How much should AI visibility cost?
The honest answer is "it depends on your category" — but here's how to think about it so you don't over- or under-pay.
Judge it against a won contract
For a B2B supplier, the right anchor isn't a marketing budget — it's the value of one additional customer. If a single won contract is worth thousands or tens of thousands, and reorders compound that, then a few thousand pounds to be named when buyers ask AI is a rounding error against the upside. Cost only matters relative to the prize.
Start with a pilot, not a year
Be wary of anyone selling a twelve-month retainer before they've shown movement. A fixed-scope pilot — audit plus a few weeks of work, with a lift report at the end — lets you buy proof before you buy commitment. That's how we structure it: an audit, then a 60-day pilot, then a retainer only if the numbers justify it.
What you're paying for
- Measurement that's honest (confidence bands, not vanity scores).
- Earned placements in trusted sources — the part that takes real effort.
- The technical groundwork that lets any of it work.
Rough shape
Expect an audit in the high hundreds, a pilot in the low thousands, and ongoing management from around £2,000 a month — scaling with how competitive your category is. If a quote is far below that, ask what's actually being done; if far above, ask what proof you'll see and when.