If you’re found this article you’re probably wondering how much SEO for your small business might cost. Well, we did some research to find out what people are charging so you can know what to expect to pay.
The Importance Of SEO
Today, the term “Google It” has become so common that it is almost impossible to remember a time where it wasn’t a part of our daily vocabulary. Shockingly, it was but a couple of decades ago, that we all relied heavily on libraries, yellow books, and newspapers to get our information.
Google, Yahoo, and Bing helped change all of that by essentially creating the first digital libraries that are commonly referred to as search engines. These search engines helped users get the information that they needed in the most efficient and quickest manner possible.
All one has to do is type in what they are looking for and voila! In less than a second, you have access to all sorts of relevant information pertaining to that keyword; all at your fingertips.
But how do these search engines determine the most credible, reliable, and relevant results based on your keyword search? Well, this is where search engine optimization or SEO comes in.
On-page and Off-page SEO helps search engines determine exactly what a particular website is about and what keywords are most relevant to the information that it holds. So, in short, SEO helps your website rank higher on keywords that are most relevant to its context.
With so much digital competition the need for SEO is vital for any business in order to secure new clients and build awareness. Paid advertising has become a marketing strategy for businesses with deep pockets so SEO is where most local businesses turn to for their online marketing needs.
But what all does SEO entail? How can one stand out in terms of SEO from other competitors in that niche? And more importantly, how much can all of these SEO services cost?
The Cost Of Effective SEO Marketing
When it comes to SEO, business owners can spend as little as a couple of hundred dollars to upwards of tens of thousands depending on their needs, size, and scope of the project.
The more money and time you are willing to put into an SEO marketing campaign the better the results are likely to be. But this isn’t always the case as not all SEO service providers are the same.
Prices can often vary drastically when it comes to SEO services, so knowing the basics can greatly help one in making the right decision when it comes to choosing a provider.
How Much Does On-Page Optimization Cost?
So, let us begin, by first looking at the most important On-page optimization costs associated with SEO that help increase website rankings and in turn result in better conversions.
The Inclusion Of Keywords In Your URL, Page Title, Meta Description, Heading, & Content
Think of a search engine as a vast spider web and within this web reside search engine spiders referred to as search bots. These search bots essentially crawl the web every time you type in a keyword in order to find relevant content for that subject matter.
By including primary keywords in all the things mentioned above you give your website the best chance of showing up in relevant searches.
Extensive keyword research, engaging content, and well-written meta descriptions can greatly impact your overall rankings on search engines.
How Much Does SEO Keyword Research Cost?
In many instances, you may think that you know exactly what keywords you should be focusing on based on natural instinct. However, you couldn’t be farther from the truth.
Without conducting extensive and effective research for quality keywords your entire SEO or organic campaign can be misguided and in turn ineffective; costing you both time and money.
Conducting keyword research involves looking for terms relevant to your business that not only have a high search volume but also aren’t as focused upon by your competition as they should be.
Identifying high search volume keywords that aren’t overly popular amongst competitors can be a great way to quickly grow in ranking and lead to more effective SEO, Content Strategies, and Paid-Ad Campaigns.
The cost of effective keyword research can be anywhere from $250-$1000 depending on the size and scope of the project.
How Much Does Technical SEO Cost?
This component of On-page SEO is essential in ensuring that search bots are able to effectively index and identify your website on all related keyword searches.
Technical SEO helps ensure that your website has all the technical characteristics associated with search engine algorithm requirements.
These technical characteristics include having a website that is
- SSL certified
- Mobile-friendly
- Features fast loading time
- Runs on a secure connection
- Has no duplicate content issues
- Has an XML sitemap
- Uses AMP HTML code for web pages on mobile devices
- Adding structured data markup to help improve CTR
- Registering website for indexing with Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tool
The cost of technical SEO services can range anywhere from $500 to $3000 for more complex websites. The industry average for monthly technical SEO consulting services is about $1750.
How Much Does Page Content Creation Cost?
Your website content speaks volumes about your business. Having unique, engaging, and factual content with high readability gives you the best chance of grabbing the attention of your intended target audience.
The content on a page should be formatted, structured, and positioned in a manner that is not only easily readable but also easy to index.
Page content creation can cost anywhere from $250-$1250 depending on the number of pages and extent of content required. One can also opt to pay SEO copywriters on an hourly or per word basis.
Expert writers can charge anywhere from $50-$300 per 1000 words or about $30-$50 an hour for writing services.
How Much Does Blog Article Creation Cost?
Blogs help provide vital product and service information to readers in a friendly relatable way. By adding blogs to your website on a weekly or monthly basis also ensures fresh content that is essential when it comes to SEO rankings.
Blogs can be about any subject matter related to your industry or niche. Choosing topics that you believe will intrigue your desired target audience and keep them coming back can lead to a loyal customer base and a lot more engagement leading to better conversions and a dedicated reader base. If you are interested in learning more, or seeing our examples, you can check out our Content Writing Services for SEO
Skilled bloggers can charge anywhere from $50-$450 per blog.
How Much Does Off-Page SEO Cost?
All the activities, fine-tuning, and adjustments that are done behind the scenes of a website to increase organic rankings is what is referred to as off-page SEO. This service includes the following:
How Much Do Local Citations Cost?
If you have a local business and a website but haven’t cited your business name, address, phone no, hours of operation, etc, search engines will not acknowledge your businesses’ existence. Thus, your website will not appear in local searches by people looking for your product or service. Learn more about what location citations are.
The more information you can have cited about your business the higher you are likely to be ranked, especially, when it comes to local searches pertaining to your business.
Citing such information on business directly listings such as Yelp, Facebook, MapQuest, Yellow pages, and more can significantly improve your local organic rankings. Local citations also help build trust and credibility that go a long way when it comes to boosting your overall rankings on search engines.
So how much do Local SEO citation services cost? The cost for directory listings and management services can set you back anywhere from $100-$200 a month.
How Much Do Backlinks Cost?
Backlinking is often the most underrated of all SEO marketing strategies. However, it can be one of the most effective. A backlink is essentially a hyperlink/anchor text that connects one website to another.
Why is this important? Well, the more quality backlinks you have the greater the credibility and noteworthiness of your content are likely to be.
Google and other search engines use backlinks as a ranking signal.
If the content contains backlinks to relevant sites that are credible, this, in turn, improves the quality and credibility of your content helping it appear higher on relevant search results.
According to USAToday, the average cost of blog backlinks is roughly $50-350 per backlink. The rates can fluctuate dramatically depending upon the website that you want that backlink to be placed in and whatever other requests you may have. The authority/traffic levels of the website in question is typically the biggest factor in the overall cost of the link.
How Much Does a Guest Post Cost?
Consider guest posts as digital flyers spread out across the web that lead back directly to your business. The concept is actually quite simple. Bloggers and influencers love new content to build up their reader base and are open to guest articles from contributors.
This is a great way to get a guest post published in a high-traffic blog site that talks about something relevant to your industry or niche and links back to your business website.
Guests blogging has no fixed rate as it really depends on the publisher. You might find someone willing to publish guest posts for $50 while others may require upwards of $250 for each guest post.
How Much Do Social Signals Cost?
Social signals are a cool way for businesses to understand consumer behavior. These social signals are essentially human interaction metrics found on all popular social platforms like Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, etc.
These metrics include things like likes, dislikes, shares, votes, views, and more that provide a fair indication of how a particular piece of content is received by the general public.
The more positive social signals your content is able to create the better you are ranked. These social signals can be bought in the thousands for as low as $50 and as high as $300. However, quality social campaigns and genuine social signal analysis and optimization can cost thousands of dollars depending on the size and scale of the operation.
How Much Does Google My Business Optimization Cost?
Even though Google My Business is free to use there is a lot that needs to be done on there in order to stand out from your competition. This is why most online business owners look for specialists that can handle and manage their Google My Business tool along with other SEO components to continuously improve their online presence.
This Google Business tool may seem fairly simple to use but has several intricacies especially when it comes to mapping and listings that can be tricky to do.
If you are not tech-savvy your best bet is to look for a digital marketing agency that can manage it for you as it is essential to your local SEO rankings. Most agencies will charge anywhere between $100 to $1000 per month
How Much are SEO Consultant Rates in Canada?
According to CREDO, On average, agencies charge $1,461.15 for a monthly retainer, and consultants charge $887.50. Agencies charge on average $203.08 per hour while individual consultants charge $138.25. Our pricing starts at $500/mo, which is the perfect package for smaller businesses in most Canadian markets.
Conclusion
SEO Costs are constantly evolving and changing. Every month it seems Google is refining its search algorithms in order to present the best possible results on any given search, which means there is a constant need to keep ahead of the game.
Purchasing each component of an SEO program can be quite expensive as you can clearly tell by the costs listed so far.
Thus, many business owners prefer packaged deals where the SEO agency works with a monthly budget to try and continuously improve rankings and lead conversions.
Always remember, SEO is a long-term growth strategy, and for any strategy to truly work it has to be given the time that it requires to fully mature in order to reap the maximum returns.
Professional SEO Services In Halifax, Nova Scotia
Want to learn more about the SEO services in Halifax, or anywhere else in Canada? Book your Free Discovery Call Today. We also offer SEO across the United States.
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