Managed SEO means an agency runs your search engine optimization for you, month after month: it plans the work, fixes your website, writes and improves pages, looks after your local listing and reports back in plain English. You approve the big decisions and answer questions; the agency does the rest. This page explains what managed SEO services include, how they compare with doing it yourself, one-off jobs or hiring staff, and what our own managed plans cover.
We're SEO Expert Marketing, a new, remote agency for small businesses in the USA, UK, Canada and Australia. We work on WordPress and Shopify sites. If you want an outside view first, ask for a free website review with no obligation.
What managed SEO actually means
SEO isn't one task. It's research, technical fixes, content, local search and measurement, repeated as your business, your competitors and Google's results change. With fully managed SEO, one team owns all of it. You don't have to learn the tools, chase a freelancer for each job or remember what was done last month.
In practice, a managed provider usually covers:
- A plan: which searches matter to your business and which pages should answer them.
- Fixes: errors and settings that stop Google reading or trusting your site.
- Content: new or improved pages written for your customers.
- Local search: your Google Business Profile and consistent business details.
- Links and reputation: knowing where your links come from and earning new ones honestly.
- Reporting: what was done, what moved and what comes next.
Managed SEO vs DIY, one-off jobs and in-house staff
There are four common ways to get SEO done. None is right for everyone.
| Option | Who does the work | Suits you if |
|---|---|---|
| DIY | You | You have time to learn and a simple local site |
| One-off jobs | A provider, once | You need one problem solved, such as an audit or a fix pack |
| In-house hire | Your own employee | SEO is big enough to fill someone's working week |
| Managed SEO | An agency, every month | You want steady progress without running it yourself |
DIY is a real option. Google's own Do you need an SEO? guide says that if you run a small local business, you can probably do much of the work yourself, and suggests starting with its SEO starter guide. If you have the time, try it.
One-off jobs work when you know what's wrong. Our SEO price list has fixed-price jobs you can buy at checkout: a Full SEO Audit for $59, a Keyword Research Report for $79, Google Business Profile Setup for $99, a Technical SEO Fix Pack for $199, SEO Page Writing at $39 a page (or 5 for $179) and Link Building Outreach at $149 for 3 links or $249 for 5.
In-house staff make sense for larger companies with enough work to keep a specialist busy, plus budget for tools and training. For most small businesses that's more than the job needs.
Managed SEO sits in between: ongoing work like an employee, without the hiring, for a monthly fee.
What's included in our managed SEO plans
Our three monthly plans are our managed SEO services. Each includes everything in the one before it. The SEO packages page compares them line by line; here's the short version.
SEO Starter: $395 a month
A full SEO audit to start. Website repairs, with your proposal stating how far they go. Google Search Console and Google Analytics (GA4) set up. Local SEO. SEO content: up to 2 new or improved pages a month. Five search phrases tracked, and a monthly report in plain English.
SEO Growth: $795 a month
Everything in Starter, with 15 phrases tracked, plus keyword research and mapping (deciding which page should answer which search), internal linking between your own pages, and competitor analysis of the businesses ranking above you.
SEO Authority: $1,495 a month
Everything in Growth, with 30 phrases tracked and a weekly report on top of the monthly one, plus backlink analysis, content-gap analysis and automation solutions. Ask what automation would mean for your site before you choose.
In every plan
- A free website analysis before you choose.
- An AI visibility check: what ChatGPT, Gemini and Perplexity say about your business.
- Direct WhatsApp contact with the team.
Paid yearly, the plans cost $295, $595 and $1,095 a month, billed once a year. For how these fees compare with the wider market, see how much SEO costs.
What you still do as a client
Fully managed SEO doesn't mean hands-off. A few things only you can provide:
- Access: to your website, and to Search Console, Analytics and your Business Profile, which stay in your name.
- Approvals: for the plan, new pages and bigger site changes.
- Answers: about your services, prices, areas and customers. Nobody knows your business better.
- Photos: real pictures of your work, team and premises.
New pages and bigger changes wait for your approval, so quick replies help the work go live sooner.
How a month of managed SEO works
Every plan starts after a written proposal that names the work, the price in USD and who does what. After that, a typical month follows the same rhythm:
- Check: we review tracked phrases, Search Console and anything that broke.
- Fix: technical and on-page problems are repaired in order of impact.
- Create: new or improved pages are written and sent for your approval.
- Report: you get a plain-English report of what was done and what comes next.
The first month starts with the full SEO audit, and its findings set the order of the work that follows. SEO takes time, so judge progress over several months, not weeks.
Contracts, cancelling and payment
Monthly plans have no long contract: you can cancel any time. If you choose a yearly plan and cancel after work starts, we keep working through the months already paid, then the work stops until you decide what to do next. Plans are paid by Remitly, Wise or bank transfer. Our SEO retainer guide covers what to check in any monthly agreement before you sign.
How to judge a managed SEO provider honestly
Google's guide to hiring an SEO suggests interviewing providers. Its questions include how they measure success, what results they expect and in what timeframe, and whether they'll share every change they make to your site with the reasoning behind it. Ask us the same questions.
Red flags to watch for
- Guaranteed rankings. The same guide says no one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google.
- Secret methods. Google advises being careful if a company is secretive or won't clearly explain what it intends to do.
- Bought links. Buying links, or posts containing them, is listed as link spam in Google's spam policies.
- Long lock-in contracts. If a provider can't keep you through results and service, a long minimum term protects them, not you.
- Accounts in their name. Your Search Console, Analytics and Business Profile should belong to you.
As a new agency, we don't have client results to show yet, so we show what we can: published prices, plan items and a free review of your site. You can also start smaller with SEO consulting or a one-off SEO audit, and our SEO services page lists every area we cover.
Who our managed SEO suits
It suits owners of small and local businesses who want SEO done properly but don't have the time to do it, and who can share access, real photos and quick answers. It doesn't suit anyone wanting guaranteed rankings, bulk-bought links or copy-paste pages, or a business that only needs one fix (a fixed-price job is better value there).
Not sure which plan fits? Send your web address and goals through the free website review form. We reply with the main issues we see and a sensible first step.
