How Much Does SEO Cost UK?
A Breakdown Of How Much Do SEO Services Cost UK.
The Quick Answer - How Much Does SEO Cost UK?
The short and sweet answer is that it depends, but I know you’re not happy with that answer so let’s expand. SEO (search engine optimisation), is a multifaceted discipline with lots of different working parts. The average SEO cost in the US for small businesses worked out as $497 according to a comprehensive study by Backlinko, working from this study that would amount to an average SEO budget of £362.83 per month for small businesses within the UK.
The range of pricing can raise a few questions, as you can find SEO services UK pricing and SEO packages UK for as low as £15.32 on platforms such as Fiverr and you can also find large agencies running SEO campaigns with, £5,000, £8,000 and £10,000+ per month budgets. So, what are the variables that create this dramatic difference in price for SEO services and why does SEO cost so much?
- Keyword Research
- on-page cleanup (upto 5 pages)
- Google Analytics & GSC Setup
- SEMrush Position Tracking (300 words)
- XML Site-Map
- 1 x landing Page
- 1 x blog Post
- 1 x SEO consultation
Key Variables In SEO Cost UK
SEO services UK prices, can be bundled together and sold as SEO packages or sold as separate individual SEO services. For example, one aspect of an effective SEO campaign would be link building, you can find SEO services that only include a link building campaign, this may involve listing your business to local directories & collaborating with industry leaders but will not include any on page technical SEO.
You will also find campaigns that only carry out on-page SEO, which include fixing your headers, titles, descriptions, URL’s, images, alt text and meta data but will not provide, off-page SEO activity to build the authority for your website by generating referring domains and backlinks from high DA (domain authority) websites.
Some SEO companies will offer individual components of an SEO strategy such as, keyword research as an individual service. Here is a list of some of the individual components of an SEO campaign that can be sold individually as SEO services.
- Link building
- Keyword research
- Content marketing
- Copywriting
- Social Media Management
- Local SEO
- Website Speed
- Technical SEO
- SEO auditing
- Digital Public Relations (PR)
- CTR (Click Through Rate) Optimisation
This is the causation of the huge difference in pricing for SEO services. For instance, you could pay for link building, keyword research, CTR optimisation, technical SEO all as individual SEO services at a lower price point than a fully done and custom-built SEO strategy, that includes the optimal mixture of all the above.
So, the big difference is paying for SEO tactics vs SEO strategies. Tactics being the individual components that an SEO service is built upon and strategies being an optimal mix of those tactics crafted together to create a campaign. So, when asking how much does SEO cost UK, it depends on if you’re looking to invest in tactics or integrated strategies.
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However, you may also pay a premium for a SEO specialist, for instance a SEO company that only operates with link building campaigns may charge a premium for that service as it’s their speciality.
Alongside this, the experience and credibility that an SEO agency offers and the price tag that they associate with their brands worth is another huge variable that will dramatically change the cost of SEO services.
Large and established agencies with extensive portfolios and client testimonials get to be pricier, as they can justify the cost with the results and resources they have. SEO consultants and small agencies may offer more reasonable pricing due to limited resources and modest portfolios.
How To Budget For SEO Cost UK
According to the Gartner’s annual CMO spend survey 2020 the average digital marketing allocation was around 10.5% for SEO. Although there has been a decline in marketing budgets overall, SEO and website investment has increased from 18.3% to 20.6% of overall marketing budgets.
So, if you consider the contraction in marketing budgets due to the pandemic, the average business that turned over £250,000 per year in 2020 within the UK would now have a monthly budget of £1,333.33 with £274.67 of this budget going directly to website and SEO expenses.
This of course is based on the average CMO expenditure within the UK and shouldn’t limit your intuition. If you’re an ecommerce business, with 90% of your business depending on organic traffic then SEO is going to be a bigger priority and basing your budget on averages may be way too conservative. How much does SEO cost UK?… It all comes down to context.
Another consideration is the fact the more you put into SEO the more you get out, for instance businesses that had a budget of over $500 in a US study were 53.3% more likely to consider themselves “extremely satisfied” with the SEO campaign they invested in. This is 53.3% more likely than the businesses that invested less than the $500 threshold.
This is an indication that investing more than £365.68 into SEO may be a good idea within the UK, if you want to be “extremely satisfied” with the results, we offer an SEO starter package at £299, this is our lowest cost SEO package and the minimum we would recommend any business should invest into SEO to see significant results.
Different SEO Pricing UK Models & Options
Pay By The Hour SEO (Hourly Rate SEO)
Pay by the hour: (Average – £109.03 per hour), Depending on if you’re working with a free-lancer, local agency or large agency the pricing model will likely be different. free-lancers and consultants are likely to price their SEO work by the hour, this isn’t the case for all, but is the most popular method.
The average cost per hour globally came in at £109.03 for SEO work according to a study by Credo, however this is likely inflated due to the inclusion of large agencies within the study. Credo outlined that in the UK the average cost of SEO UK, in terms of an hourly rate ranged between (£37.29 – £109.68) which is a more accurate reflection on SEO costs in the UK.
SEO Monthly Retainer
Monthly Retainer: (Average cost of SEO UK – £362.83 per month) This is the most common approach when dealing with SEO agencies, some agencies will have a minimum retainer fee that must be paid monthly and may also be tied into a longer term contract with a minimum term. All of our monthly SEO packages are month-to-month with no long-term contracts, we believe in winning your business each month by providing results. Our lowest priced SEO package is £299 which is a one-time payment SEO starter package. We take this approach so your SEO cost per month and SEO consulting rate is to you choosing and customised to what is practical for your business.
SEO Project Pricing
Another option is project-based pricing, this usually involves paying for a 6-month of 12-month campaign. The Backlinko study revealed that on average SEO costs for a 12-month period came in at, £4,363.74, this was considering agencies, free-lancers but excluded web hosting providers. This will usually involve setting upfront criteria with long term objectives and then monthly reporting that shows how month-to-month progress is being made towards those long-term objectives.
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Conclusion - How To Justify Your Budget & SEO Pricing UK
How much does SEO cost UK?… You now have an idea of exactly how much the average small business (SME) within the UK is investing into their SEO, hopefully this can guide your decision. Don’t let these averages limit your budget, at the end of the day, no business owner wants to be average, you want to thrive in the market and SEO is a potent tool of mass attraction that will help you increase visibility online, organic traffic and website sales.
SEO is all about return on investment (ROI), consider what it would be worth to you to pick up more leads and enquiries through your website. How would that impact your business, consider the lifetime value (LTV) of the customer you may acquire, if your customers make repeat purchases and if those customers are likely to refer you to other potential customers or clients.
Just to recap quickly on how much is SEO marketing. The average monthly budget for SEO services UK is £362.83, SEO can be sold as a bundled package or as individual specific SEO services. Business owners that invested more than £365.68 ($500) were 53.3% more likely to be “extremely satisfied” compared to those that invested less than that. You can work with free-lancers, consultants, and agencies to improve your SEO and choose between hourly rates, monthly retainers, and project pricing.
Now the ball is in your court! If your interested in a free SEO consultation to discuss this further, we are more than happy to answer any questions you may have with no obligations, we just love to talk about SEO! We also offer cost effective SEO solutions for businesses of all sizes.
HOW MUCH DOES SEO COST UK?
- Keyword Research
- on-page cleanup (upto 5 pages)
- Google Analytics & GSC Setup
- SEMrush Position Tracking (300 words)
- XML Site-Map
- 1 x landing Page
- 1 x blog Post
- 1 x SEO consultation
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