Debate: Should you do free audits or charge for them to land bigger clients?

I had two clients last month in Atlanta, one I did a free SEO audit for and one I charged $150. The free one ghosted me after I showed them a ton of issues, the paid one signed a $3k contract right away. I'm wondering if free work just attracts tire kickers or if I'm missing something. What's your experience with charging upfront for audits?

3 comments

3 Comments

lee.cora8d ago

I had a guy in Austin last year ask for a free audit, spent two hours breaking down his site, and he said "this is great" then never answered my email again. Charging $150 weeded out the looky-loos real quick, sounds like you dodged a bullet with that free one. Nothing says "I'm serious" like someone who actually pulls out their wallet, tire kickers love free stuff way too much. Maybe there's a middle ground where you charge a small fee and credit it toward the contract, but free is just asking for trouble.

cora_west58d ago

Did you read that article about how freelancers who charge for audits get way better clients?

ryan_hart388d ago

yeah that's funny because I had a guy once ask me to quote him for some work and I gave him a range and he said cool and then came back three months later asking if the price was still good. I had already forgotten who he was honestly. sometimes people just window shop and that's fine but it does burn your time if you let it.