How Much Does SEO Cost?
To the dismay of many businesses, SEO isn’t the cheapest service you can buy, nor do you get any lightning-fast results. But when a business is willing to invest in the long game of SEO, it can see huge gains with time.
If you’ve decided to hire an SEO to help improve the bottom line of your business, surely you’re wondering how much SEO costs. The cost of SEO varies considerably, depending on a few factors. However, we can still break it down so you have an idea about how much you’ll have to spend.
SEO Costs Vary in the UK
In the UK, some people offer cheap SEO that costs between £50 and a couple hundred pounds a month. Cheap SEO is often offered by individuals that spam email inboxes with promises of “guaranteed first page placement for £100” or something like that.
Cheap SEO can do more harm than good because many people offering it use non-Google approved methods to rank sites. If Google detects a site has violated its guidelines, it will impose a penalty which can be timely and costly to fix.
It’s always best to use a reputable SEO firm that follows Google’s guidelines. If you have a small to medium-sized business that’s not all that competitive you could probably benefit from mid-range SEO. This mid-level SEO costs anywhere from a few hundred pounds to £5000 a month.
If you’re in a highly competitive industry with a large business and big website, you may have to pay more for high-end SEO that costs £5000 or more a month.
Your Business is Unique and So Are Your SEO Needs
Remember that every business is unique, including yours. Hence, your SEO strategy and overall costs will likely be far different than those of your friend’s or neighbour’s business.
Because every business is unique, SEO companies have in-depth conversations with their prospective clients. These talks help the SEOs learn about the businesses including the competitiveness of the industries they’re in and their SEO objectives and needs.
Tips for Finding the Right SEO Firm for You
Anybody can build a shiny website and add some generic “we’re better than the rest” text that doesn’t tell you if the company knows anything about SEO.
Remember that you’ll be working closely with the company you choose on a long-term basis. When your contract begins, you’ll probably be talking to them often so you need to find a firm with a staff you’re comfortable with.
Your SEO journey won’t be all clear sailing. There will be bumps, twists, and turns along the way so you want people who’ll be on your side. Be sure the fees charged line up with your budget and double check that the firm you use does all the SEO work in-house and doesn't outsource it.
A good SEO firm will have some background in marketing, advertising and PR. You can expect the staff at a good firm will be straight with you regarding pricing and how long it will take to start seeing positive results.