If you're here, you probably have a basic understanding of what Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is, but just to be sure I'll give you a summary. SEO is the use of various organic tactics (I.E. blog writing, link building and website optimisation) to increase your visibility (or ranking) on web search engines like Google. SEO refers to the improvement of unpaid results, this makes it organic. It excludes direct traffic and the purchase of paid placement.
Paid placement ads are known as Search Engine Marketing (SEM). It is important to note the difference between SEO and SEM because, SEO takes time. Anyone promising quick fixes, probably isn't doing a great job and the results will not hold up over time. Ensuring you rank high on search platforms organically takes constant work and time as it is all about building trust. Google and other search engines like Bing want to know that you are providing clients with a trustworthy, helpful and effective website.
Right, let's talk cost! As I said above, it takes time to build a great SEO strategy that will stand the test of time. So when understanding what the average SEO costs in the UK, keep in mind that these costs will be recurring and you often get what you pay for.
Average SEO Costs in the UK
Inexpensive SEO
Monthly Fee
£50
Set Up
£0
Moderate SEO
Monthly Fee
£500 to £1,500
Set Up
£2,000 to £4,000
High Level SEO
Monthly Fee
£1,500 to £10,000
Set Up
£10,000
As you can see, there is a massive variation in price point here! As I stated above, you generally get what you pay for. If you need a basic set-up as you are just starting out, it is worth investing a small amount of capital into an agency or freelancer that can walk you through the basics of being seen online. They will get you compliant with the main search engines and give you tips on how to improve.
However, if you are a large company with masses of competition (or have hopes of getting to that point), it makes sense to hire a well established agency that will run your online presence and use a variety of tactics each month to ensure you rank high on various search engines.
SEO agencies on the cheaper side of things can get you started on your journey and walk you through ways of ranking on search engines. Whereas more moderately priced agencies will produced detailed reports of your rankings and help you improve your website as a whole. They may even offer content marketing packages and keep up-to-date on all strategies to improve and compete against your competition. Higher end agencies will work with you on a daily basis, offer workshops and produce great quality content for you. They should also have very specific key performance indicators (KPIs), I.E. 10% more website traffic within the first quarter.
Also, average SEO costs in the UK will vary based on things like your chosen agency’s experience, size, how much you actually want them to do, whether they are based in a city or more rural etc. Always take your time with decisions like these and read customer reviews where possible.
Another important thing to note is whether your agency uses white hat or black hat SEO techniques (now my choice of display image makes sense right?). White hat SEO refers to the use of techniques and strategies that target a human audience. This means that the content within the website, is genuinely there to help people. Whereas Black hat SEO refers to techniques and strategies used to get higher search rankings and breaks search engine rules. Black hat SEO only focuses on search engines and not a human audience.
Although both work, Black hat SEO techniques can actually have a negative impact on your website if the search engine finds out and penalises you.
Right, let's summarise this now, the average SEO costs in the UK are:
o Inexpensive SEO - costs around £50 per month
o Moderate SEO - approx £2,000 - £4,000 per project
o High level SEO - approx £7,000 per project
If your website needs to be seen on search engines, you need to have an SEO plan in place. Whether you do it yourself, or hire professionals, be sure you are using tactics that are inline with search engine rules as you may face being banned.
Talk soon!