Content marketing proposal template

Prepared for [Client Company] by [Your Name], [Date].

Thank you for considering me to run content for [Client Company]. This proposal covers the full program: what gets made, why, where it goes, and how we know it worked, because publishing without a system is how content budgets disappear.

[Client Company] wants content that compounds: pieces that attract [target audience], build trust, and feed [organic traffic / the sales team / the email list], instead of one-off posts that vanish in a week.

Today [describe: publishing is sporadic, there is no calendar, content is written but never distributed]. Success means a running editorial machine and measurable movement in [traffic, leads, or pipeline influenced] over [6] months.

1. Phase 1, Strategy. I audit your existing content and your competitors', interview [2 to 3] of your customers or salespeople, and build a content strategy: themes, formats, channels, and how content maps to how you actually win customers.
2. Phase 2, Editorial calendar. The strategy becomes a rolling [quarterly] calendar: each piece has a topic, a target reader, a goal, and a distribution plan before it is written.
3. Phase 3, Production. I produce [number] pieces per month ([writing them myself / managing your writers]), edited to one voice and standard, with your review before anything publishes.
4. Phase 4, Distribution and measurement. Every piece is distributed on the agreed channels (email, social, communities, repurposing), and a monthly report ties the program to the metrics we chose.

• A content strategy document with themes, formats, and channel plan
• A rolling editorial calendar, reviewed with you [monthly]
• [Number] pieces per month, written, edited, and published
• Distribution of every piece: [email feature, social posts, repurposed formats]
• On-page SEO basics on everything (structure, metadata, internal links)
• A monthly report against the agreed metrics, with what to double down on

• Paid amplification budgets (recommendations included, spend is yours)
• Technical SEO work beyond on-page basics (available separately)
• Video production (scripts and repurposing included; filming is not)

Prices are placeholders. Set your own before sending.

• Every piece has a reader, a goal, and a distribution plan before it is written, so nothing publishes into the void
• One voice across everything, whether I write it or edit your team's drafts
• Reported against business metrics we agree up front, not raw pageviews

This proposal is valid for [30] days. A deposit of [amount or %] is due to begin, with the balance due [on delivery / per the schedule]. Work outside the scope above is quoted separately before it starts.

Content becomes your property once the month it was delivered in is paid for. Content compounds slowly: meaningful traffic and lead movement typically takes [3 to 6] months, and I commit to the process and honest reporting rather than a specific traffic number by a specific date.

To move forward, approve this proposal in writing and I will send the agreement and the deposit invoice. We can begin as soon as the deposit is received.

Accepted by: ______________________________ Date: ____________