How can I become an SEO consultant please?

[mikepcservice]

Hey guys, in order to expand my skillset and get added income here in NY, I am thinking of offering SEO consulting services and can use some advice and info from you Pros here if you won't mind please.

First, please confirm what exactly a Consultant does, only advise a business owner on what is needed to have a successful SEO Campaign?

What about pricing, is there a standard fee for this? Does one charge per session or by the hour?

How much time does a consultant spend with a person on this and is it a one session deal?

Any help/advice will be greatly appreciated, thanks guys.

 

[Colan Nielsen]

Hi @mikepcservice, We offer hourly consulting at Sterling Sky. For the most part, businesses utilize this for solving very specific challenges or training. We typically require a three-hour/month minimum.

Our rate is $350/hour and I have seen other agencies and consultants charge anywhere from $100/hour to $400+/hour.

 

[mikepcservice]

Thank you very much Colin. For consulting, do you guys run an SEO Audit tool first on existing websites then advise the client or is that done only for actual jobs please?

 

[Colan Nielsen]

do you guys run an SEO Audit tool first on existing websites then advise the client or is that done only for actual jobs please?

All of our audits are done manually. We use tools of course, but we utilize our collective experience to discover what needs to be done and provide recommendations.

 

[mikepcservice]

Thanks but do you do the audit before, during or after initial consulting [2nd consultation] please?

 

[Colan Nielsen]

It really depends. We normally do the audits as the first step, before working with a business. Because the audit serves a few purposes:

1. Creates the action plan that will be the tactics for the first six to twelve months of work with a new client
2. Gives the client a window into how Sterling Sky thinks about solving local SEO challenges
3. Builds the foundation for our relationship, as we review the audit with the client over a one-hour phone call (opportunity to build trust)

But for hourly consulting, where we are helping solve a very specific challenge, we don't need to do a full audit.

 

[abbietorres]

Think about what type of clients you are looking to attract and the type of work you are willing to provide.

For most of my freelance work, I have to do a high-level audit but I also keep in mind what the client can afford. I give them 2 to 3 options for an SOW... I try to stay consistent with my rates too, b/c I get referral business and I don't want people getting upset.

Also, I prefer charging in packages over hourly... You should compare your rates against 'E-lancers' with similar skill sets that are located in a similar region. (you are probably needing work for more money than someone from a country where the USD goes farther...)

 

[Den]

Think about what type of clients you are looking to attract and the type of work you are willing to provide.

For most of my freelance work, I have to do a high-level audit but I also keep in mind what the client can afford. I give them 2 to 3 options for an SOW... I try to stay consistent with my rates too, b/c I get referral business and I don't want people getting upset.

Also, I prefer charging in packages over hourly... You should compare your rates against 'E-lancers' with similar skill sets that are located in a similar region. (you are probably needing work for more money than someone from a country where the USD goes farther...)

When you say you charge in packages, can you explain how you do that? For example, do you do a SEO Audit and discuss the most important things to get done first, lump that in a package and have them pay that as a one time fee?

 

[abbietorres]

When you say you charge in packages, can you explain how you do that? For example, do you do a SEO Audit and discuss the most important things to get done first, lump that in a package and have them pay that as a one time fee?

Yes. I have a full-time agency job, so my consultant work is a side gig I do here and there. I like projects with a clear start and end. Your style might be different. The clients I take on have very small websites (think local shops).

What I do is prioritize what the site/business needs then estimate how long this will take me, and multiply my rate. In my contract/ SOW, I detail exactly what I am going to provide with a deadline of 30 to 90 days. It's really different from my agency work where we are in a contract for 12 months.

The packages are an outline for the client of what I am recommending for the website and what I can provide. I package it out to help the client understand the workload and upsell my offering.

 

[mikepcservice]

Hey guys, can you explain if choosing to do "project based" consulting what exactly would be all that you are responsible for please? Or maybe better question should be would it be any different from hourly consulting if you give them all info/advice within an hour?

 

[JoyHawkins]

Hey guys, can you explain if choosing to do "project based" consulting what exactly would be all that you are responsible for please? Or maybe better question should be would it be any different from hourly consulting if you give them all info/advice within an hour?

The only "projects" we do are audits which are priced based on the approximate hours we think it will take to complete. I avoid most other one-time projects as I find monthly SEO retainers to be way better from both a business perspective and also because the ROI we can deliver is better.

 

[mikepcservice]

Thanks what brought up this question is from researching Consultant's fees and it's showing some high prices for 'projects" so I am trying to figure with a project price of say 3k that can't be for a one hour consulting fee.

Does that mean then when they say "Project" they do not mean consulting but rather doing the actual SEO work, is that it please?

SEO Pricing: How Much Does SEO Cost? [Industry Research]

We asked ~350 professional SEOs how much they charge for SEO. Here are the results.

ahrefs.com

 

[JoyHawkins]

Yes, I would assume that projects are actual implementations of SEO, not simply suggestions.