Understanding your fee
What should a monthly SEO service deliver?
Your monthly fee should map to agreed work you can inspect: the page or issue, what changed, why it changed, who approved it and where it is live. Keep that delivery record separate from traffic, enquiries and other outcomes.
Start with the unit of work
“Six content pieces” can mean six original articles, six small edits or a mixture. Those are different commitments. Before paying, define whether each item includes research, drafting, expert input, design, implementation, revision and verification.
Google's content guidance emphasises useful, original value and asks publishers to consider who created the content and how. It also cautions against changing dates merely to appear fresh. That supports an editorial review process, not a fixed monthly article quota. Google's people-first content guidance.
A receipt you can actually inspect
The following is a proposed receipt format, with an illustrative example. It is not a claim about work delivered for a real client.
| Field | Example |
|---|---|
| Agreed item | Update the service page's pricing answer |
| Buyer question | Does the monthly fee include implementation? |
| Evidence | The approved service scope and current billing terms |
| Change | Explain included work, exclusions and approval requirements |
| Approval | Named client reviewer, exact version and date |
| Delivery proof | Published URL, before/after record and live verification |
| Evaluation | Relevant enquiries and pricing questions over an agreed period |
What belongs in the monthly report?
Use two sections. First, account for the work: included items, completed items, pending approvals, deferred work and any agreed carry-forward. Then review measured outcomes and the next decision.
For example, a corrected page can be delivered even if there is not yet enough traffic to judge its commercial effect. The honest result is “delivered; outcome still inconclusive.” A green checkmark should not imply that the page caused new revenue.
Five questions before you subscribe
- Is onboarding included, and when does billing begin if access is delayed?
- Which changes can the agency publish, and which require my approval?
- Who verifies factual claims and sensitive statements?
- What happens when a provider connection fails or data is unavailable?
- Can I export the content, sources, work history and reports if I leave?
How much content is enough?
Choose the amount your customers need and your review process can support. One well-supported pricing answer may be more useful to a buyer than another generic overview. Decide using the actual customer question, the existing page and the quality of the proposed contribution.
Our recommendation is to agree on scope before using output counts to compare agencies. Ask to see a completed receipt, then open the evidence behind one line item.
Sources and review
- Google people-first content guidance. Original value, authorship and meaningful freshness.
References checked on 6 September 2026. Provider guidance can change. Our checklists and illustrative examples are recommendations, not observed client results. Send a correction.
Revision note
6 September 2026: initial researched version. No claim of historical client results.