Understanding SEO Before Investing In It
Have you heard of the phrase "you get what you pay for"? That's exactly the case with SEO. Recent data shows that the majority of SEO pros work with monthly budgets, with 28% of them saying that they range between $1,000 and $5,000. In-house vs. outsourced SEO often differs depending on your needs. However, many business owners and marketers are reluctant to invest in Search Engine Optimization services because they lack knowledge of how they work. Oftentimes, they have no idea what an SEO pricing guide looks like, and their expectations are unrealistic, such as expecting to see their pages rank higher after a couple of weeks. That's why they fall victim to too-good-to-be-true packages that promise the first spot in Google results.
SEO is more than writing great content that speaks to people's hearts. It also involves on-page SEO factors that take care of the technical aspects that affect rankings. Link building is another key ingredient we will analyze later on. Your priority should be choosing an SEO and link building company that offers realistic results and has social proof to back up its claims.
In This Guide, You Will Find...
- Your SEO Pricing Guide On Factors Impacting Cost
- Is It Worth Hiring An In-House Expert Or An Agency?
- SEO Pricing Guide: What Impacts Your SEO Services' Fees?
- The Right Way To Budget Your SEO Needs
- An SEO Pricing Guide Of The Massive Cost Of Cheap (aka Bad)
- This Is How You Can Leverage eLearning Industry's Link-Building Services
Your SEO Pricing Guide On Factors Impacting Cost
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Company Size
You may be asking, "How much should I pay for SEO per month?" First of all, it depends on your company size. But that's not tied strictly to the number of employees. Usually, smaller brands have smaller goals and capabilities, while enterprises can make larger investments. So, decide on your goals and what exactly you want to achieve with SEO strategies.
Small businesses (1–50 employees) typically spend $500–3,000 per month on SEO services. Mid-sized companies (50–500 employees) usually spend $3,000–15,000 per month, while large enterprises (500+ employees) increase spending to $15,000–100,000. It's not only the SEO pricing that differs, but also the type of professionals they use. Small businesses may often work with freelancers and local specialists, while medium-sized companies might lead processes in-house and execute them with outsourced help. On the contrary, enterprises usually have large in-house SEO teams and use reputable agencies offering link building services.
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Industry
Your SEO monthly retainer can vary significantly depending on your industry. Industries with wild competition, increasing cost-per-click (CPC), increased regulation, and buyer expertise may need to make a deeper investment in an SEO content strategy. Ranking for just one high-intent, high-competition keyword may cost you thousands but bring impressive conversion rates. On the other hand, ranking for a low-intent keyword may be easier but slower to bring any conversions. The secret is to identify high-intent, low-competition keywords.
As for the cost, SEO for B2B and SaaS companies in the growth stage can cost anywhere between $5,000 and $25,000 per month, focusing heavily on thought leadership and content velocity. Legal and finance firms might spend over $15,000 per month to achieve link equity and trust, as both things are important for buyers in the industries to hand out their money. Lastly, local businesses may not need to spend as much to attract buyers. $500–2,000 may be more than enough to win over clients through their Google Business Profiles and reviews.
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Services Required
An SEO pricing guide is usually affected by the level of services you require. For example, do you only need an SEO competitor analysis to check which keywords others try to rank for? Or do you also need a technical SEO audit to understand how your website can be improved for SEO optimization? Most agencies offer these services and more, including keyword research, content ideas, link building, video SEO, and reporting. And that's not all. SEO AI optimization is one of the newest necessities, since AI has completely changed the way websites rank on Google.
So, for small businesses needing simple services, like keyword research and technical SEO, $500–2,500 may be enough. Mid-sized companies may spend $2,500–10,000 per month on content execution and local SEO, among others. And enterprises often spend over $10,000 on multichannel approaches and video SEO.
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Pricing Models
SEO agency rates depend on pricing models. Most commonly, agencies charge an SEO monthly retainer depending on hourly rates. This is particularly common with businesses spending anywhere between $1,000 and $2,500 per month. Additionally, project-based fees are standard for small and mid-sized companies. For example, if you want to generate 30 new, high-quality backlinks, the project, regardless of its duration, would cost you a fixed amount.
Performance-based pricing is another model most often used by companies with at least a $5,000 monthly budget. In this case, agencies don't receive any payment until they deliver predefined results. It's a gamble for SEO link building services because if they don't deliver what they promised, they will not get paid for their work.
Is It Worth Hiring An In-House Expert Or An Agency?
In-house vs. outsourced SEO is a dilemma many B2B businesses find themselves tangled in. So, let's break it down. There are three choices when it comes to SEO. You can hire experts who work full-time as part of your marketing team, freelancers who execute specific projects, and external agencies. For some businesses, regardless of size, an in-house pro may be ideal for taking care of your internal linking and other SEO needs. You might also enjoy tax benefits from hiring them.
Other companies may find it more convenient to collaborate with freelancers for organic traffic growth. That's especially the case if you are in an industry where SEO isn't an everyday necessity for you; whenever you have a project, you assign it to your freelancer. In cases where SEO is of utmost importance, companies may hire an agency to follow a 360 inbound marketing approach for a holistic strategy. Maybe you need everything an SEO agency offers, from keyword research to content creation and AI search optimization.
SEO Pricing Guide: What Impacts Your SEO Service Fees?
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People
Regardless of choosing to employ in-house team members or hiring an online SEO company, it's the people who will bring your strategy to life. You need various positions to fill out your plan and execute it, starting with an SEO strategist, who will identify priorities and oversee everything. Next, an SEO investment strategy includes content creators and proofreaders. These people will craft thought-leading articles and ensure no mistakes are present. They may also research competitor keywords so they know what they should focus on.
Additionally, you need a developer or technical SEO specialist who will fix your website's crawlability, speed, and indexing. Lastly, a professional link builder is necessary to generate relevant backlinks and increase your domain's credibility.
If you choose to form a full-scale in-house SEO team, you will have control of your strategies and seamless collaboration. However, agencies are already experts on what they do and provide speed, efficiency, and an unbiased perspective. On the other hand, freelancers and contractors allow for flexibility but lack scalability.
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Software
SaaS content marketing and SEO optimization require effective software that makes everyday processes feel easy. Every SEO pricing guide includes a list of common tools. But don't get carried away by all the options. Ensure you really need everything you purchase. For instance, keyword research shouldn't cost more than $500 per month if you choose Semrush, Ahrefs, or Ubersuggest. Ahrefs also allows you to check website rankings, so you don't have to purchase another tool for this job. Screaming Frog, Sitebulb, and JetOctopus are great options for technical SEO audits, while Looker Studio helps you gather performance reports.
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Content Creation
Average SEO costs usually include the stage of content production. Many B2B companies have in-house personnel who either do keyword research themselves or use an agency's suggestions to create SEO-optimized content. This content includes in-depth articles, blog posts, product pages, and landing pages. Apart from writing an article, you also need someone to do fact-checking and proofreading. In some cases, you may also need special graphics created by a designer. If you aren't in a position to hire people in these positions, you may collaborate with freelancers or ask your SEO agency to take on these responsibilities.
The average cost of a 1000–1500-word article is $150–600, while a landing or pillar page might cost you anywhere between $300 and $1,000. It all depends on the industry and the level of technical detail.
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Link Building
SEO and AI may have created a new reality for everyone in the digital world, but link building remains a signal for credibility and trust. Often viewed with distrust, link building is one area many companies don't want to throw money on. How do you think a page ends up on the first page of results, though? Technical improvements and keyword optimization aren't enough. Link acquisition is demanding and time-consuming. That's why most businesses outsource link building and pay respectable amounts for a few backlinks.
Keep in mind that just one reputable link can cost you $100–500. When you are paying a monthly retainer, you may spend $2,000–10,000 per month for strategy execution and link acquisition. Content syndication is one of the things you can do without necessarily relying on agencies. They are great places to place your link without paying a hefty price. So, focus on quality rather than quantity.
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Technical Improvements
An SEO pricing guide isn't complete without technical SEO expenses. Why? Well, no matter how amazing your content is, what's the point if your website takes ages to load, has poor mobile visibility, and can't be crawled by AI bots? Technical SEO pricing isn't usually included in your monthly SEO budget, but it is something you should account for when strategizing. You usually need it during new product page launches, migrations, and general upkeep.
Apart from the three aspects we mentioned, technical SEO also handles schema markup, UX audits, CMS configuration, internal linking issues, and 404 cleanups. A one-time technical SEO audit may cost $1,000–5,000, or $100–200 per hour if you hire a consultant.
The Right Way To Budget Your SEO Needs
It doesn't matter what your budget is. Whether limited or large, you should divide it appropriately across people, tools, content creation, link building, technical structure, and training. So, our SEO budgeting best practices start by investing 30–50% of your budget in people, which includes your SEO strategist, content writers, developers, and agencies. 10–20% should go to the software you use for keyword research, website rankings, audits, and reporting. Next, allocate 20–30% to content creation and another 10–20% to your SaaS link-building strategies' execution. Keep in mind that you might need to include press release campaigns in this equation.
Additionally, keep 5–10% for your technical SEO needs and 2–5% for internal SEO upskilling and conference appearances if needed. Of course, these percentages aren't set in stone. They always depend on your level of maturity and which area needs more attention. For example, if you have an in-house team member for keyword research and content creation, you might invest more in outsourced link building.
An SEO Pricing Guide Of The Massive Cost Of Cheap (And Bad)
We can't even begin to tell you how many messages we receive on our social media from self-proclaimed "SEO experts" and "link building specialists." You might have received such messages, too, from people requesting link exchanges or asking you if you are interested in full-scale SEO services. They may even offer you a free SEO performance metrics calculation to lure you in. But why would they do this when other large service providers charge for it?
Well, it's easy to do if you're using AI. If their full-service SEO pricing is way too cheap, then they are probably using AI to generate generic and low-quality content, perform SEO audits, and analyze data. If you were looking for an automatic Search Engine Optimization specialist, you could do it yourself without having to pay for someone else's services, right? Investing in such services can draw Google's curiosity and result in penalties, including permanent bans.
Additionally, there are websites offering huge packages of backlinks for unbelievable prices. Buying backlinks on its own isn't exactly illegal or preposterous. Usually, when you partner up with legitimate link building companies, you also pay to get backlinks in reputable sites. Sadly, these low-cost providers are usually scammers offering you links to "dead" websites.
Many of those are link farms—networks of websites owned by the same person, exchanging links with no real value. That's why their SEO pricing guide is so affordable. However, this tactic can get you in serious trouble with Google, resulting in heavy fines and other consequences. You may even have your website thrown even lower in SERPs.
This Is How You Can Leverage eLearning Industry's Link Building Services
B2B and SaaS are highly competitive, and things aren't going to change anytime soon. That's why you should collaborate only with niche-specific agencies that understand your needs and goals. eLearning Industry focuses on the eLearning and HR fields, gaining hundreds of thousands of readers across the globe. We collaborate with 50+ DA websites, helping you receive high-quality backlinks from reputable sources. We also ensure that the website traffic comes from your target countries, including the USA, UK, EU, AU, and Canada. The only thing we ask from you is patience. Link building services take time to show results, as it usually takes around six months.
Moreover, if you were stuck in the dilemma of SEO vs. PPC, let us tell you that it's best to combine them. While you wait for your organic traffic to increase, you should start listing your company on industry-specific directories. It's where targeted buyers go when they are actively searching for software. If you want to take things one step further, you may upgrade your PPC listing so it appears at the top of the page. Not only that, but visitors will be able to see your reviews and go straight to your website through a visible CTA button.
Key Takeaway
Now that you have gone through the SEO pricing guide, are you ready to make your next investment? Think about it: it takes meticulous keyword research, competitor analysis, content creation and optimization, technical audits, and link building to craft a successful SEO strategy. While you may already have someone with advanced SEO content writing skills, you could need help in all other areas. Depending on the services you need, an agency will charge you accordingly. Whether it's identifying high-intent keywords, fixing broken links, or improving your crawlability, outsourcing these needs is often the only option.
That is, if affordable marketing is your main priority. However, just because you want to keep the pricing tag as low as possible, it doesn't mean that you should choose questionable partners. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. So, 100 backlinks for $100? That's a definite no! We wish reputable backlinks cost that little.
