Most of your next customers start with a search: in Google, in the map results and, more and more, in an AI answer. SEO is the steady work of showing up in all three.
Most small-business websites are invisible in search for the same few reasons. No page answers what buyers actually type, the Google Business Profile is half finished, reviews arrive by accident, and nobody is watching the numbers. None of that is fixed in a month, and none of it stays fixed without attention.
So I do SEO as an ongoing engagement, not a one-off audit. Each month I work on the few things most likely to move your rankings, publish or improve the pages that answer your customers' questions, and track where you stand every week, both in Google's results and in the answers ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google's own AI give.
Every article I write for a client is checked before it goes up: independent reviewers score it against the pages already ranking for the same question, and it only ships when it wins. It is the same process I use for this site’s own blog.
03What's included8 items
Every engagement includes everything on this list; the two levels differ in how much new content I write. Local SEO starts at $750 a month and covers the map results and the pages you already have. With new content and AI-search work it starts at $1,500 a month and adds two new articles a month, each checked against the pages it has to beat. A site I already host needs no setup; a site hosted elsewhere starts with a paid audit, so I know exactly what I'm working on.
From $750
A month for local SEO
From $1,500
A month with new content and AI-search work
6 months
Minimum to start, then month to month
Weekly
Rank and AI-answer tracking you can see
Keyword and competitor researchWhich searches bring buyers, who ranks for them now, and which ones a site your size can realistically win. Revisited every quarter as the numbers come in.
Google Business Profile, managedCategories, services, photos, posts and questions kept complete and current, because the map results are where most local searches end.
A steady stream of reviewsA simple request built into how you already work, like a text or an email after a job, and every review answered, good or bad.
Pages that answer real questionsService and location pages rewritten or added so each one targets what a buyer types, with the facts, prices and proof that make it worth ranking.
Technical SEOSpeed, indexing, structured data, redirects and broken links checked and fixed, so nothing on the site holds the rest of it back.
Ready for AI answersClear answers, structured data and an llms.txt file, so ChatGPT, Perplexity and Google’s AI features can find your business, understand it and cite it.
Citations and listingsYour name, address and phone number consistent across the directories that matter for your trade and your town.
Tracked weekly, explained monthlyRankings tracked every week in Ahrefs, mentions tracked across the major AI assistants, and a short note each month on what moved and what I am doing next.
04How the first six months runMonth 1 · Months 2–3 · Months 4–6
SEO compounds, so the early months build the base the later ones stand on. Here is what each stretch is for.
01 — Month 1
Measure, then fix the base
Rank and AI-answer tracking set up so there is a baseline to measure against, the Google Business Profile completed, technical problems fixed, and the searches worth winning chosen with you.
02 — Months 2–3
Pages, profile, reviews
Service and location pages rewritten or added, the review requests running, listings cleaned up, and the first new articles published where the plan includes them.
03 — Months 4–6
Compound and adjust
What is moving gets more of the same; what isn't gets rethought. By month six there are real numbers to judge the work on, and from there it runs month to month.
05Who it's forFor · Not for
Who it's forFour each way
This is for you if
Your customers search for what you sell, or for a business like yours near them
You can give results three to six months to build
You will answer a question or approve a page when I ask
You want to see the numbers, not just hear that things are going well
This isn't for you if
You need leads this month (paid ads are the faster route)
You want a one-time audit and a to-do list to work through yourself
You want guaranteed first-page rankings (nobody honest can promise them)
Your site is built elsewhere and I can't get access to change it
SEO is the one service I sell with a real minimum term. Search engines take weeks to notice a change and months to trust it, so work judged after thirty days is judged on noise. Six months is long enough to see what the work did; after that it runs month to month, and you can end it whenever you like.
If I already host and care for your site, the minimum is three months, because the groundwork is done. Either way, every page, article and listing I make is yours to keep, and the tracking data comes with you if you leave.
My core deliverable is the Client Acquisition System, which is a fixed-price project with a very affordable monthly retainer to maintain the systems, security, software updates, and functionality. If anything ever breaks or needs a tweak and the issue is on my end, you don't pay anything for it to be edited. If you need changes from month to month, anything that fits inside the 30 minutes included in your plan costs nothing extra, and time beyond that gets a discounted hourly rate.
However, many serious clients retain me post-launch for ongoing conversion rate optimization (CRO), SEO, and scaling. These retainers are completely optional and run month-to-month after a 3-month minimum commitment to test baseline performance and assess iterations needed for future success and continued growth.
Clients who opt for a growth retainer see the best results over time.
Q.02Who owns the code and assets?
You do. 100% of the intellectual property, code repositories, design files, and operational assets belong to you. For as long as I am maintaining the project post-launch, I host the website and manage the codebase on your behalf to ensure maximum security, performance, and uptime.
However, should you ever decide it's in your best interest to part ways, there are no hostage situations. I include a "Heaven Forbid It Break-Up Plan" directly in my contract. If you and I need to go separate ways, there are no hard feelings. I execute a seamless transfer of all assets and codebase control back to you, setting you up for success to manage things internally or with another vendor.
Q.03Who actually does the work?
Matchless is me, Jon. When a project needs a specialist — a photographer, a copy pass, a niche integration — I bring in a trusted contractor for that piece. You always work directly with me: the person designing, writing, and shipping your system.
Q.04What is the payment schedule?
I offer two payment structures designed to eliminate administrative friction and keep project timelines tight:
1. Paid in Full: 100% upfront payment, which includes a discount on the total project value.
2. 50/50 Split: A 50% deposit is required to commence work. The remaining 50% is automatically collected via a prior authorization agreement exactly 30 days after the project kickoff.
No work begins until the initial payment or authorization is established. In my experience, this structure ensures that both sides remain fully focused on execution and getting the project across the finish line.
09Related systemsOne engine, six parts
Care Plan
The Website Care Plan
A website is a machine with moving parts. The care plan is who keeps them moving after launch.
A great offer and an excellent funnel mean nothing if nobody reaches them. Paid traffic puts qualified buyers in front of yours now, not a year from now.
Your website shouldn't just be an information hub. It needs to be an active participant in your sales process, and it needs to catch traffic before it leaves.
