Content Marketing Retainer Proposal
A monthly plan to publish expert-led articles, with clear deliverables, pricing and reporting.
Free for 14 days. No card required.
Make this template yours
A clear structure
A starting point for the scope, pricing and next steps you want to share
Ready to edit
Keep useful sections and replace the content with your client details
Your brand
Choose the colors, fonts and imagery that fit your business
About this template
A content marketing proposal explains what content you will produce for a client each month, how it gets made and published, and what it costs. This template offers three monthly plans with a recommended option, so it helps the client choose a publishing level that fits their goals and their team’s available time.
Who this template is for
Content agencies, freelance writers and editorial consultants selling a monthly retainer to a business with in-house expertise to draw on. The process is built around interviews with the client’s specialists, so it suits B2B, software and professional services firms where articles need input from people inside the business rather than generic research.
What each section covers
- Introduction, Your situation and Why it matters
- A short letter, three problems the client is likely facing, and the case for consistent publishing. The enquiry chart is labelled sample data; replace or remove it rather than present it as a forecast.
- Our recommendation
- The plan you suggest and why, with the monthly articles, interviews and results report summarised up front.
- How the work is done and What is included
- Four workstreams (planning, writing, publishing, reporting), an included and excluded checklist, and a table of what the client provides against what you deliver.
- Client results and Your team
- A testimonial, a comparable case study and the three roles on the account. Use only results you can source and have permission to share.
- The first 90 days, Pricing, Questions and Next steps
- Set-up, first articles and regular publishing phases, a three-plan pricing table with monthly or yearly billing, six common questions answered, and a button that takes the client to the plans.
How to price a content marketing retainer
The template uses three recurring plans that share one approach and differ by volume of articles, interviews and extras each month. Clients can be billed monthly or yearly in advance, with a lower price for yearly. Marking one plan as recommended gives the client a clear starting point without hiding the alternatives.
The payment terms set a three-month minimum, then month-to-month with 30 days’ notice, and prices are fixed for 12 months. Per-article pricing is an alternative for clients who want to test you first, but it makes interviews, distribution and reporting harder to account for.
Before you send it
- Match the plans to real capacity
- Check you can deliver the largest plan’s volume, including interviews and short video clips, before you offer it.
- Be honest about client time
- The template states the specialist time needed per article. Confirm the client can commit it, because the process depends on those interviews.
- Replace sample figures
- The enquiry chart and case study carry sample numbers. Swap in your own sourced results or remove them.
- Keep the exclusions visible
- Guaranteed rankings or leads, paid advertising and unlimited changes after approval are listed as not included. Leave that list in.
What’s in the Content Marketing Retainer Proposal
12 parts, in the order your client reads them. Every part is editable: keep what fits the job, rewrite the rest and add your own.
Introduction
This proposal sets out what you receive each month, how much time your team needs to give, what it costs and how you will see the results.
Your situation
Here is your situation as you described it. If anything has changed, let us know.
Why it matters
Buyers read about a problem before they contact anyone. Regular, useful articles help them find you at that stage.
Our recommendation
The Growth plan gives you four expert-led articles a month.
How the work is done
Every month follows the same four steps, so you always know what is happening and what we need from you.
Covers: Deciding what to write, Interview, draft, edit, Getting it read, Showing what worked
What is included
Everything the monthly fee covers, and what it does not.
Client results
A payroll software company, and what changed in six months.
Covers: The client, The result
Your team
Plans topics with you, runs the monthly review and is your day-to-day contact.
The first 90 days
Content review, topic plan and voice guide. We book the first specialist interview.
Pricing
Three plans with the same approach. We recommend Growth. Choose a plan and any extras on this page.
Covers: Every plan includes, Not included
Questions
About 30 to 45 minutes per article from a specialist, plus a review of each draft. Most clients spend three to five hours a month in total.
Next steps
Accept the plan that suits you on this page, or reply to this email.
Frequently Asked Questions
What should a content marketing proposal include?
The client’s situation, why consistent content matters for them, your recommended plan, how planning, writing, publishing and reporting work, what is included and excluded, who is on the team, a first 90-day plan, pricing options and answers to common questions.
How much client time does a content retainer need?
Be specific. This template states 30 to 45 minutes of specialist time per article, roughly three to five hours a month in total, mostly for interviews and approving facts. Adjust the figures to match your own process before sending.
Can a content marketing agency guarantee traffic or leads?
No. Results depend on search engines, competitors and the client’s own sales process. Commit to the work, the publishing schedule and a monthly report instead. This template lists guaranteed rankings or leads among the things that are not included.
What happens if the client wants to stop the retainer?
Spell it out in the proposal. This template sets a three-month minimum, then 30 days’ notice, and the client keeps all content they have paid for. Clear exit terms make the first commitment easier to agree to.
Ready to make it yours?
Add your scope, pricing and brand. Preview the client experience before sharing.