How Much Does Local SEO Cost?

Ever wondered how to get more foot traffic to your local store? Or how to get more phone calls to your local law firm? If so, if you’ve likely heard of local search engine optimization (SEO) – a type of digital marketing that helps you attract more clients and leads from local search.

While you can implement local SEO on your own, it’s often faster and more effective if you hire a local SEO professional. Your investment in local SEO services could easily yield more website visitors, leads, and customers every single month.

But how much does local SEO cost? How much money should you set aside for these services? In this guide, we’re answering these questions and more so you can effectively budget for ongoing local SEO.

What Is Local SEO and Why Is It Important?

Local SEO is a type of online marketing that helps local businesses attract more website traffic and, ultimately, customers, from local search. Local search are the geo-specific search results that appear when a user searches for local services in search engines like Google or Bing.

Local SEO is important for local businesses that want to attract customers within a certain service area. While some companies target users at a national or even international level, local businesses tend to only serve customers in their local city, county, or state.

With local SEO, local businesses can attract customers or clients who are looking for products or services like theirs in a specific geographic area. Businesses can rise to the top of the search results, increasing their chances of getting found by potential customers.

How Much Does Local SEO Cost for Businesses?

The costs of local SEO services vary widely depending on the type of business, how competitive the niche is, how big the service area is, and how big the business’s website is.

Some websites require more SEO work than others and some niches (due to competition level) require a more aggressive SEO strategy than others.

That said, we are providing some ballpark figures so you can establish a budget for local SEO services. Just keep in mind that the best way to know how much local SEO will cost is to get a custom quote for your own site.

Local SEO Pricing – The Breakdown

Local SEO agencies offer a wide variety of options when it comes to local SEO services. You’ll find that most service packages fall into one of four categories: Automated, Small Business, Comprehensive, and Enterprise. Here’s how much you should expect to pay for each type of local SEO package:

Automated: $100-$500 per year

Automated local SEO typically includes the use of automated software with very little customization. This “set it and forget it” style might work to some degree, but we believe that some customization is necessary if you want your local SEO to be effective.

Small Business: $400 – $900 per month

A “small” business may only have a few pages on their website, serve a small service area, and have very little local competition, so it won’t take much for them to move the needle in terms of local SEO. In this case, there may be some automation as well as some manual actions taken to optimize the website.

Comprehensive: $900 – $2000 per month

Some small to mid-sized local businesses may exist in a more competitive niche and therefore require a more comprehensive local SEO strategy. This is where it’s especially important to find a provider that thoroughly understands your market and can optimize your website to be competitive in local search.

Enterprise: $2000 + per month

Even though enterprises may have several branches, each localized business needs to be optimized for local search. These businesses may have even more competition and larger websites, and therefore require a lot more work, local SEO-wise. The cost will reflect the amount of work your local SEO provider will have to do to keep your business ahead of the competition.

What’s Included in Local SEO Packages?

Most local SEO packages will look more or less the same with varying levels of involvement based on how competitive the niche is and how large the website is.

Whether you are a small local shop or a larger company, you can expect your local SEO plan to include these services:

• On-page optimization
• Site speed optimization
• Mobile optimization
• Google My Business & directory optimization
• SEO content creation/blogging
• Local listing & citation building
• Link building
• Pay per click (PPC) advertising (optional)

In working with a local SEO provider, be sure to ask what’s included in your local SEO package and how those tasks will be used to drive more traffic and customers to your website.

How Much Should You Budget for Local SEO?

There are a few factors that will influence how much you should plan to pay for local SEO services. These factors include:

Competition Level

If your business is in a competitive niche or market, you will need to invest more money in local SEO in order to see the results that you want. This is because you may need to create additional pages, undergo a site redesign, or generate more backlinks in order to outrank your competitors. The more competitive the niche, the more aggressive you’ll need to be with your local SEO (typically).

Number of Locations

If you have several locations, you’ll likely need to build out several local listings, optimize several Google My Business profiles, and create additional content in order to rank. It takes time to optimize for each location, so expect your local SEO provider to charge accordingly.

How Many Products & Services You Offer

If you offer a wide variety of services or products, expect to optimize each product or service page for a specific keyword. This will likely involve adding more content and generating more backlinks to these pages. You might even need to create new landing pages altogether.

The Size of Your Website

Similarly, if you have lots of pages on your website, that means more time spent optimizing each page. The more your local SEO provider has to optimize, the more local SEO will cost. Again, your best bet is to get a custom quote for local SEO services based on your unique website, market, and offer(s).

Local SEO Pricing Options

At Hennessey Digital, we offer multi-tiered pricing options for local businesses. Let us determine the right local SEO package for you based on the size of your business, number of locations, and more.

Get a Quote for Local SEO Services

Looking for a local SEO plan tailored to your unique needs? Contact Hennessey Digital for a customized quote for local SEO services. Our team will assess your business and come up with a strategy based on your specific market and the types of customers you’re trying to reach. Get your custom quote today.