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What SEO Costs, and What You Get for It

Two plans. One goal: more customers finding you on Google. A 3-month minimum, then monthly. No hidden fees.

Search Engine Optimization pricing

SEO plans are $1,500 a month (Search Visibility) or $2,800 a month (Search Visibility Pro). 30-Day Proof Period: a written list of what I'll ship, or your first month back.

When you search Google for what you do in your area, are your top 3 competitors actively publishing blog posts and investing in their online presence?

Search Visibility

Flat monthly price

$1,500 /month

That's just $50/day

Claim your market before your competitors wake up.

Ideal For You If

  • Your competitors have outdated or inactive websites
  • You have no idea how many leads your website generates each month
  • You don't show up on Google for what you do in your area
  • Your Google Business Profile is incomplete or missing photos
  • You need a solid foundation before competitors wake up

Best When

Your competitors are NOT doing SEO

When someone searches for what you do, they see outdated websites, slow-loading pages, and businesses that have not published content in years. This is a land grab. Search Visibility claims the territory before they wake up.

  • 4 articles or local pages per month
  • Site improvements
  • Google Business Profile and reviews
  • Real links and mentions earned, no spam
  • Competitor watch
  • Shared worklog
  • Report vs your launch baseline
  • You own everything from day one
  • 3-month minimum, then monthly
Most Popular

Search Visibility Pro

Flat monthly price

$2,800 /month

That's just $93/day

Outpace competitors who are already investing in SEO

Ideal For You If

  • Your top competitors publish regular blog content and rank well
  • You're on page 2-3 for important keywords but can't break through
  • You need to outpace competitors, not just match their effort
  • Speed of results matters to your business right now
  • You want someone checking on your competitors every week

Best When

Your competitors ARE doing SEO

Your top competitors are publishing content and working on their SEO every month. Matching their effort keeps you stuck at positions 6 through 10. To displace them, you need to outpace, not just compete.

  • Everything in Search Visibility
  • 12 articles or local pages per month
  • Weekly competitor monitoring
  • 3-month minimum, then monthly

Side-by-Side Comparison

Articles or Local Pages

Search Visibility

4/month

Search Visibility Pro

12/month

Site Improvements

Search Visibility

Included

Search Visibility Pro

Included

Google Business Profile and Reviews

Search Visibility

Included

Search Visibility Pro

Included

Links and Mentions

Search Visibility

Earned, no spam

Search Visibility Pro

Earned, no spam

Competitor Tracking

Search Visibility

Competitor watch

Search Visibility Pro

Weekly competitor monitoring

Shared Worklog

Search Visibility

Included

Search Visibility Pro

Included

Report vs Launch Baseline

Search Visibility

Included

Search Visibility Pro

Included

Ownership

Search Visibility

You own everything from day one

Search Visibility Pro

You own everything from day one

Term

Search Visibility

3-month minimum, then monthly

Search Visibility Pro

3-month minimum, then monthly

What the Extra $1,300/mo Gets You

Search Visibility Pro is not "more of the same." It is built for markets where competitors are already investing.

Monthly content

4 to 12 articles or local pages

3x content velocity

Competitor tracking

Competitor watch to weekly competitor monitoring

I watch them every week so you do not have to

Add-Ons

Monthly, only with a Search Visibility plan. Each add-on is covered as part of the plan: its deliverables join your 30-day list, and one refund covers both.

Add-OnPrice
AI Visibility+$797/mo
Email + SMS Campaigns+$400/mo
Photo & Content Sessions+$750/mo

What "Affordable" Means for SEO

I'm not the cheapest option. If you want $300/month SEO, I'm not your guy. That doesn't work.

For my Colorado SEO pricing research, published in March 2026, I compared 20+ agencies across Denver, Colorado Springs, Boulder and Pueblo. Monthly prices ran from $390 to $20,000+, and only 8 of them published their pricing. A $499/month package with no content creation will not produce the same results as a $1,500/month package that includes regular article publishing.

I do the math differently. Search Visibility is about $50 a day. If your average customer is worth $1,500, SEO pays for itself with 1 customer a month. If one new customer a month wouldn't cover it, tell me on the call. If SEO isn't right for your business yet, I'll say so.

More on budgets: affordable SEO packages for small businesses, the complete guide to SEO packages and what local SEO packages should include.

What If SEO Doesn't Work for My Business?

You should not have to guess what you are paying for. So I put the first 30 days in writing.

30-Day Proof Period

Before you pay a cent, I put in writing the list of what I'll ship in your first 30 days. On Search Visibility, the list is:

  • Launch baseline recorded and shared: where you stand on day one, and what every report compares against
  • Shared worklog live: a running log of everything I do, so you never have to ask what you're paying for
  • Google Business Profile: categories, services, hours, description and 10 photos published
  • GA4 and Google Search Console connected, so results can be measured from the start
  • Site improvements named in the proposal shipped, with before/after numbers measured and reported
  • Competitor watch set up
  • 4 articles or local pages published

Search Visibility Pro adds weekly competitor monitoring with the first weekly update delivered, and 12 articles or local pages instead of 4. An add-on puts its own items on the same list. For AI Visibility, that's a report on what 6 AI platforms say about you, 5 core topic clusters mapped and a citation source audit.

If I don't ship every item on that list, you get your first month back. The guarantee covers the work, not rankings, traffic or leads. What you can usually expect in the first 30 days is first movement in impressions and map views. That's an expectation, not a guarantee.

How to claim the refund, when the 30 days start and when the clock pauses are on my guarantee page, which holds the full rules for every service.

3-Month Minimum, Then Monthly

Google takes time to start ranking a site. It does not happen in 24 hours. On a call, I'll show you real graphs of how long it took for other clients and what they got. After the first 3 months, it runs monthly.

Transparent Reporting

Clear reports showing exactly what was done, what moved, and what comes next. No vanity metrics.

Direct Access

No account managers. No junior staff. You work with me directly. I limit how many clients I take because that is the only way to guarantee quality.

The price is clear. The list is in writing.

The next step is a conversation, not a commitment.

SEO Timeline

When Does SEO Start Working?

What gets shipped, and what to expect. Timelines are expectations based on past work, not promises.

Search Visibility
$1,500/month

Months 2-3 and Beyond: Steady Monthly Work

4 articles or local pages per month

You see: Steady stream of customer-focused content

Why it matters: Each piece compounds. Month 2 content keeps working while Month 3 content goes live.

Site improvements, shipped and logged

You see: Fixes recorded in the shared worklog

Why it matters: Small fixes that quietly cost you leads get found and fixed every month.

Google Business Profile and reviews work

You see: An active, complete profile

Why it matters: More reviews and an active profile build trust with people comparing you on Maps.

Report against your launch baseline

You see: Progress measured from day one

Why it matters: You see what moved, what did not, and what comes next.

What You Receive

  • Monthly report against your launch baseline
  • Shared worklog, updated as work ships

Expected Outcomes

  • Rankings and calls usually follow the early movement within 60 to 90 days for a local business (an expectation based on past work, not a promise)
Search Visibility Pro
$2,800/month

Months 2-3 and Beyond: Outpacing Competitors

12 articles or local pages per month

You see: A content library that grows faster than competitors can match

Why it matters: Momentum compounds. The gap widens every month you out-publish them.

Weekly competitor monitoring

You see: Ongoing weekly updates

Why it matters: Competitor launches a new page? You hear it from me that week and we respond.

Site improvements, GBP and reviews work

You see: Everything logged in the shared worklog

Why it matters: The foundation keeps getting stronger while the content volume does the displacing.

What You Receive

  • Weekly competitor updates
  • Monthly report against your launch baseline
  • Shared worklog, updated as work ships

Expected Outcomes

  • Rankings and calls usually follow the early movement within 60 to 90 days for a local business (an expectation based on past work, not a promise)

I've Heard These SEO Promises Before

So have the business owners below. These are real objections from real calls.

It does take time, and I will not pretend otherwise. Google takes time to start ranking a site. That is why there is a 3-month minimum. The 30-Day Proof Period exists for this exact concern: before you pay a cent, I put in writing exactly what I'll ship in the first 30 days. If I miss any of it, you get your first month back. Rankings and calls usually follow in 60 to 90 days for a local business. That is an expectation, not a promise. The question is not whether it works. The question is whether your competitors will get there first.

Most "SEO" businesses sell reports, not results. Ask your previous provider: what exactly did they ship last month? If they cannot answer, you were paying for a black box. With me, every task goes in a shared worklog you can see, and progress is reported against the baseline I record on day one. And with the 30-Day Proof Period, you get a written list of what I'll ship in 30 days before you pay, or your first month back. Did your last agency offer that?

Referrals are great until they dry up. What happens if your top referral source retires, moves, or just gets busy? Every month you rely solely on referrals, your competitors are building a search presence that compounds. Referrals plus SEO means you control your pipeline instead of hoping for it.

You can change your own oil too, but should you? SEO involves technical fixes, ongoing content creation (4 to 12 articles or local pages per month), competitor monitoring, schema markup, citation management, and algorithm updates. The time you spend learning and doing SEO is time you are not running your business.

Big companies are often slow and generic. Local SEO rewards specificity. A page targeting 'kitchen remodeling Colorado Springs' often beats a national franchise page because Google knows the searcher wants someone local. You have the advantage. You just need to use it.

Ads are rent. SEO is ownership. Google Ads work until you turn them off, and every click costs money whether that person calls you or not. SEO keeps working even when you are not actively paying for each click. The businesses that grow fastest usually do both: ads for immediate leads, SEO for compounding returns. But if you have to choose one, ask yourself whether you want to keep paying for every lead forever.

FAQ illustration

Why KREAKTIVE?

KREAKTIVE vs Agency vs DIY

How the three options compare on price, terms and who does the work.

Recommended
DMS

Direct access. Work you can check.

From $1,500/mo

  • Kristian builds your SEO strategy personally
  • Shared worklog of every task you pay for
  • 30-Day Proof Period: a written list of what I'll ship, or your first month back
30-Day Proof Period Deliverables in Writing
Typical SEO Agency

Call for a quote.

$390-$20,000+/mo across Colorado

  • Only 8 of the 20+ Colorado agencies I researched publish pricing
  • Contract terms range from month-to-month to 12 months
  • Content deliverables are rarely published
DIY SEO

Tools without the strategy.

Semrush from $139/mo + your time

  • Full control over your content
  • Steep learning curve on technical SEO
  • Months of trial-and-error before traction

Business Terms

6 comparisons
KREAKTIVE

Monthly investment

From $1,500/mo

Contract length

SEO: 3-month minimum, then monthly

Who does the work

Kristian, directly

Communication

Direct access, prompt replies

Hidden costs

None. Transparent pricing.

What you own when done

Everything: code, content, accounts

Agency

Monthly investment

$390-$20,000+/mo in Colorado

Contract length

Month-to-month to 12 months

Who does the work

Owner or an assigned team

Communication

Varies by agency

Hidden costs

Often unknown until a sales call

What you own when done

Depends on the contract

DIY

Monthly investment

Semrush from $139/mo + your time

Contract length

N/A

Who does the work

You

Communication

Forums and documentation

Hidden costs

Your time (at your hourly rate)

What you own when done

Everything

"Kreative is knowledgeable, professional, and thorough with their marketing strategies. Kris' support with our website and digital marketing has strengthened our branding as a company and generates solid organic leads! Thanks Kreative!"
Best Construction Brands, Colorado Springs (Google review)

Result: Best Construction Brands: #13 to #2 on Google Maps in 60 days (2024)

Trust & Risk

7 comparisons
KREAKTIVE

Guarantee

Written 30-day list, or your first month back

Risk if it fails

First month back if any listed item does not ship

Pricing transparency

Published on website

Data and asset ownership

Yours, always

Reporting

Reports against your launch baseline

Accountability

Written 30-day Deliverables List

Third-party ranking

#1 Freelance Digital Strategy Expert on Clutch (Oct 2026)

Agency

Guarantee

Rarely published

Risk if it fails

Depends on the contract term

Pricing transparency

"Call for a quote"

Data and asset ownership

Depends on the contract

Reporting

Varies by agency

Accountability

Contract terms, when published

Third-party ranking

Varies

DIY

Guarantee

None

Risk if it fails

Lost months of your time

Pricing transparency

Clear tool pricing

Data and asset ownership

Yours

Reporting

Self-interpreted analytics

Accountability

Only yourself

Third-party ranking

N/A

Results & Quality

4 comparisons
KREAKTIVE

Rankings and calls

Usually 60 to 90 days for a local business (an expectation, not a promise)

Content volume

4-12 articles or local pages/month

Technical SEO

Site improvements, shipped and logged

Links and mentions

Real links and mentions earned in both plans, no spam

Agency

Rankings and calls

Rarely stated up front

Content volume

Rarely published

Technical SEO

Varies by agency

Links and mentions

Ask how they build links

DIY

Rankings and calls

Depends on your time and skill

Content volume

As many as you can write

Technical SEO

Plugin-based, limited depth

Links and mentions

Manual outreach (time-intensive)

Choose KREAKTIVE if...

You want direct access to the person doing the work, a published price and a written list of what you get in the first 30 days.

Choose DIY if...

You have the time to learn SEO properly and don't mind a slower ramp. The tools give you data, but you have to learn how to act on it.

Consider an agency if...

You need SEO across many domains or markets at once, more than one person can run.

Based on published SEO pricing from the 20+ Colorado agencies I researched in March 2026 (Denver, Colorado Springs, Boulder and Pueblo), including Boulder SEO Marketing, Peaks Digital, RedBrick Web Solutions, Volume Nine and Clicta Digital.

Start Your 30-Day Proof Period

SEO plans: 3-month minimum, then monthly. 30-Day Proof Period: a written list of what I'll ship, or your first month back.

What the Investment Returned

Best Construction Brands went from $10,000 a month in magazine ads they couldn't track to 25 measurable leads a month from Google (2024). Sealwise Epoxy booked $26,240 in new projects within 60 days of its new site and local SEO going live (2024).

Want to see how the work runs before you look at the bill? I lay out my 8-step SEO process and the results behind it on my SEO services page. See all results.

SEO Pricing Questions, Answered

Every question below came from a small business owner in your shoes.

Search Visibility is $1,500/month for businesses in markets where competitors are not actively doing SEO. Search Visibility Pro is $2,800/month for competitive markets where you need to outpace competitors who are already investing. Both have a 3-month minimum, then monthly. You can add AI Visibility (+$797/mo), Email + SMS Campaigns (+$400/mo) or Photo & Content Sessions (+$750/mo) to either plan.

It depends on your competition. If your competitors are not doing SEO (outdated websites, slow-loading pages, nothing published in years), Search Visibility ($1,500/month) is the right fit. If your top competitors are publishing content and working on their SEO, Search Visibility Pro ($2,800/month) is built to outpace them, not just match them. Not sure? Book a free consultation and I'll look at your market and tell you which one, or whether you need SEO at all yet.

Because Google takes time to start ranking a site. It does not happen in 24 hours. Three months is the shortest window where you can judge the work fairly. After that, the plan runs monthly.

Then we look at the numbers together against your launch baseline. After the first 3 months it's monthly, and you decide. What I won't do is take your money for a promise Google won't let me keep.

Do the math on your business. If your average customer is worth $2,000 and SEO brings in 3 new customers per month, that is $6,000 in revenue against a $1,500 or $2,800 investment. Rankings and calls usually follow in 60 to 90 days for a local business, and that math is how you judge whether it pays. That is an expectation, not a promise. One client eliminated $120,000 in annual ad spend once SEO became the primary lead source.

Strategy adapts. I keep watch on your competitors (every week on Search Visibility Pro) and adjust when new players enter or existing competitors increase their investment. If your market shifts, I recommend moving between Search Visibility and Search Visibility Pro. After the 3-month minimum, the plan runs monthly.

Yes. If your competitors start investing in SEO, moving from Search Visibility to Search Visibility Pro makes sense, and Search Visibility Pro builds on everything in Search Visibility.

Everything in your plan. Articles or local pages, site improvements, Google Business Profile and reviews work, real links and mentions earned (no spam), competitor tracking, a shared worklog, and reports against your launch baseline. No surprise charges for "extra" work. The quoted price is the final price.

Not necessarily. Site improvements start in month 1. If your site has critical issues (slow loading, broken pages, no mobile design), I fix those first. If your site needs a complete rebuild, I'll tell you honestly rather than patch something that can't be fixed.

FAQ illustration
Kristian working on marketing strategy
Who you're hiring

Why should you trust me?

My agency was a Google Actívate success story.

I didn't learn SEO from a blog. I've worked in digital marketing for 17 years, 15 of them running my own agency. Google featured that agency, KREAKTIVE, in a Google Actívate story (screenshot, Oct 2026) after I took their Actívate digital marketing course. I moved to Colorado Springs in 2023 and brought KREAKTIVE with me (it operated as Digital Marketing Services until 2026). Today I use the same skills to get Colorado small businesses found on Google and AI search.

What clients say about working with me

Still Comparing SEO Prices?

These guides will help you make an informed decision.

SEO Packages for Small Business: A No-BS Buyer's Guide

SEO Packages for Small Business: A No-BS Buyer's Guide

How to evaluate any SEO package from any agency. The 5 questions to ask, red flags to watch for, and a scoring checklist you can use before signing anything. Written by someone who sells SEO packages and still thinks you should read this before buying one.

16 min read

You've Read This Far For a Reason

Every SEO engagement starts with a free conversation. No pitch, no pressure. Let's figure out if this makes sense for your business.

Results in 30 days or your money back. Before you pay a cent, I put in writing exactly what I'll ship.