Pricing
What this costs, honestly.
We do not publish a price list, and we would rather explain that than pretend a number on a page could be accurate for your business.
Pricing & the performance trial
Why there is no price list
Because any number we published would be either meaningless or dishonest. A restaurant filling midweek tables and a roofing company chasing $20,000 projects need different systems, different budgets, and different amounts of our time. Agencies that post tidy tiers usually make them fit by putting everybody into the same template regardless of what the business needed.
What we can tell you is exactly how the money works, which is the part most agencies are vague about.
How the money actually works
- Ad spend is always separate, and always yoursIt goes from your own account directly to the platform. You own the ad account, you see every dollar, and we never take a hidden cut of spend.
- Build work is usually one-offA website, a CRM implementation, an automation setup. Priced as a project, because that is what it is.
- Ongoing management is monthlyCampaign management, optimization, and looking after the systems. Scoped to what you actually need, which is often fewer systems than you assumed.
- No six-month lock-insIf it is not working, you should be able to leave. Long contracts mostly protect agencies from the consequences of not producing.
- You keep everythingAd creative, CRM data, contacts, domain, website. If we part ways you are not starting from zero, and there is no rebuild fee to escape.
Your first campaign is a performance trial
We do not ask for trust, we ask for one campaign. We build and run your first campaign as a trial: market research, ad writing, creative, targeting, and management, start to finish. You watch the leads arrive with full visibility into every number. If it brings what we promised, we talk about working together. If it does not, we turn the campaigns off, you keep the creative, and we never bother you again.
The whole setup takes under an hour of your time. We are a new agency and we know that means our promises are worth less than a demonstration, so we would rather carry the risk than ask you to.
Rough orientation on budgets
For context rather than as a quote: local agency fees generally run between $500 and $5,000 per month plus ad spend, and a sensible total marketing budget is often 5 to 15% of revenue depending on whether you are holding steady or growing. Where you sit inside that depends on your ticket size and how many systems you need.
When we will tell you not to hire us
- You cannot handle more customers right now. More leads would make you worse at serving the ones you have.
- You have not claimed your Google Business Profile. Do that free thing first — we will show you how on the call.
- Your ticket size genuinely cannot support paid acquisition. We would rather say so than collect a management fee.
- Nobody at your end will answer the phone. No system fixes that, and we would just be selling you leads to lose.
Questions people actually ask
Do you require a contract?
No long lock-in. We work month to month on management once the trial is done, because if the work is producing you will stay, and if it is not you should be able to leave.
Is the ad budget included in your fee?
No, and be wary of anybody who bundles it opaquely. Ad spend goes from your own account straight to the platform, so you can see every dollar and you keep the account if we part ways.
What does the free first campaign cost me?
Our time is free, and you cover the ad spend, which goes to the platform rather than to us. That is the deal: we carry the risk on the work, you fund the media.
How quickly can we start?
Usually within days of the call. The main dependency is getting access to your accounts and the details only you know, like your real service area and pricing.
Related reading
What do agencies cost?
Market context and what to refuse.
Agency or DIY?
An honest comparison.
The eight systems
What you might be buying.
Find out what your market is actually worth.
A free 15-minute call. We look at your market together and tell you exactly what we would do, whether or not you hire us. No pressure, no pitch.
Book a Free Strategy CallOr reach Kai directly: (272) 394-5885 · kai@sallesmedia.com