You'll get quotes that vary wildly for what sounds like the same service. One freelancer asks for a few thousand a month, an agency asks for a few lakh. Both can be honest. They're usually selling different things.
What changes the price
Competition is the big one. Ranking a local bakery is a different job from ranking a national insurance brand. Scope matters too. Who's writing the content? Who's making the ads? Who's reading the reports? And then there's experience. You're paying for someone who has made the mistakes already, on someone else's budget.
Fee and ad spend are separate
This catches people out. If you run Google Ads, you pay Google for clicks and you pay someone to manage the account. Always ask whether a quote includes ad spend. Ask for it in writing.
Warning signs
A very cheap monthly SEO package usually means automated reports and spam links, and that can cost you more later. So can guaranteed rankings, long lock-ins with no clear deliverables, or vendors who won't give you access to your own ad account.
Your accounts should always belong to you.
How to set a budget
Work backwards. If a customer is worth ₹50,000 and one in ten leads buys, you can afford far more per lead than someone selling a ₹500 product. That number should set your budget. Your competitor's budget shouldn't.
Written by Aman Potlia.