Questions people actually ask before hiring us.
Organised by what you're worried about, not alphabetically.
Pricing
Are these the real prices, or do they change once I talk to someone?
They’re real. Five deliverables are fixed-price on this site; retainers are quote-only because they’re scoped to your situation, but the "from" anchor shown here is the real floor, not a teaser.
Do you charge for the strategy call?
No — the initial strategy call is free. You only pay once you buy a fixed-scope deliverable or sign a retainer agreement.
Is sales tax added at checkout?
Sales tax is calculated at invoicing, not estimated at checkout, since this is a nationwide B2B digital service.
Can I get a refund?
Fixed-scope deliverables refund in full before work begins; once research or crawling starts, they’re non-refundable. Retainers are cancellable with 30 days’ written notice. Full detail on the Refund Policy page.
Method
Is "Black Hats" just a marketing gimmick?
It’s an honest tension we address head-on: the name is our attitude, the delivery is white-hat, and it’s written into every contract as a no-manipulative-tactics guarantee.
What tactics do you actually refuse to use?
Link schemes, private blog networks, cloaking, doorway pages, hidden text, keyword stuffing, and negative SEO — the full list is quoted on our About page as a contractual guarantee, not a values statement.
How do you report your work?
By name, by URL, and by date — every link, every fix, every brief, as it happens, not summarised into a vanity dashboard at month’s end.
Do you guarantee rankings?
No. Nobody controls Google’s algorithm, and any agency that promises a specific ranking outcome is promising something outside its control.
What happens if I ask for something that isn’t white-hat?
We won’t do it, and we’ll tell you why — this isn’t a soft policy, it’s what the guarantee in our contract actually commits us to.
Timeline
How fast is the Rank Snapshot?
3 business days from order.
How long does a Technical SEO Audit take?
7 business days for Standard, 12 for Deep (which includes the engineering walkthrough).
How long until I see ranking movement from a retainer?
It varies by service and starting point — Local SEO citation changes typically show within weeks; link-building and e-commerce-architecture work usually takes a full quarter or more to fully register. We’ll give you a realistic estimate for your situation on the strategy call, not a universal number.
Can you rush a deliverable?
Turnaround times are set to do the work properly, not padded — we don’t offer paid rush options that would compress the diagnostic itself.
Retainers
What’s the minimum term on a retainer?
Link Building & Digital PR is a 3-month minimum; E-commerce SEO is a 6-month minimum. Local SEO management and the Penalty Recovery programme have their term confirmed in your signed agreement, not a fixed minimum listed here.
Can I cancel a retainer?
Yes, with 30 days’ written notice. Months already delivered are non-refundable; the notice period lets us wrap up outstanding work cleanly.
Do retainers auto-renew into a longer term?
No — after any stated minimum term, retainers continue month to month until either side gives 30 days’ notice.
Can I switch from a fixed-scope product to a retainer later?
Yes — it’s a common path. Buy the audit or the Rank Snapshot first, then scope a retainer once you’ve seen the work.
Still have a question? Ask us directly.
Contact us