agerhart - 9:11 pm on Feb 8, 2002 (gmt 0)

I think that you are somewhat right when you refer to the advertising model. It is extremely important nowadays to remember to include all aspects of search engine marketing or advertising that will benefit a particular client. Not all aspects will be beneficial to all clients. This will not only keep the client happy by showing them the most success, but show them that you are offering a well-rounded campaign and know what you are talking about.

As for the way to price the campaign. There are tons of SEO companies, and there are definitely tons of different pricing models.

I have seen some SEO companies that charge their clients based on the amount of traffic. X amount of money for X amount of traffic. Other companies will charge no initial price to sign, but will have a considerable monthly charge. Another pricing model is to have a initial optimization sign-up fee, with a reduced monthly fee.

I don't think that there is any reason to change from a business model, or pricing model if it has proven to be effective. Instead, build upon this model.

There could be an agreement between the client and the SEO firm that would allow the SEO firm to handle their Overture, Adwords, or other advertisements within the search engines and the Internet. One way to handle this is to have a set budget for either the entire package or for each individual aspect.

I do agree with you that it is no longer just SEO, and we have done some changing to keep up with the changes within the SEs. One of the things that we will do is discuss all possible opportunities that can act as a beneficial supplement to their SEO campaign. If we feel that a particular client can benefit from an Overture campaign than we will add a set amount of money to their monthly payment owed and use that to manage their account.

I don't think that the pricing model needs to be completely changed.....just add to the existing model.