Flexible SEO Plans for UK Tradespeople: The Two Options We Offer

Slingshot Marketing offers flexible SEO plans for tradespeople in the UK. You choose between a standard monthly retainer with a fixed 12-month term, or a pay-per-lead structure where, after the build phase, you only pay when qualified enquiries land. Both include a brand new website built from scratch, written guarantees, and direct WhatsApp access to the founders. Most UK SEO agencies offer one fixed retainer and that's it. We built two because trades businesses don't all have the same appetite for risk, predictability, or upfront commitment.

What "flexible" actually means for a trades business

Flexibility means choosing the payment structure that matches how you want to run your cashflow and how much risk you're willing to carry. Some directors want a predictable monthly bill and full ownership of the website at the end. Others would rather pay nothing until leads start landing. We let you pick which suits you.

It doesn't mean haggling on price. It doesn't mean a watered-down version of the work. Both plans get the same delivery from the same two people. The difference is purely in how you pay and what happens if results take longer than expected.

Plan 1: Standard monthly retainer

The retainer is what most SEO agencies sell, but ours comes with three things they don't normally include:

• A brand new website built from scratch on Wix Studio

• Full ownership of that website transferred to you at the end of the 12-month term

• Three written guarantees covering foundation work, your first qualified enquiry, and a 100% return on your fees within 12 months

The term is 12 months minimum, with monthly invoicing.

This plan suits directors who:

• Want a fixed, predictable monthly cost

• Are confident their business can absorb the lead volume we generate

• Want to own the website outright when the year is up

• Are choosing SEO as a long-term marketing channel rather than a short-term experiment

• Have been around the block enough to know that proper marketing takes consistent investment

Plan 2: Pay-per-lead

Pay-per-lead is structured in two phases.

For the first three months, the price is the same monthly fee as the retainer. This covers the build phase: the new website, technical setup, Google Business Profile, directory listings, and the initial backlink campaign. None of this generates leads on day one, so it has to be paid for properly upfront.

From month four onwards, you pay only when a qualified lead lands. No monthly fee. No fixed term. You can leave with 30 days' notice from either side.

A "qualified lead" has a strict definition we agree at signup:

• Comes through the website form or the tracked phone number

• Includes a name and a contact method (phone or email)

• Asks for a service you actually offer, in an area you actually work

• Isn't a competitor, recruiter, supplier, duplicate, or test enquiry

The per-lead price is locked at signup based on your average job value, gross margin, and close rate. We calculate it so you keep a healthy multiple of what you pay us for every lead that turns into a job. The formula is open. Come on a call and we'll walk through it.

The trade-off is that we retain the website and the domain. That's how we can afford to wait for results before invoicing you. If you leave, the website stays with us. Our clients are fine with this because the site has no value until the work catches up, and by the time it does, there's usually no reason to walk away.

This plan suits directors who:

• Are sceptical or have been burned by an agency before

• Want results-based pricing

• Operate in a higher-ticket trade where one lead is worth several hundred pounds (think extensions, glass structures, kitchen and bathroom fitting, landscape design)

• Aren't sure how many leads their area can produce and don't want to commit before finding out

• Would rather we carry the revenue risk

Pay-per-lead doesn't work for every trade. Electricians doing £300 EICRs, for example, can't sustain the per-lead maths because the close rate and margin don't leave enough for both parties. We'll tell you straight on the call which plan fits your business.

What's the same on both plans

Whichever plan you pick, the underlying work is identical:

• Brand new website built on Wix Studio

• Local keyword research and on-page optimisation

• Google Business Profile setup and ongoing management

• Listings in 50+ UK directories with consistent business details

• Monthly blog content targeting low-difficulty local searches

• Monthly link building from genuine third-party sites

• Plain English monthly reports

• A WhatsApp group containing both founders, with replies in working hours

You also get the same two guarantees on both plans:

The 60-day foundation guarantee. Within 60 days, your website is live and indexed, your top three services are optimised, your Google Business Profile is in the local top five for at least three search terms, and you're listed in 50+ UK directories. Miss any of that, and we work for free until it's done plus refund your most recent fee.

The 120-day first enquiry guarantee. Your first qualified enquiry lands within 120 days of the site going live, or you don't pay any further fees until it does.

The third guarantee, a 100% ROI within 12 months, applies only to the retainer plan. There's no fixed fee on pay-per-lead to calculate a return against, so it doesn't make sense to include it there.

When each plan makes sense

A simple way to decide:

• Average job over £6,000 and you'd rather pay per result: pay-per-lead is probably right

• Average job under £6,000: the maths on pay-per-lead doesn't work, so retainer is the only option

• Want to own the website outright at the end of the year: retainer

• Would rather offload the risk and let us hold the asset: pay-per-lead

• Been burned by an agency before and want to see results before paying: pay-per-lead

• Confident in the volume and want a predictable cost: retainer

We don't push you toward whichever plan pays us more. The whole point of running two structures is that the right plan for your business is also the one most likely to keep you with us long-term.

Why most SEO agencies don't offer flexibility

Most UK SEO agencies sell one plan: a 6 or 12-month retainer, paid monthly, with vague deliverables and no guarantees. There are a few reasons for this.

Single-plan businesses are simpler to run. Pay-per-lead requires honest tracking, an agreed lead definition, dispute resolution, and the agency carrying revenue risk. Most agencies aren't structured to absorb that risk and don't want to put their delivery work on the line.

The retainer model also lets agencies coast. If the work isn't producing leads, the client still pays. There's no internal pressure to fix what isn't working.

In our experience, the agencies most willing to talk about flexibility on the sales call are the ones least willing to put it in writing afterwards. The flexibility we offer is structural, not a tone of voice on a call.

Want to know which plan would fit your business?

We can tell you where you currently rank, who ranks above you, how many people in your area are searching for what you do, and which of the two plans is the better fit for your trade. No pressure, no jargon. Just click here.