CompareB2B marketing agencies

B2B marketing agencies: who makes the changes, and what it costs

When a firm that sells services to other businesses looks for help with search, it tends to meet the same five kinds of supplier. We set them side by side on the question that matters most: who actually changes your site. We describe the types rather than rate named firms, so you can place any agency you speak to. We make a change every working day, for £1,750 a month.

John Geater, founder of IndexFirst

The options at a glance

Kinds of marketing help for UK B2B service businesses: who each serves, who makes the changes on your site and how they charge
OptionWho it servesWho makes the changesHow it charges
IndexFirstWho it serves: UK service businesses that sell to other businessesWho makes the changes: We do, every working dayHow it charges: £1,750 a month, one plan
Generalist SEO agencyWho it serves: Any sectorWho makes the changes: Often your team, from their recommendationsHow it charges: Monthly retainer, priced by hours
B2B marketing agencyWho it serves: Firms that sell to firms, from IT to engineeringWho makes the changes: Content and campaigns; site work variesHow it charges: Retainer or project fees
Sector-specialist agencyWho it serves: One profession, such as accountants or law firmsWho makes the changes: Depends on the contractHow it charges: Retainer, often with a website build
Freelance SEO consultantWho it serves: Smaller firms, any sectorWho makes the changes: They do, if they have access and hoursHow it charges: By the hour or day
Web design studioWho it serves: Local firms that need a siteWho makes the changes: They do, at launch; SEO is an extraHow it charges: A build fee, then hosting and support

Who makes the changes on your site?

A recommendation nobody acts on moves nothing. For most of these options the honest answer is “it depends on the contract”, so ask before you sign.

6 kinds of marketing help by who usually makes the changes on your site: 1 does as standard (IndexFirst), 2 usually supply content or a plan your team carries out (generalist SEO agency, B2B marketing agency), 3 depend on the contract (sector-specialist agency, freelance consultant, web design studio).IndexFirstGeneralist SEO agencyB2B marketing agencySector-specialist agencyFreelance SEO consultantWeb design studio
  • Make the changes as standard 1
  • Usually content, or a plan your team carries out 2
  • Depends on the contract 3
Each block is one kind of supplier, grouped by how that kind usually works. Any single firm may differ.

How much does B2B marketing cost?

Few agencies publish a price, so we priced the same monthly output, line by line, at UK rates. This is what our plan would cost to hire out.

Monthly cost of the same output: IndexFirst £1,750; freelancers about £8,000; an SEO agency about £22,000. Our estimate from UK rates, November 2026. Bars start at £0.IndexFirst · one plan£1,750Freelancers · same output, about£8,000SEO agency · same output, about£22,000
Our estimate, November 2026: UK guides put freelancers at about £40 to £100 an hour and agencies at about £100 to £150. See every line.

Each option, one by one

  1. IndexFirst

    Who it serves
    UK firms that sell services to other businesses: accountancy practices, law firms, recruitment agencies, IT support and managed service providers, freight and logistics firms, commercial cleaning and facilities companies, engineering firms and consultancies, with sites on WordPress, Wix, Webflow or Squarespace.
    What they do
    AI visibility and SEO, done for you. Each working day we choose the one change that will most help you get found, on Google or in AI answers, and we make it.
    AI visibility work
    We track the questions your buyers put to ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini and Google, then improve the pages those answers draw on: service pages, location pages, accreditations.
    Who makes the changes
    We do, through your CMS, and each change is checked before it goes live.
    Price and term
    £1,750 a month. We start with 3 months, because search and AI take time to catch up, then it’s month to month. On a 12-month contract it’s £1,500 a month. See what’s in the plan.

  2. Generalist SEO agency

    What they do
    Technical audits, keyword research, content and link building for clients in any sector, from retail to legal.
    AI visibility work
    Increasingly offered, often under the names GEO or AEO, sometimes as a separate package.
    Who makes the changes
    Often a report your team or web developer carries out. Some do the work in your CMS; ask which.
    Price and term
    A monthly retainer built on hours. Expect a few months’ minimum term. You may need to explain your sector, such as SRA rules or how a contract recruitment desk works, before the content is right.

  3. B2B marketing agency

    What they do
    Marketing for firms that sell to other firms: brand, trade press, exhibitions, email, LinkedIn and the website.
    AI visibility work
    Varies. Search is usually one channel among several, not the whole job.
    Who makes the changes
    They write content and run campaigns. Day-to-day fixes on your site may or may not be in scope.
    Price and term
    A retainer or project fees. Good if you want a trade show stand and a brochure in the same contract.

  4. Sector-specialist marketing agency

    What they do
    Marketing for one sector only, such as accountants, law firms, recruiters or logistics firms. They already know the language, and why your ICAEW, SRA or REC status matters to a buyer.
    AI visibility work
    Varies by agency. Ask what they do beyond Google rankings.
    Who makes the changes
    Depends on the contract. Where they built and host your site, they often make the changes too.
    Price and term
    Usually a retainer, often alongside a website build. Sector knowledge is the main thing you pay for.

  5. Freelance SEO consultant

    What they do
    One person doing audits, fixes and sometimes writing. Quality ranges widely, from excellent to poor.
    AI visibility work
    Depends on the person. Some track AI answers; many focus on Google.
    Who makes the changes
    They do, if you give them access and they have the hours that month.
    Price and term
    By the hour or by the day, usually with no long term. You manage them and fill the gaps when they are busy.

  6. Web design studio with an SEO add-on

    What they do
    Design and build your site, often a local studio. SEO tends to be a setup task at launch or a small monthly extra.
    AI visibility work
    Rarely part of the offer.
    Who makes the changes
    They do, at launch and when you ask. Ongoing search work is usually light.
    Price and term
    A one-off build fee, then hosting and support each month.

What to ask any agency before you sign

The first question is from Google’s own advice on hiring an SEO. Put all three to us as well.

  1. Who makes each change on my site, and will I see every one? Google suggests asking: “Will you share with me all the changes you make to my site”, along with the reasoning behind each recommendation. Google also suggests asking whether they have worked in your industry.
  2. What is the AI work, page by page? GEO and AEO are labels for getting named in AI answers, and much of it is sound SEO underneath. Ask which pages they will change, such as your R&D tax claims or ISO 27001 consultancy pages, and how they will know when ChatGPT or Perplexity start to name you.
  3. What is the term, and what do I keep? Ask about the minimum term and what happens to the pages and fixes if you stop. With us, you keep every change we made.

And if anyone promises you a ranking, Google has a view on that: “No one can guarantee a #1 ranking on Google.” We promise the work, not a ranking. To see how we compare with hiring an SEO agency for the full plan, read IndexFirst vs. an SEO agency.

How we wrote this

We describe kinds of supplier, not named firms, because a fair verdict on a specific agency needs facts from that agency, and those change. Each description is a generalisation about how that kind of supplier commonly sells, and any one firm may work differently. The prices are our own estimate from UK hourly rates, November 2026, set out on the pricing page.

John Geater
John Geater, founder of IndexFirst

John Geater founded IndexFirst, which does AI visibility and SEO for UK service businesses that sell to other businesses.

Want the changes made, not planned?

If your site runs on a CMS we can work in, we make one every working day and report each week on what moved.

See what’s in the plan