Review of SEO Proposal’s Timeline Section

Like all great investments, SEO doesn’t happen overnight. It takes time to produce quality content, to build quality links, and to battle with competitors for the same keyword. 

Some clients think that as soon as they hop on to the SEO ride, they will immediately start ranking higher in Google. But in reality, it doesn’t work like that. It is you who need to educate them that SEO is an ongoing process that takes dedicated time and effort in order to get the desired results. 

And this can be achieved by setting clear goals with the help of a realistic timeline. In the previous post, we discussed what really goes into SEO proposal’s timeline section.

In this article, I will review the SEO proposal’s sample timeline section and check if it sets out the prospect’s goals and has a detailed overview of the outcomes. And along with that, I’m going to address the mistakes and the scope of improvements.

Poorly Defined Timeline and Deliverables

Imagine that you’re invited to the upcoming corporate event and the itinerary for the event looks something like this,

9 a.m- Attendees arrives

6 p.m- Conference sessions end

Would you consider going to that event? 

Uhh…probably not, right? And the reason is obvious. 

Well, I think the above example of the SEO timeline falls into the same trap. (Learn more about different mistakes proposal writers usually make with SEO proposal). A timeline section of an ideal SEO proposal needs to include far more than just higher-level information about time duration and deliverables. 

With the timeline section, you must provide your clients a clear view of how their SEO campaign will be progressing. Having a detailed breakdown of your timeline and deliverables will give your prospect more confidence that your agency can make their SEO campaign successful.

There’s No Month by Month Representation of the Work

It typically takes 4-6 months to see significant to moderate results and that time is measured from the very start of your campaign. Many times this frustrates your prospects since they don’t quite understand why such a simple strategy requires time to produce results. 

There’s only one way to unfold the mystery behind it- by representing the entire process “month by month.” And in the above sample, there’s no proper month by month representation of the different stages involved with an SEO campaign. 

Month by month representation of the process makes it easy for your prospect to understand why it takes a significant amount of time to achieve a favorable outcome. A month by month breakdown of the process will give them an overall estimation of their project.

Not Helping Clients Visualize What They Can Expect After 6 Months 

Your SEO timeline should assure the prospect that your team will continue to work with them even after their website starts seeing significant improvements in the number of visitors, leads, or engagements. 

The winning SEO strategies are those that continue to analyze historical data and fine-tune it. And with the help of your timeline section you have to let your prospect know that after hitting their desired goal, there’s one more thing that your agency will do….

You’ll Not Stop!!!

Because SEO after all is an ongoing practice, it’s a long term marketing tactic. This is why you must highlight that after month 6 and beyond you will once again perform a complete audit of everything that was done during the initial months of an SEO campaign to check the performance and to make the appropriate changes to improve this performance.

So, what do you think? What else is missing from the above review of the SEO proposal’s timeline section? Share your thoughts in the comment section below. 

Get your ready to use SEO proposal template along with an actionable timeline/deliverables section

Keep Reading

To read more about this topic, have a look at these:

• How to Write a Cover Letter for SEO Proposal?
• A Critical Review of SEO Proposal’s Cover Letter
• How to Craft an About Us Section for SEO Proposal?
• A Critical Review of SEO Proposal’s About Us Section
• How to Write a Team Section for SEO Proposal?
• A Critical Review of SEO Proposal’s Team Section
• How to Write Scope of Services Section for SEO Proposal?
• A Critical Review of SEO Proposal’s Scope of Services Section
• How to Write an Investment Section for SEO Proposal?
• A Critical Review of SEO Proposal’s Investment Section
• How to Write a Case Study Section for SEO Proposal?
• A Critical Review of SEO Proposal’s Case Study Section