What a proposal has to do
By the time you send a proposal, the owner should already have seen the findings on a call. The proposal is the written version of that conversation. It has three jobs: prove you listened, make the scope concrete, and make the decision simple.
Keep it to three to five pages. Owners read proposals on their phone between jobs. Every page that does not help them decide makes the decision harder.
It has three jobs: prove you listened, make the scope concrete, and make the decision simple.
The eight parts
Use the same order every time. It saves you time and makes your proposals easy to compare with each other when you review which ones closed.
- 1. Goal: one or two sentences in the owner’s own words
- 2. Where you stand today: three to five findings from the audit, with screenshots
- 3. What we will do: the recurring tasks, each with a frequency
- 4. The first 30 days: what the client will see change
- 5. How we report: what the monthly report contains and when it arrives
- 6. What you need to give us: access and information
- 7. Investment: two or three options, setup fee, term
- 8. Next step: how to accept and what happens after
Sample wording: goal and findings
The examples below use an invented business, “Example Plumbing” in an example city, to show the tone. Replace every detail with what you found for your prospect.
Goal, example: “You told us you want more water heater and drain jobs from the north side of town, where most of your newer customers live, without increasing your ad spend.”
Findings, example: “1. Your Google profile appears in the top three map results for ‘plumber’ within about two miles of your shop, but not in the northern neighborhoods. 2. Your primary category is ‘Plumber’, but water heater installation is not listed as a service. 3. You have 38 reviews; the two competitors ranking above you have more, and theirs are more recent. 4. Nine reviews from the last year have no reply. 5. The profile has had no post since spring.”
Each finding should be checkable by the owner in a minute. Avoid scores without explanation and avoid jargon such as “NAP consistency” unless you explain it in the same sentence.
Each finding should be checkable by the owner in a minute.
Sample wording: scope, first month and reporting
Scope, example: “Every week we publish one post on your Google profile with a photo of recent work, and reply to every new review within two business days. Every month we check your categories, services and photos, and send review requests to every customer you mark as finished. We do not change anything on your website without your approval.”
First 30 days, example: “In the first two weeks we correct your categories and services, add water heater and drain services, reply to all open reviews, upload new photos and set up review requests. By the end of week four you receive your first report.”
Reporting, example: “On the first business day of each month you get a one-page email: work done, calls and direction requests from your profile, new reviews and rating, and a map showing where you appear for your three main services, compared with the month before.”
Sample wording: investment and terms
Offer two or three options so the owner chooses scope instead of negotiating price. Put the option you recommend in the middle and say why. The prices below are placeholders; set your own from your cost and the value of a job for this client.
Investment, example: “Option A, Profile and reviews: $X per month. Option B, recommended, Profile, reviews and local pages on your website: $Y per month. Option C, Option B plus a second service area: $Z per month. Each option has a one-time setup fee of $S for the first month’s cleanup. Month to month after a three-month minimum; cancel with thirty days’ notice.”
Ownership, example: “You remain the owner of your Google profile, website, domain and content. We are added as a manager and will remove our access when the agreement ends.”
In SynfinicProposals and invoicesSend a proposal, get it accepted online.See how it works →Sample wording: what we need and next step
What we need, example: “Please add us as a manager on your Google Business Profile and as a user in Search Console. We will send a short guide for both. We also need a user account on your website, ten to twenty recent photos of your work, and a list of the services you want more of.”
Next step, example: “To start, accept this proposal online and pay the setup invoice. We will book a forty-five-minute kickoff call within five business days, and you will see the first changes on your profile in week one.”
Keep the next step to one action. If the owner has to sign a contract, fill in a form, send an email and book a call, each step is a place where the deal can stall. Combine them wherever your tools allow.
Keep the next step to one action.
What to leave out
Google’s guidance for businesses hiring an SEO says no one can guarantee a #1 ranking, and Google states there is no way to pay for a better local ranking. A proposal that promises positions invites a dispute three months later. Promise the work, the reporting and the direction you will measure.
- Ranking guarantees, or a refund tied to a position
- Any plan to add keywords to the business name or to create extra profiles
- Review tactics that filter unhappy customers or offer rewards for reviews
- Long lists of technical terms the owner cannot check
- Generic case studies from other industries or invented results
Send it and follow up
Send the proposal within a day of the audit call while the conversation is fresh, and book the follow-up call before you hang up. A proposal the owner can accept online, with the setup invoice following automatically, removes a step where deals stall.
If you have not heard back in three business days, follow up with one new piece of information, such as a competitor’s new reviews or a change in the map results, rather than “just checking in”. Track every proposal in your pipeline with its sent date and outcome so you can see which parts of your template close and which do not.
Send the proposal within a day of the audit call while the conversation is fresh, and book the follow-up call before you hang up.
Questions
How long should a local SEO proposal be?
Three to five pages is enough for most local businesses. Put the findings and the price where they can be found in seconds.
Should I include prices in a local SEO proposal?
Yes. Two or three options with clear prices let the owner decide without another call. Hiding the price usually delays the decision.
Can I promise results in a proposal?
Promise the work, the reporting and what you will measure. Google says no one can guarantee a top ranking, so a guaranteed position is a promise you cannot control.
What is the difference between an audit and a proposal?
The audit shows what is wrong today. The proposal says what you will do about it, how often, for how much and under which terms.
Sources: Google Search Central: Do you need an SEO?, Google: How to improve your local ranking, Google: Guidelines for representing your business, Google Maps: Prohibited and restricted content.