The three pricing shapes
- Audit and roadmap: one-time, diagnostic. You get prioritized findings you keep regardless of what happens next.
- Project: a defined build with a start and an end, such as a lifecycle email program or a site-wide SEO architecture.
- Retainer: monthly, ongoing strategy plus execution across one or more channels.
What actually moves the price
- Scope: one channel costs less than demand, conversion, and retention together.
- Seniority: you are paying for whose judgment is applied, and whether that person also does the work.
- Execution load: strategy-only costs less than strategy plus writing, building, and testing.
- Complexity: regulated industries, multi-market sites, and messy data all add real time.
Why nobody publishes one flat number
A published rate card either overcharges the simple engagement or underprices the complicated one, and the person paying has no way to tell which they got. That's why serious consultants scope on a call. It isn't evasion, it's the only way the price can match the work.
What you should expect is a written scope before money moves: what's included, what isn't, what you'll receive, and how success is measured.
How to tell if a price is fair
- The proposal names the outcome, not just the deliverables.
- It says what happens if the approach isn't working by month three.
- The person quoting can explain your funnel back to you before quoting.
- There's a smaller first step available so you don't have to bet the year on a guess.