Am I Being Underpaid?

[josefdoc]

Hey all, so right now I’m managing 13 SEO clients for two different agencies. And then I have 3 of my own clients for my small SEO consulting firm.

Monthly, I make around $5400. Am I selling myself short on profits? I do all SEO for these clients, service pages, blog, on page, off page, gbp optimization, etc. For one agency, I’m the account manager on two, where I manage other specialists who manage PPC and Email, and oversee an LSA campaign for one.

What do you guys think here? I really want to just get more clients for my own consulting firm instead of being underpaid by the agencies

I’m located in the United States.

Thank you!

 

[Mondu Agency]

$5400 for 16 clients? Sounds like you’re hustling hard! You’re doing full seo on-page, off-page, GBP, plus managing PPC/email/LSA for some US rates for that workload typically hit $75-$150/hr or $3k-$7k/month per client for agencies Push your own firm, charge $1k-$2k/client monthly, and keep more profit!

 

[Jermze]

Sometimes you just gotta follow the God inside you and do whatever he wants. No doubt, no thinking just action.

 

[ChimeraPSN]

Yeah, with that workload and your skill set, $5.4k sounds low..especially in the U.S. You’re definitely positioned to scale your own firm. Start phasing out agency work and focus on higher-ticket clients directly.

 

[BassTrackerBoats]

You're getting robbed.

 

[V]

Don't sell yourself so short. If you're handling so many aspects, you should definitely charge more.

 

[josefdoc]

Sounds like you’re hustling hard! $5400/month for 13 clients plus 3 of your own seems low for full SEO management, especially with account manager duties. US rates typically range $75-$150/hour for experienced SEO consultants, and you’re juggling a ton—on-page, off-page, GBP, etc. You might be undercharging. Ditch the low-paying agency gigs and push your own firm. Charge $100-$150/hour or $2k-$5k/month per client to scale up. Thoughts on going solo?

Definitely want to go solo! Agree with you!

 

[Venusaur]

unless you are offering a shitty job, you are underpaid

 

[TheMarquis]

The problem with some creative people it's that they are selling their skin too cheap (where the biggest example could be Nikola Tesla). Be smart!

 

[davids355]

You could probably make that with 3-4 of your own clients and you could be under cutting what the agencies are currently charging to help yourself get the first few clients. It’s always hard to take all the responsibility onto your own shoulders but it’s how you can make much more money.

It sounds like at the moment you’re just making the agencies a lot of money and they’re probably loving it.

 

[Chimmy1990]

Yes. Time to raise your rates. You can make that much with 5-6 clients in a third-world country. If you lose half those clients because you raised your rates, and still make $5.4K, you won.

 

[trustmrtwo]

I'd say you're severely underpaid. What value are you bringing to your clients? Quantify that, tell your clients and then raise your prices. Once they see your value, boom, you're in.

 

[SilverClouds]

Typical agency behaviour... I remember I was comparing my earnings with some people that work under agencies and they always earned very little for a lot of work. Usually also signed that they can't build their own portfolio/case studies so when they finally decided to quit I've seen very experienced professionals freelancing right next to kids right out of college doing free service to build up their portfolios... What a scam. Talked with multiple agencies but never ended up working with them for that reason. One had ok rates but still wanted to steal my case studies.

 

[josefdoc]

Typical agency behaviour... I remember I was comparing my earnings with some people that work under agencies and they always earned very little for a lot of work. Usually also signed that they can't build their own portfolio/case studies so when they finally decided to quit I've seen very experienced professionals freelancing right next to kids right out of college doing free service to build up their portfolios... What a scam. Talked with multiple agencies but never ended up working with them for that reason. One had ok rates but still wanted to steal my case studies.

Thanks! Yea I’m definitely going to see about building my own. I could have 8 of my own clients and make double what I’m making now

 

[SilverClouds]

Thanks! Yea I’m definitely going to see about building my own. I could have 8 of my own clients and make double what I’m making now

How did you get the ones you have? From what I understand you're not working under agency only, you already have some clients of your own. That's the hardest part really, you already have the skills for service delivery.

 

[josefdoc]

How did you get the ones you have? From what I understand you're not working under agency only, you already have some clients of your own. That's the hardest part really, you already have the skills for service delivery.

Thank you!! I got two clients by word of mouth, and one on Upwork. Working on getting a few more now.

 

[BalticProxy_Eu]

Thats a lot, and crazy that youre only earning that much money.

 

[josefdoc]

Thats a lot, and crazy that youre only earning that much money.

Definitely agree!

 

[SilverClouds]

Thank you!! I got two clients by word of mouth, and one on Upwork. Working on getting a few more now.

A lot of freelancers here, everyone has different method for getting clients. You're in good place, look around, maybe you'll figure it out. Good luck.

 

[SirTop]

Thanks! Yea I’m definitely going to see about building my own. I could have 8 of my own clients and make double what I’m making now

You would feel so much better and start seeing your own growth when you start putting that effort into getting your client rather than working for so many agencies, which would take up all your time to invest in yourself and your own business.

Most agencies will make you depend mainly on them so they can have control over you and you are left with no light to see your own growth... and will cut you off whenever it's convenient for them.

That is why I think taking that decision now might actually be better for you even if your income goes down for a while it will be worth it in the long run and you could easily exceed that income.