business Spend?
Instead of asking only, “How much does SEO cost?” consider asking, “What would a successful Google ranking be worth to my business?”
If gaining several additional customers per month could generate thousands of dollars in new revenue, spending $1,000-$2,000 per month on SEO might make financial sense.
For many small businesses, the best approach is to start with a realistic budget, target the keywords most likely to produce customers, measure results and expand the campaign as SEO begins generating a positive return.
SEO should ultimately be viewed as an investment rather than simply another monthly expense. The goal isn’t just higher Google rankings. The goal is to turn increased search visibility into qualified leads, customers and revenue.
Get a free consultation on SEO for your business. Contact Real Web Marketing at 661-441-2429 or click on the button below.
