Digital marketing prices: how much does each channel cost, and how do you read a proposal?

Factors determining the price of each channel

Each channel’s fee is determined by the amount of work to be done there; the same starting fee may mean different scopes for two businesses. The following topics are the main determinants when discussing digital marketing service prices; details appear on each channel’s own pricing page.

SEO

SEO fees are determined by page maintenance increasing as the website grows, competitor density in targeted searches, the number of articles and pages produced monthly, and technical repair needs. A business serving one district and a store selling nationwide may start from the same initial fee, but their workloads differ. What is included and excluded is explained item by item on the SEO prices page.

Google Ads management

In Google Ads management, the fee depends more on campaign structure complexity than the size of ad spend. These factors affect the proposal most:

• Number of campaigns and ad groups, and number of targeted regions and languages
• Whether conversion measurement must be installed from scratch or existing measurement repaired
• Whether shopping campaigns requiring a product feed are included in scope
• Frequency of search term and negative keyword checks

The proposal should explicitly state whether the fee model is a fixed monthly amount or a percentage of spend. How budgets are calculated and what affects click costs are covered on the Google Ads prices page.

Meta and Instagram ad management

For Meta, the proposal is prepared after reviewing campaign numbers, whether images and videos are ready, pixel and Conversions API setup, the targeted result such as messages or forms, and reporting frequency. There is no fixed figure for this service; a firm proposal is provided after scope review. How the auction forms costs and the invoice lines are explained in the Instagram ad prices guide.

Social media management

In social media management, the number of platforms, monthly posts, who produces Reels and images, and whether comment and message monitoring are included affect the price. Starting at 9,000 TL per month, this service covers content production and account management; neither ad campaign setup nor the advertising budget is included. Item details appear on the social media management prices page.

Consulting

Consulting provides decision support rather than implementation: reviewing existing accounts, channel priorities and a measurement plan. The fee for digital marketing, SEO or Google Ads consulting is provided as a firm proposal once account numbers and meeting frequency are clear; the first initial assessment is free.

What should you check when comparing digital marketing proposals?

When comparing digital marketing prices, proposals are compared according to whether they cover the same work rather than the lowest figure; a lower-priced proposal often includes less work. Five items reveal the real difference:

1. Scope: The monthly content volume, campaign count or post count should be written instead of a general expression such as “SEO work.”
2. Reporting: Report frequency and whether it includes business results such as forms, calls and sales alongside impressions and likes should be clarified.
3. Account ownership: Whether advertising, analytics and social media accounts will be opened in the business’s name and how access will transfer at separation should be written.
4. Contract duration: The minimum period, termination notice and consequences of leaving before the period ends should be clear.
5. Measurement setup: Whether conversion tags and GA4 key events are included and will be tested at delivery should be stated.

Why is account ownership as important as the price?

Who retains the account determines whether accumulated data is preserved when the provider changes. According to Google’s access levels page, authority to add users, change access levels and unlink a connected manager account belongs to Admin access. When the account is opened in the business’s name and this authority remains there, campaign history and conversion data do not change hands. On the same page, Google also states that tag access can be lost in single-administrator accounts and a second administrator can prevent this interruption.

Where does measurement setup belong in the proposal?

Without measurement, no proposal can show whether a channel brings business. According to the steps for marking key events in the Google Analytics Help Center, purchase events count as key events by default; actions such as form submissions or phone clicks must first be defined as events and then marked. Who will make these definitions should appear separately in the proposal.

Agency, freelance specialist and in-house team: how do cost structures differ?

All three models pay for labor; the difference appears in how that labor is invoiced, how many people share it and the fixed burden the business assumes. Digital marketing agency prices often carry the cost of several specialists and project management, while an in-house team also leaves expenses beyond salary with the business.

Whatever the model, opening accounts in the business’s name and reporting business results remain consistent requirements. How channels match objectives is explained on the digital marketing page.

In what order should channels be launched when the budget is limited?

When budgets are tight, the channel capturing existing demand is launched first, and demand-creating channels are added as data and budget accumulate. If the product or service is searched by name, search ads and SEO answer this demand; if nobody is searching, visual channels that generate interest move ahead.

Because digital marketing prices operate separately per channel, dividing a small budget across four channels at once keeps every channel in a testing phase and makes it impossible to identify what works. Starting with one channel and moving to a second after measurement settles also keeps the total monthly burden under control. The criteria used to prioritize channels are covered in detail on the digital marketing consulting page.

What risks come with a cheap digital marketing proposal?

A low-priced proposal without written scope leaves out part of the work or shifts the cost into an invisible item. Common risks include:

• An account opened in the provider’s name: Campaign history and conversion data do not remain with the business when the engagement ends.
• Management without measurement: In a campaign run without tag setup, reports cannot go beyond click counts, and the number of inquiries is unknown.
• Template content: Similar page texts are used in SEO, and images from ready-made libraries are used on social media.
• A single-amount invoice: When ad spend and the service fee are combined, the actual amount of advertising is invisible.
• Promises of results: Promises of “first place” or a specific sales count are unrealistic, because rankings and advertising costs form under the platform’s conditions at that moment.

If even one of these items appears in a proposal while digital marketing prices are kept low, the difference returns as wasted budget in later months.

Common mistakes when planning a marketing budget

Most planning mistakes arise from comparing channel prices without comparing their purposes. Common mistakes and appropriate approaches:

• Not separating the total into items: Service fees, advertising budgets and one-time setup are kept on separate lines in the cash plan.
• Assuming the monthly fee also covers ads: Ad spending is always paid separately to the platform.
• Launching ads before the website is ready: Clicks arriving on slow pages or pages with broken forms are wasted; fix the page first.
• Making a definite judgment in the first month: The first weeks of advertising are tests, while SEO’s effects accumulate over time.
• Changing channels every month: Switching at short intervals leaves no channel with comparable data.

How is a proposal prepared at Onur Freelance?

Digital marketing prices are written channel by channel in the proposal according to needs found in the initial assessment and shared the same day; no figure is provided for a channel with unclear scope. The process follows these steps:

1. Sharing the need: The website address, service area, product or service sold and existing accounts are shared through WhatsApp or phone.
2. Free initial assessment: The website, advertising and analytics accounts are reviewed with read-only access.
3. Channel recommendation: Which channel should launch now and which later is written with the reasoning.
4. Channel-based proposal: Each channel’s monthly fee and scope appear on a separate line; the recommended ad budget is separately stated as an amount payable to the platform.
5. Setup: Accounts are opened in the business’s name or access is granted to existing accounts, and measurement is tested.
6. Regular reporting: Results are reported through actions bringing business, and the next budget decision is made using that data.

Onur Freelance works independently; it has no official affiliation with Google or Meta and is not a support channel for those platforms. It is based in Gülsuyu, Maltepe, Istanbul; work with Istanbul businesses takes place through meetings or video calls, and work with businesses outside Istanbul and abroad is remote. Messages are answered between 09.00 and 21.00.