What's the first thing to look for when considering an Internet Marketing company/consultant? Where "they" list on Google for their main keywords or phrases, that's a good start! At Tom Becks Media, we OWN our market. That's a good start, now let's discuss the next steps. Nearly every business today must decide how much to spend on search engine optimization (SEO). This isn't an if question. Robust online marketing is imperative for survival in a web-driven world. The amount is not some wad of cash gift. It is a real number driven by the margins your business can afford in order to have the return on investment for the long term. SEO IS A LONG-TERM SOLUTION. The question every business professional must ask is, "How much will we spend on SEO?" This number changes from business to business, but keep in mind, if you are web driven business, think 25% to 50% of your marketing budget. Wow Tom! That's seems excessive. Think about this, if you want to "own" your vertical, there are only two ways to make that happen. No matter what anyone else says, these are FACTS, pay per click (adwords and the like) is instant gratification, you pay for performance and your marketing firm needs to know exactly what works and what doesn't because YOU really don't want to finance their training do you? Then there is SEO. SEO Payment Models To understand the dollars and cents discussed below, you must understand payment models used by agencies. SEO agencies typically offer four main forms of services and payment: Monthly retainer: In this model, clients pay a set fee each month in exchange for an agreed-upon array of services. The monthly retainer is the most common payment model, because it provides the greatest ROI. Monthly retainer arrangements usually include regular analytics reports, on-site content improvements, press releases, link building, keyword research, and optimizat