Example SEO project brief: make the deliverables reviewable

This is a worked example of a project brief, not an offer or a live job listing. Imagine a small site wants an initial technical and content review before commissioning ongoing work.

The brief could specify the pages and systems in scope, access available, expected audit format, prioritisation method, implementation responsibilities, and the review meeting. Each recommendation should identify its evidence, affected pages and proposed verification.

I would ask for clear deliverables and communication terms rather than a promise of a particular ranking. That makes proposals easier to compare and gives both sides a shared definition of completion.

Which requirement is most often missing from a scope document?

The measurement baseline. Define the reporting period, data sources and conversion meaning before work begins, and note missing access.

An audit can be completed without proving a business outcome. The scope should distinguish delivery of the analysis, implementation of its recommendations, and any later review of results.

Implementation ownership is essential. “Fix canonical tags” is not a complete deliverable if nobody knows who changes the templates or tests the release.

For each high-priority finding, include an acceptance check and the team responsible for carrying it out. Also define how out-of-scope engineering work will be raised.

I would add a handover section: the final files, access cleanup, outstanding questions and the decision log. That makes the work usable after the review meeting ends.

A provider can then respond with assumptions and exclusions against specific requirements. Comparing those responses is more meaningful than comparing a generic monthly task list.

I would ask proposals to distinguish the audit file, the implementation work and the later results review. Each has a different definition of completion.

A buyer can then compare responsibilities and assumptions. That is more useful than a bundled promise that leaves engineering access, review time and measurement requirements implicit.