A useful SEO brief makes proposals easier to compare.

1. Describe the business and preferred customers

State what you sell, which services or products matter most and where you operate. Explain the kinds of customers or projects you want, along with any work outside your scope.

Include relevant practical details: a showroom, a service territory, delivery arrangements, a trade audience or a minimum project requirement that your business actually uses. These facts help a provider plan an appropriate search and inquiry journey.

2. Explain the website and recent changes

Provide the website URL, platform if known, and the people responsible for content and development. Mention recent migrations, redesigns, tracking changes or known technical issues.

List the analytics and search tools already available without including passwords. Explain which access can be granted for an agreed review and any security or approval requirements your organization has.

3. Define the outcome and the evidence available

Describe the business outcome you want to improve. If you have existing reports, state their date range and how inquiries or sales are recorded. Note known limitations, such as a form that was not tracked or a CRM that does not identify lead source.

You can include goals without treating them as guarantees. A provider should explain how the proposed work relates to those goals and what assumptions would be needed for any forecast.

4. Ask for a concrete scope

Request a description of research, technical review, content, implementation, local search and measurement work as applicable. Ask what is included, excluded and dependent on your team.

Require a clear distinction between recommendations and implementation. Ask how priorities will be selected, how business facts will be approved and how completed changes will be checked.

• Initial priorities and the evidence behind them.
• Deliverables and implementation owner for each workstream.
• Access, assets and approvals required from your business.
• Reporting cadence and measurement definitions.
• Fees, external costs, notice arrangements and handover.

5. Request relevant evidence and a sample explanation

Ask for a relevant case study with its market, reporting period and metric definitions. Request an explanation of the work rather than relying on a headline number. A provider can also describe how they would handle a problem similar to yours.

A sample report or roadmap can help you assess clarity, provided it does not expose another client’s confidential information. You are looking for a working method you can understand and evaluate.

6. Compare responses with the same checklist

Review each response against your stated goals and responsibilities. Record questions where scope or assumptions differ. A lower price may exclude implementation; a larger package may include work you do not currently need.

Use the editable download below as a starting point, not as a legal contract. Your final service agreement should reflect the work and terms actually agreed with the selected provider.