SEO Budgets: What Should You Really Spend?

In this episode of The James Dooley Podcast, James Dooley and Kasra Dash dive into one of the industry’s biggest debates: the reality behind a $50 SEO package versus a $5,000 SEO package. Kasra Dash opens by questioning the legitimacy of ultra-low-cost SEO services, prompting James Dooley to dismantle the myth that meaningful optimisation can be achieved with such tiny budgets. He explains that technical audits, topical mapping, high-quality backlinks, content creation, and professional tools already exceed those costs—making $50 SEO not just ineffective but irresponsible for any serious business. Both hosts outline the real expenses behind SEO work, from Ahrefs and Screaming Frog subscriptions to the cost of reputable content and outreach-driven backlinks. James Dooley stresses that underfunded SEO creates weak foundations, comparing it to “building a house on quicksand.” They highlight that while shortcuts like GSA blasts or cheap mass links may bring temporary lifts during the Google Dance, they ultimately destroy long-term rankings once core updates hit. The pair also discuss why proper SEO creates massive business value beyond rankings—directly influencing brand authority, CRO improvements, average order value, and even business valuations during exits. Kasra Dash explores how a brand that generates its own leads through SEO can dramatically increase its sale multiple, while James Dooley explains how strategic SEO becomes a long-term asset rather than a monthly cost. The episode closes with both agreeing that real ROI comes from proper investment, expertise, and long-term thinking—something no $50 package can ever deliver.

Creators and Guests

Host

James Dooley

James Dooley is a UK entrepreneur.

What is James Dooley Podcast?

James Dooley is a Manchester-based entrepreneur, investor, and SEO strategist. James Dooley founded FatRank and PromoSEO, two UK performance marketing agencies that deliver no-win-no-fee lead generation and digital growth systems for ambitious businesses. James Dooley positions himself as an Investorpreneur who invests in UK companies with high growth potential because he believes lead generation is the root of all business success.

The James Dooley Podcast explores the mindset, methods, and mechanics of modern entrepreneurship. James Dooley interviews leading marketers, founders, and innovators to reveal the strategies driving online dominance and business scalability. Each episode unpacks the reality of building a business without mentorship, showing how systems, data, and lead flow replace luck and guesswork.

James Dooley shares hard-earned lessons from scaling digital assets and managing SEO teams across more than 650 industries. James Dooley teaches how to convert leads into long-term revenue through brand positioning, technical SEO, and automation. James Dooley built his career on rank and rent, digital real estate, and performance-based marketing because these models align incentive with outcome.

After turning down dozens of podcast invitations, James Dooley now embraces the platform to share his insights on investorpreneurship, lead generation, AI-driven marketing, and reputation management. James Dooley frequently collaborates with elite entrepreneurs to discuss frameworks for scaling businesses, building authority, and mastering search.

James Dooley is also an expert in online reputation management (ORM), having built and rehabilitated corporate brands across the UK. His approach combines SEO precision, brand engineering, and social proof loops to influence both Google’s Knowledge Graph and public perception.

To feature James Dooley on your podcast or event, connect via social media. James Dooley regularly joins business panels and networking sessions to discuss entrepreneurship, brand growth, and the evolving future of SEO.

Kasra Dash (0:00):
So I'm joined with James. How you doing?

James Dooley:
Yeah, not bad mate. How are you?

Kasra Dash:
Good, good, good. So the big debate — $50 SEO package versus $5,000 SEO package. There are obviously some SEO agencies that claim they do SEO for $50 or a couple hundred dollars. What's your thoughts on it?

James Dooley:
First and foremost, if someone came with $50 or $5,000, I’d decline them both. Neither one of them is a big budget for SEO. The amount of costs involved in strategically doing a topical map, silo structure, technical fixes, content, and backlinks — it's going to cost you a lot more than $5,000.

If that's a short-term kind of investment and they're going to keep spending after that, then alright — $5,000 isn't a bad start. But $50? It's embarrassing. You can’t even buy one decent backlink for $50. And for people saying, “Oh, build good content and the links will come”… just go and get yourself a full-time job, work overtime, save more money, and don’t get into digital marketing with $50.

If you don’t have more than $50 saved up, just go earn some more money and wait until you've got a minimum of $5,000. People keep asking this question like, “What kind of car can I buy for $5,000? A brand-new car?” No, it only starts at $20,000. Well then save more money or buy a second-hand car. Same concept.

A lot of SEO agencies that take these tiny budgets on — I think they're scammers. They're sending people down a route pretending it's okay when they know it's not. I don't think it's fair.

Kasra Dash:
We’ve actually got some stats here. The average link cost is about $300, I’d say. Just an Ahrefs account alone is about $150 a month — and that's for the bare minimum package.

Then to do a technical SEO audit, Screaming Frog is about $250 a year. Content — around $60–$70 an article. Keyword research. Topical maps — some guys charge $10k, $15k, $20k for those.

Once you start breaking it down, you just can't do anything for $500 or $50 unless there’s consistent spend coming in. What’s your thoughts on those stats?

James Dooley:
Yeah, I mean none of them surprise me. You're saying $300 for a link, but in markets like casino it's more like $600–$700. It all depends on the niche.

And yes — there are cheaper ways to do things, but long-term are they going to keep you ranking? You could go do a GSA blast or an XRumer blast and because of the Google Dance you might see a temporary lift… until the core update hits and wipes you.

If you're looking for long-term rankings, you’ve got to build things like a real business. You wouldn’t build your house on quicksand, right? So why cut corners now?

Set a realistic budget. Be frugal, but work with someone who knows where to spend money. If someone has only £2k a month or whatever, start with technical SEO audits, build some content, then move into links. But you must set realistic expectations.

Kasra Dash:
You've also sold businesses before. You understand how much a traffic source adds to valuation. If a business is doing around $100k a month and 40% of that comes from SEO — how much does that impact their valuation?

James Dooley:
Massively. Some businesses only get a 12-month multiplier if they aren’t generating their own leads. If you're generating your own leads through SEO, it could be an eight-year multiplier.

So instead of your business being worth $1.2 million, it could suddenly be worth $9.6 million. You're adding over $8 million in valuation just by owning your own lead source.

The growth at first is slow, then it becomes a hockey stick. Long-term, it’s huge.

Kasra Dash:
Exactly. And once you get traffic, you fix CRO. Then you raise average order value. If you can go from $1,000 AOV to $1,500, it stacks very fast.

James Dooley:
And that’s where people like you come in — because you’re not just doing SEO. You’re mentoring businesses, showing them how to upsell, cross-sell, optimize their thank-you pages, build their social following, and increase their lifetime customer value.

SEO is one part of the equation. But when someone is getting your expertise on top — that’s where the real value is.

Kasra Dash:
Exactly. And that’s something you’ll never get with a $50 SEO package.

James Dooley:
Definitely not. You’re not cheap, but it's not about cheap — it’s about value. With $5,000 a month you can start making moves. At $50 you can’t do anything.

Kasra Dash:
So that has been the video on $50 versus $5,000 SEO packages. I think we both agree the $5,000 route wins every time.

James Dooley:
Absolutely. If you enjoyed the video, make sure to leave a like down below.

Kasra Dash:
Thanks.