What should be optional in a marketing proposal?

In this template: Paid ads management ($900.00 USD per month), Email newsletter ($600.00 USD per month), Extra days ($950.00 USD per month). Optional lines sit next to the base price with a switch, so clients choose them without a follow-up email.

Pricing guide for marketing consultants and agencies

How much to charge for marketing

Updated October 23, 2026. Example prices in US dollars from the marketing template.

Example starting total$4,700.00 USD

Short answer: Price marketing as one fixed line (marketing retainer at $3,800.00 USD) with a starting total of $4,700.00 USD, then 3 optional lines (paid ads management, email newsletter, extra days) the client can switch on, and a quantity the client sets within your limits. Set your own numbers; the structure is what gets accepted.

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Below: the price lines from our marketing quote, what is fixed, what the client can switch on, and how to show it so the client accepts instead of haggling.

The example pricing

Line	Example price	How it is sold
Marketing retainerFour days a month across a lead and a designer, plan and report	$3,800.00 USD per month	Included
Paid ads managementGoogle and Meta campaigns set up and optimized weekly	$900.00 USD per month	Optional, on by default
Email newsletterTwo sends a month, written and designed	$600.00 USD per month	Optional, off by default
Extra daysBeyond the four included	$950.00 USD per month	Optional, off by defaultClient picks 1 to 6

Starting total with the defaults on: $4,700.00 USD, before the client chooses among 3 optional lines, with 1 quantity the client sets within your limits. Example prices in US dollars; the template works in 16 currencies and every number is yours to change.

How to present it

Marketing work is easiest to sell as a monthly retainer with a clear first month. Say what the first thirty days produce (an audit, a calendar, the first fixes) and what every month after that looks like, so the client is not paying for a promise.

Show the report. The single line that closes most retainers is the plain-English monthly summary the client can forward to whoever pays them. Name it, price it in, and describe what is in it.

Keep the add-ons countable: extra pages a month, reels by the number, replies handled. A client who can see the total move as they choose feels in control of the spend, and a retainer they set themselves is one they keep.

Questions people ask

How much should I charge for marketing?: Price marketing as one fixed line (marketing retainer at $3,800.00 USD) with a starting total of $4,700.00 USD, then 3 optional lines (paid ads management, email newsletter, extra days) the client can switch on, and a quantity the client sets within your limits. Set your own numbers; the structure is what gets accepted.
What should be optional in a marketing proposal?: In this template: Paid ads management ($900.00 USD per month), Email newsletter ($600.00 USD per month), Extra days ($950.00 USD per month). Optional lines sit next to the base price with a switch, so clients choose them without a follow-up email.
How do I present marketing pricing so it gets accepted?: Marketing work is easiest to sell as a monthly retainer with a clear first month. Say what the first thirty days produce (an audit, a calendar, the first fixes) and what every month after that looks like, so the client is not paying for a promise.

Why this structure gets accepted

One fixed line the client can say yes to. Marketing retainer is priced as a whole, so the conversation is about the result, not the hours.
Options on the page, not in follow-up emails. Paid ads management, Email newsletter, Extra days sit next to the base price with a switch. People choose what they can see.
The total moves as they choose. On a Quote and Sign page the client toggles lines and sets quantities, watches the total update, and signs with their name. What they chose becomes part of the signed record.

Put it in front of a client

Open this pricing as a real quote, change the words and numbers, and send the link. Your client reads it on a phone or laptop, picks the extras, and taps Accept. You both get the signed PDF.