Businesses shopping for SEO rarely need another promise about reaching the top of Google. They need a realistic explanation of what they will pay, what the agency will do every month, and how to tell whether the work is actually helping generate inquiries. A proposal that says only “monthly SEO” does not answer any of those questions.
What a business is actually purchasing
SEO pricing should reflect a specific workload. An agency might research which services customers search for, inspect existing pages, improve technical accessibility, write useful location or service content, analyze competitors, connect related pages, and monitor search visibility. The work required for a new five page website is different from the work required for an established site with hundreds of pages and multiple service areas.
Ask every prospective provider for the deliverables, frequency, ownership, and reporting method. “Optimization” without a page list or scope is difficult to evaluate. A business should know which existing pages will be improved, which new pages will be produced, and who is responsible for supplying factual service information and approving changes.
Compare like with like
One proposal may include only technical maintenance while another includes substantial page creation, Google Business Profile work, and competitor research. Even if they are both called SEO, they are not equivalent products. Compare the number and type of pages, the reporting cadence, local search work, and the amount of editorial review. Ask whether website design, paid advertising, and routine content changes are excluded or billed separately.
At StartWeb7, the current monthly SEO and AEO plans are Essentials at $1,800, Competitive at $3,200, and Dominance at $5,200. These are StartWeb7 service prices, not an estimate of what the entire SEO industry charges. Review the current service agreement for the exact included workload before selecting a plan. A low price is not useful if it omits the work your website needs, and a high price is not proof of better outcomes.
What results should be measured
A report showing more keywords is not the same as a report showing more customers. Track relevant impressions and clicks, the pages attracting qualified visitors, completed contact forms, phone inquiries, and consultations where tracking is available. If an agency reports leads, clarify how a lead is counted and how duplicate or irrelevant inquiries are excluded.
Search traffic also takes time to interpret. A page may be newly discovered without ranking well. A business might gain traffic for a low intent educational query without receiving more service inquiries. Set realistic measurement periods and judge the work against the commercial searches your company actually wants to win. What to ask before signing Request a clear scope, who retains access to the website and search accounts, how updates are approved, what happens if the agreement ends, and who supplies the monthly report. Be skeptical of guaranteed first position rankings or guaranteed customer counts. Google itself advises creating useful, original content rather than publishing pages purely to manipulate results.
The right SEO budget is the one attached to work you understand, on a site you control, with reporting that measures actual business opportunities. If your company is choosing between plans, StartWeb7 can review the site and discuss which level of ongoing service matches its needs.