Most small businesses don’t need a full-time marketer. They need their SEO, Google Ads and social media managed properly, by someone senior, every month.
There are three common ways to get that done: an agency package, a fractional digital marketing manager working with freelancers and your own team, or a full-time hire.
We’ve priced each scenario on a monthly basis, using 2026 Australian salary, agency and freelancer benchmarks.
The Short Answer
| Scenario | What’s included | Monthly cost (ex GST) |
|---|---|---|
| Agency package | SEO retainer, Google Ads and social media management | $3,300–$8,000 + setup fee |
| Fractional digital marketing manager | Manager (5 hrs/week), freelance web developer, freelance graphic designer, SEO tool | ~$3,300 |
| Full-time hire | In-house digital marketer, plus a freelance web developer and graphic designer | ~$10,175 + recruitment |
All three scenarios cover the same job: SEO, Google Ads and social media, with the copy, design and website work needed to support them. Ad spend is excluded from every option.
Scenario 1: An Agency Package
Most small businesses buy SEO, Google Ads and social media from an agency as a bundled package.
| Agency cost | Monthly (ex GST) |
|---|---|
| SEO retainer | $1,500–$3,000 |
| Google Ads management | $800–$2,000 |
| Social media management | $1,000–$3,000 |
| Total | $3,300–$8,000 |
| Setup fee (one-off, where charged) | $1,000–$2,500 |
That’s $39,600 to $96,000 a year, before ad spend. Many agencies also set a minimum term of three to twelve months.
Why does this matter? Because a package price doesn’t always tell you how many hours you’re getting, or who is doing the work. Before signing, it’s worth checking for:
- Hours included: Ask for the number of hours the fee covers, in writing.
- Who does the work: Senior pricing doesn’t always mean senior hands on your account.
- Account management time: Meetings and status updates are often billed from the same pool of hours.
- Setup fees and lock-in: Minimum terms of 6 to 12 months are common.
- Ad spend: Management fees and media spend should always be quoted separately.
Scenario 2: A Fractional Digital Marketing Manager
A fractional digital marketing manager sets the strategy, runs the Google Ads account and social media, leads the SEO and handles copywriting and content production. They then brief and check the work of a freelance web developer, a freelance graphic designer and your in-house staff. You pay each person directly for what they do.
| Fractional cost | Monthly (ex GST) |
|---|---|
| Fractional digital marketing manager (5 hrs/week at $95/hr, including copywriting and content) | ~$2,058 |
| Freelance web developer (technical SEO fixes, landing pages, tracking, ~5 hrs at $120/hr) | ~$600 |
| Freelance graphic designer (ad creative, landing page and website graphics, ~5 hrs at $90/hr) | ~$450 |
| SEO tool licence (if not already held) | ~$200 |
| In-house team (Google Business Profile, photos, reviews) | Existing staff time |
| Total | ~$3,300 |
That’s around $39,700 a year, with no setup fee.
Five hours a week works out to about 21.7 hours a month (5 hours x 52 weeks ÷ 12 months), split roughly like this:
- Google Ads and social media management: About 7 hours a month on search terms, bids, ads, social media and conversion tracking.
- SEO: About 4 hours a month on keyword priorities, on-page recommendations and site structure.
- Copywriting and content: About 5 hours a month writing ad copy, landing page copy and an SEO article.
- Coordination: About 3 hours a month briefing and checking work from the web developer, designer and your in-house team.
- Reporting and strategy: About 3 hours a month on results, budget decisions and next steps.
The main benefits over an agency:
- More hours for your budget: Agencies typically aim for around a 100% markup on their team’s time. Paying specialists directly means more of your budget goes into actual hours of work.
- You see where every dollar goes: Each person invoices for their own work, rather than one bundled retainer.
- Specialists suited to your business: You choose freelancers who are the best fit for your business and industry, rather than whoever is available inside the agency.
- You own the accounts and the relationships: The Google Ads account, the freelancers and the content stay with you. When you part ways with an agency, every specialist who knows your business leaves at once. With individual specialists, one change doesn’t reset everything.
- Your in-house team is used, not replaced: Work your staff can already do doesn’t get billed back to you.
- Flexibility as your business evolves: Add more design, development or ads time without renegotiating a whole package, and adjust the mix as your internal staff build new skills.
The trade-off is managing more suppliers. There can be additional contracts to negotiate with each one, and several invoices to pay rather than one single payment.
Scenario 3: Hiring a Full-Time Digital Marketer
Advertised salaries for a digital marketing specialist in Australia sit around $73,000 to $93,000 in 2026, depending on experience and location. We’ve used $90,000 for a capable mid-level hire.
The salary is only part of the cost:
| Cost | Monthly (approx.) |
|---|---|
| Salary ($90,000 per year) | $7,500 |
| Superannuation (12%) | $900 |
| Workers compensation (~1%) | $75 |
| Marketing software and tools | $400 |
| Equipment and overheads | $250 |
| Freelance web developer and graphic designer (as in Scenario 2) | $1,050 |
| Total | ~$10,175 |
That’s around $122,100 a year before recruitment. Using a recruiter typically adds 15–20% of the base salary, or $13,500 to $18,000 as a one-off fee. Larger businesses may also pay state payroll tax on top.
Most in-house marketers aren’t web developers or designers, so the same freelance support is still needed.
What you gain is capacity. Once leave and public holidays are taken out, a full-time employee works roughly 139 productive hours a month, compared with about 22 in Scenario 2.
So Which Scenario Is Cheapest?
At the entry level of agency pricing, an agency package costs about the same as the fractional scenario. Against mid-range agency pricing, the fractional scenario saves around $2,350 a month, and up to about $4,700 against the upper end.
A full-time hire costs roughly three times as much as the fractional scenario. It only makes sense when there’s enough work to fill a full week.
The real question is how much marketing work your business actually has, and how much control you want over it.
When Each Scenario Makes Sense
- An agency package: You want one supplier to handle everything and are comfortable with a bundled retainer.
- A fractional digital marketing manager: You want senior strategy and hands-on management of SEO, Google Ads and social media, with full visibility and your own team involved.
- A full-time hire: Marketing is a daily, cross-functional job in your business and there’s enough work to fill a full week.
The takeaway for Australian small businesses: compare scenarios on what’s actually delivered each month, not on the headline fee alone.
Fractional Digital Marketing in Brisbane and Moreton Bay
A fractional manager works best in person. Fortnightly office visits only work when your manager is close by.
Brik Digital works with businesses across the northern business districts, including Newstead, Everton Park, Chermside, Virginia, Brendale, Kallangur, North Lakes, Redcliffe, Morayfield and Caboolture.
Questions to Ask Before You Decide
- How many hours of marketing work does the business genuinely need each month?
- Is the work spread across many channels, or focused on one or two?
- Do you know exactly how many hours your current retainer covers?
- Who is doing the work, and how senior are they?
- Are there tasks your in-house team could handle with the right direction?
- Could the budget for a full-time hire be better spent on media?
Answer those honestly and the right option is usually clear.
