{"id":5576,"date":"2022-08-16T11:03:23","date_gmt":"2022-08-16T11:03:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/16\/how-to-plan-and-budget-for-enterprise-seo\/"},"modified":"2022-08-16T11:03:23","modified_gmt":"2022-08-16T11:03:23","slug":"how-to-plan-and-budget-for-enterprise-seo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/16\/how-to-plan-and-budget-for-enterprise-seo\/","title":{"rendered":"How to plan and budget for enterprise SEO"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>In an ideal enterprise world, your CMO would plan a budget for <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/library\/channel\/seo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">SEO<\/a>, leaving you to enjoy building your strategy without endlessly trying to prove ROI for each line item.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Like I said, ideal. But not exactly realistic.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Because CMOs are often hyperfocused on brand strategy or activation. Often, SEO is an entirely new marketing channel for enterprise companies. So, SEO professionals are left to their own devices.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Anyone who\u2019s ever had to plan an enterprise <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/percentage-budget-seo-387020\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">SEO budget<\/a> knows that making this business use case can feel like you\u2019re forced to eat grandma\u2019s Jell-O salad. It\u2019s a painful experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><strong>So, how do you create an SEO budget for an enterprise company?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>As an <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/enterprise-seo-director-first-90-days-386743\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">enterprise SEO Director<\/a> for multiple companies, I\u2019ve had the luxury of spending countless hours in spreadsheets and meetings to help the C-suite understand why SEO deserves a budget and how SEO will impact the bottom line.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Below is my step-by-step process for building an SEO budget.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_81 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-grey ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<div class=\"ez-toc-title-container\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<span class=\"ez-toc-title-toggle\"><a href=\"#\" class=\"ez-toc-pull-right ez-toc-btn ez-toc-btn-xs ez-toc-btn-default ez-toc-toggle\" aria-label=\"Toggle Table of Content\"><span class=\"ez-toc-js-icon-con\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #999;color:#999\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/span><\/div>\n<nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/16\/how-to-plan-and-budget-for-enterprise-seo\/#1_Understand_the_business_model\" >1. Understand the business model<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-2\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/16\/how-to-plan-and-budget-for-enterprise-seo\/#2_Correlate_SEO_to_revenue\" >2. Correlate SEO to revenue<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-3\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/16\/how-to-plan-and-budget-for-enterprise-seo\/#3_Forecast_SEO_traffic\" >3. Forecast SEO traffic<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-4\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/16\/how-to-plan-and-budget-for-enterprise-seo\/#Before_you_present_your_enterprise_SEO_budget_to_your_executives\" >Before you present your enterprise SEO budget to your executives<\/a><ul class='ez-toc-list-level-3' ><li class='ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-5\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/16\/how-to-plan-and-budget-for-enterprise-seo\/#Get_eyes_on_the_overall_marketing_budget\" >Get eyes on the overall marketing budget<\/a><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-3'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-6\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/16\/how-to-plan-and-budget-for-enterprise-seo\/#Compare_your_SEO_budget_to_your_PPC_budget\" >Compare your SEO budget to your PPC budget<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/li><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-2'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-7\" href=\"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/2022\/08\/16\/how-to-plan-and-budget-for-enterprise-seo\/#Embrace_the_suck_of_enterprise_SEO_budgets\" >Embrace the suck of enterprise SEO budgets<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"1_Understand_the_business_model\"><\/span>1. Understand the business model<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Why is this the first step to developing an SEO budget for an enterprise company?<\/p>\n<p>The business model tells you what projects get money and don\u2019t. Business models move your organization in a specific direction.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>By diving deep to grasp your company\u2019s business model, you can strategically build your SEO budget to align with what the business wants to do.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>If you want to operate at an executive level in an enterprise company, you have to get below the surface. You can do this by finding the answers to these questions:\u00a0<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>How do customers behave? How do they find us? What do they click on?<\/li>\n<li>What percentage of revenue comes from each business unit?\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>What revenue metrics are we reporting on (LTV, CAC, margin, etc.)?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The business model is the foundation you will <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/1-million-urls-how-to-pivot-your-seo-strategy-when-you-reach-enterprise-level-385606\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">build your SEO strategy<\/a> on. Each different business model will dictate what your SEO tactics are.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Let\u2019s walk through some examples.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rover.com\/atlanta--ga--dog-walking\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Rover\u2019s business model<\/a> is built around lead generation. It\u2019s got a beautiful map with dog walkers listed. Therefore, this page needs to be tailored to attract users to input their information.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"401\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2022\/08\/1-rover-business-model-seo-budget-800x401.png\" alt=\"Rover.com landing page - Dog Walking in Atlanta\" class=\"wp-image-387118\" title=\"| Craig Hordlow\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.yelp.com\/search?find_desc=Dog+Walkers&amp;find_loc=Atlanta%2C+GA%2C+USA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Yelp\u2019s business model<\/a> is centered around sponsored listings and advertising dollars. The pages need to be structured to support the advertiser\u2019s spend.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"386\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2022\/08\/2-yelp-business-model-seo-budget-800x386.png\" alt=\"Yelp.com landing page - Best Dog Walkers in Atlanta, Georgia\" class=\"wp-image-387119\" title=\"| Craig Hordlow\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"2_Correlate_SEO_to_revenue\"><\/span>2. Correlate SEO to revenue<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>When you get to an enterprise company as an SEO Director or above, you cannot speak to the C-suite executive team without mentioning revenue.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>\u200b\u200bLet\u2019s pretend you\u2019re presenting to a CEO. The CEO wants to see \u201cI\u2019d like to propose we do X, which will achieve $ZZZ and cost $Y.\u201d How would you fill in the blank?<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s how <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/mckinley28\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Matt McKinley<\/a>, SEO Manager for Revolt Media &amp; TV, would fill in the blank.\u00a0<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">\n<p>\u201cX would represent one of the biggest projects from the SEO roadmap that\u2019s needed to drive traffic\/revenue. ZZZ is measured by the potential increase in traffic x average order value. Y would be the cost of resources needed for the project such as tools, other team\u2019s time (developers, designers, editorial, etc.), additional SEO headcount, etc.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>If you don\u2019t mention revenue when pitching to the executive team, you\u2019ll likely be more embarrassed than Adidas was for the Boston Marathon email debacle.\u00a0<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed aligncenter is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Probably could&#8217;ve come up with a better subject line, <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/adidas?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">@adidas<\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/EHk0IFYNBA\">pic.twitter.com\/EHk0IFYNBA<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Dylan Park-Pettiford (@dyllyp) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/dyllyp\/status\/854376580029628416?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">April 18, 2017<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>Tough to recover from that, right?\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>SEO professionals know how difficult it is to <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/seo-costs-impact-roi-382184\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">tie revenue to SEO<\/a>, especially if your analytics is broken.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>I often get asked, \u201cIf we improve our page speed score by 10 points, how will that impact revenue?\u201d Connecting a page speed to a revenue increase is a long-fetched idea. But we have to back into it somehow.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Based on the below, you can say the number of good mobile URLs that are indexed impacts our organic traffic, therefore impacting new customers and revenue.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"729\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2022\/08\/4-profitability-tree-seo-revenue-729x600.png\" alt=\"Profitability tree - SEO revenue\" class=\"wp-image-387120\" title=\"| Craig Hordlow\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Now, you can make a statement like:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">\n<p>\u201cEach indexed Good Mobile URL is worth $10. If we improve the number of Good Mobile URLs by 50%, we can estimate a $5 million additional value.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Do you smell that? It smells like BS. <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/s.w.org\/images\/core\/emoji\/13.1.0\/72x72\/1f4a9.png\" alt=\"\ud83d\udca9\" class=\"wp-smiley\" title=\"| Craig Hordlow\">That\u2019s because it is.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Yet, this is how executives at enterprise companies operate. With these back-of-the-envelope calculations, you can frame the potential value of a project more strategically.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Remember, it doesn\u2019t have to be 100% accurate. Executives want to see that you\u2019re looking beyond just the traffic.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>For example, let\u2019s say you want to create a series of buying guides, but you need to expand the resources. <\/p>\n<p>To sell this to the executive team, you would want to lead with something like, \u201cWe estimate that our guides are worth $20,000 in incremental revenue.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Now to get this information to work up to the $20,000, you\u2019ll want to look at historical data. Show a before\/after scenario of an uptick in revenue after publishing a guide.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>You can look at categories. Using the example above, you could pull data from the Xbox category sales after launching the buying guide.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"569\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2022\/08\/5-buying-guide-seo-budget-569x600.png\" alt=\"Xbox buying guide example from Best Buy\" class=\"wp-image-387121\" title=\"| Craig Hordlow\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Let\u2019s walk through another example. I was working on a budget request for additional writers for a real estate company.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Here is how I turned hypotheticals into ROI:\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-container-1 wp-block-group\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-group__inner-container\">\n<p><em>We have the potential to be generating $2,910,000 from the blog each month with an ROI of 93%. This is based on the assumptions provided below.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><em>160 hours per month for [LIST TEAM MEMBERS] to manage the blog (80 hours per person per month)\u00a0<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>$23,720 per month in labor costs to manage the blog\u00a0<\/em>\n<ol>\n<li><em>$18,720 per month for [LIST TEAM MEMBERS] to manage the blog ($117 per hour)<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>$5,000 per month for freelance writers (this is our current budget for the 20 blogs we are producing today)<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>$5,000 additional cost per month for new freelance writers)\u00a0<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<\/li>\n<li><em>$500 per month in technology costs (hosting, maintenance plugins, Semrush, etc.). This is a guesstimate.\u00a0<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><em>It costs us $29,220 per month to manage the blog.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Let\u2019s assume that after visiting the blog, 30 people per month sign up.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>If we sell a house for $150,000 and earn a net commission of 2.2%, that transaction is worth $3,300. However, if we complete more transactions between listings, sales, etc., that\u2019s an additional $18,950 in revenue. If the family is well connected and can send us two $3,300 transactions per year for 15 years, that\u2019s another $99,000 in revenue. In other words, that $3,300 transaction is the bridge to a total client lifetime value of $121,250.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>But, we know we have company blog expenses of $29,220 per month. The $29,220 is roughly 24% of the $121,250 comes out for expenses. So that brings us to $92,030.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>So let\u2019s assume our customer lifetime value for the blog is $92,030.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>We would be generating $2,760,900 from the blog each month (30 sign ups from the blog per month x $92,030).<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Our monthly ROI of the blogging program is 93%. ($2,760,900 from monthly revenue \u2013 $29,220 investment = $2,731,680 divided by $29,220 investment = 93%).\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/docs.google.com\/document\/d\/1qVdfqXsmEW7W1ojazvm_8gqNhdrM-O2EB72A1cUjfqE\/edit?usp=sharing\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Here is a link to my example document<\/a> to give you something to work with.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Again, it doesn\u2019t have to be accurate. These are simply assumptions based on the data.\u00a0<\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-background has-cyan-bluish-gray-background-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">\n<p><!-- START INLINE FORM --><\/p>\n<div class=\"nl-inline-form border py-2 px-1 my-2\">\n<div class=\"row align-items-center\">\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-3 col-xl-4 pe-md-0 pb-2 pb-lg-0\">\n<p class=\"inline-form-text text-center mb-0\">Get the daily newsletter search marketers rely on.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-7 col-xl-6  pe-lg-0\">\n<div class=\"form-nl-inline\">\n<div class=\"row g-0\">\n<div class=\"form-group col-12 col-lg-8 mb-0\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-4 col-xl-4 mb-0\">\n<div class=\"d-none\">\n<p>Processing&#8230;Please wait.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<button class=\"btn btn-dark inlineButton w-100 rounded-0 font-weight-bold\" type=\"submit\" name=\"submit_button\">SUBSCRIBE<\/button>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div class=\"col-12 col-lg-2 col-xl-2 ps-1\">\n<p class=\"text-center mb-0\"><a class=\"nl-terms\" href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/termsofuse\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">See terms.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><!-- END INLINE FORM --><\/p>\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-text-color has-background has-cyan-bluish-gray-background-color has-cyan-bluish-gray-color\">\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"3_Forecast_SEO_traffic\"><\/span>3. Forecast SEO traffic<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>\u201cHey, we need a forecast for SEO in 2023.\u201d This is a common ask I get from CEOs, CFOs, CMOs, etc.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Before you can <a href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/forecasting-web-traffic-google-analytics-facebook-prophet-386124\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">forecast traffic<\/a>, you need to understand the business model.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>If you have a solid understanding of the business model, you can segment your forecasting based on the business structure instead of page type.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>For example, I worked on a project from Brother USA. Originally, I started to prioritize by page type. <\/p>\n<p>But once I understood the business model and the different business units, I was able to deliver a better forecast.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"766\" height=\"600\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2022\/08\/6-business-model-seo-budget-766x600.png\" alt=\"Brother USA - Business model vs. page types\" class=\"wp-image-387122\" title=\"| Craig Hordlow\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Once you know what areas of the website you are forecasting for, you can begin to build your SEO budget spreadsheet.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>I connected with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/in\/chicagoseopro\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Jori Ford<\/a>, CMO at FoodBoss, to better understand how to forecast SEO. Ford shared:<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">\n<p>\u201cI outline existing traffic. Then, determine a projected lift based on SEO activities. After, I align that lift to the existing conversion metrics to show projected conversions. Next, I apply the overall value of those conversions as it relates to the business to do a rough range of potential financial gain whether that be revenue or just \u201cvalue\u201d vs. \u201ccost.\u201d\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>So you can see it\u2019s all based on hypothetical scenarios.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s why I recommend thinking about four different scenarios to give your executive a decision based on impact.\u00a0<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Scenario 1: Baseline (if we do nothing)\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>Scenario 2: Conservative<\/li>\n<li>Scenario 3: Average<\/li>\n<li>Scenario 4: Optimistic\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>For example, if Best Buy wants to expand its buying guides, you can break down the investment into something like this.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"397\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2022\/08\/7-enterprise-seo-budget-800x397.png\" alt=\"Sample spreadsheet - Best Buy buying guideo SEO investment breakdown\" class=\"wp-image-387123\" title=\"| Craig Hordlow\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>If you\u2019re interested in learning more about financial models, I recommend Tom Critchlow\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/seomba.com\/executive-presence\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">SEO MBA course<\/a>. Also, Tom Capper\u2019s article on <a href=\"https:\/\/moz.com\/blog\/seo-forecasting-in-google-sheets\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">SEO Forecasting in Google Sheets<\/a> is amazing.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>On the flip side, you can go a different route if you\u2019re an agency. I connected with <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/willcritchlow\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Will Critchlow<\/a>, CEO at Searchpilot, and he shared insight into how his agency goes about this for enterprise companies.\u00a0<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote\">\n<p>\u201cWe start with the trend from Google of on-site SEO being more unpredictable and less rules-driven than ever before, and the growth of their use of AI\/ML continuing that trend. That, combined with the biggest problems large organizations face with SEO is in getting it done and proving the results lets us make the case that their on-site strategy should be built around SEO testing. From there, we build a budget case based on an ROI model that assumes a certain testing cadence, percentage of positive tests, and typical uplifts.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>SEO testing is underrated in enterprise companies. If you have the flexibility to A\/B test your SEO tactics, you can make a better case for SEO ROI.<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Before_you_present_your_enterprise_SEO_budget_to_your_executives\"><\/span>Before you present your enterprise SEO budget to your executives<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Get_eyes_on_the_overall_marketing_budget\"><\/span>Get eyes on the overall marketing budget<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>The golden rule of company budgets has always been that 10% of your company revenue goes toward your marketing budget.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Then, that 10% is split between online and offline channels.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In 2022, CMOs spend 56% of total marketing budget on online channels, according to Gartner\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/emtemp.gcom.cloud\/ngw\/globalassets\/en\/marketing\/documents\/marketing_budgets_2022_research.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2022 Marketing Budget report<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>That means you\u2019re fighting for a teeny tiny slice of the pie.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Here\u2019s a hypothetical range of enterprise SEO companies and how much they should spend on online channels.\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"328\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2022\/08\/8-marketing-budget-seo-budget-800x328.png\" alt=\"Marketing budget estimates for enterprise SEO\" class=\"wp-image-387124\" title=\"| Craig Hordlow\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Before pitching your budget, you need to have eyes on the marketing budget before you ask for something above the overall marketing budget.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h3><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Compare_your_SEO_budget_to_your_PPC_budget\"><\/span>Compare your SEO budget to your PPC budget<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h3>\n<p>Again, hypothetically, you have 56% of the overall marketing budget going to online channels. Now you\u2019re competing against other online channels for budget.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>In the same Gartner report, CMOs shared how the online channel marketing budget gets allocated:\u00a0<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>10.1% to social advertising<\/li>\n<li>9.8% to search advertising<\/li>\n<li>9.3% to digital display advertising\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>8.8% to digital video advertising<\/li>\n<li>8.1% to partners<\/li>\n<li>8.1% to digital audio advertising<\/li>\n<li>8.5% to SEO\u00a0<\/li>\n<li>7.8% to content and messaging<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>It\u2019s shocking. Out of the 56% of the overall marketing budget for online channels, CMOs are allocating 8.5% to SEO.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Here is what that could look like for you:\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"302\" src=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/wp-content\/seloads\/2022\/08\/9-enterprise-seo-budget-800x302.png\" alt=\"Online marketing budget allocation estimates\" class=\"wp-image-387125\" title=\"| Craig Hordlow\"><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p>Then, with your SEO budget, you need to determine what percentage goes to technical, content and link building.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Having this deep understanding of the marketing budget gives you a rough idea of the budget you could aim for.\u00a0<\/p>\n<h2><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"Embrace_the_suck_of_enterprise_SEO_budgets\"><\/span>Embrace the suck of enterprise SEO budgets<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h2>\n<p>Proving ROI in SEO may seem like a pointless, unuseful, tedious task made up of lies.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>But as SEO professionals, we must embrace the suck.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Sure, it might seem like B.S. to you. But to your CMO or CEO, it might sound the alarm that you\u2019ve been screaming. By speaking the business language, you\u2019re speaking the language of your executives.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The truth is, SEO professionals need to stop talking about traffic and pageviews and start talking about revenue. <\/p>\n<p>Budget spreadsheets aren\u2019t sexy. But assumptions are free. <\/p>\n<p>Remember, it\u2019s not about an accurate scientific method. It\u2019s about giving you something to connect with the C-suite.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>I outline existing traffic, projected lift based on activities, and align that lift to the existing conversion metrics to show projected conversions. I then apply the overall value of those conversions as it relates to the business to do a rough range of potential financial gain, whether that be revenue or just \u201cvalue\u201d vs. \u201ccost.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019d like to propose we increase monthly active users by 20%, which will achieve $ZZZ based on the LTV or first-time purchase value of a user and will cost us $Y to get there over the next ABC time frame.<\/p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/enterprise-seo-budget-plan-387117\" target=\"_blank\">How to plan and budget for enterprise SEO<\/a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/searchengineland.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">Search Engine Land<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>In an ideal enterprise world, your CMO would plan a budget for SEO, leaving you to enjoy building your strategy without endlessly trying to prove ROI for each line item.\u00a0 Like I said, ideal. But not exactly realistic.\u00a0 Because CMOs are often hyperfocused on brand strategy or activation. Often, SEO is an entirely new marketing channel for enterprise companies. So, SEO professionals are left to their own devices.\u00a0 Anyone who\u2019s ever had to plan an enterprise SEO budget knows that making this business use case can [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"h5ap_radio_sources":[],"cybocfi_hide_featured_image":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5576","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-best-seo-blogs"],"featured_image_src":null,"featured_image_src_square":null,"author_info":{"display_name":false,"author_link":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/author\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5576","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5576"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5576\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5576"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5576"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/craighordlow.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5576"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}