Compound it, month over month.
Three tiers from $1,250 per month. A defined phase you are in at all times, a fixed deliverable count, and a report that shows what actually moved.
Monthly retainers have a reputation, and it is mostly deserved.
Money goes out on the first of the month. A report comes back at the end of it, full of impressions and reach and a chart that goes up and to the right. Six months in, nobody on either side can say plainly what changed about the business. Then the invoice arrives again.
Signal is structured to make that outcome impossible to hide. Three things do the work:
You are always in a named phase
Establish, Build, Compound, or Defend. You know which one, you know what it is supposed to produce, and you know what comes next.
The deliverable count is fixed
Two articles or four. Ten to twelve social posts. One newsletter. Written on the page, not negotiated monthly. If we ship less, you can see it.
The report tracks movement, not activity
AI citations, rankings, Google Business Profile actions, and conversions. Impressions are context. They are never the headline.
Four phases. You always know which one you are in.
Establish
Baselines set, tracking verified, technical health confirmed, first content shipped.
Build
Content cadence running, entity and citation building underway, review engine active. This is where the first measurable movement typically appears.
Compound
Topical depth, digital PR, and a paid layer added only if the numbers justify it.
Defend
Monitoring, refreshing, and tracking competitors who are trying to take the answer back.
Three tiers. One page to compare them.
Signal
Content and AI visibility, running every month.
Signal Plus
Everything in Signal, plus social, email, and outreach.
Signal Command
Everything in Signal Plus, plus paid media and conversion work.
| What is included | Signal | Signal Plus | Signal Command |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $1,250/mo | $2,450/mo | From $4,500/mo |
| Content pieces per month | 2 | 4 | 4 plus landing pages |
| AI citation tracking | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Technical monitoring | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Google Business Profile management | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Social media | ✕ | 10 to 12 posts/mo | 10 to 12 posts/mo |
| Email newsletter | ✕ | Monthly | Monthly |
| Citation and link outreach | ✕ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Paid media management | ✕ | ✕ | Yes, ad spend billed separately |
| Conversion rate testing | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ |
| Sales enablement | ✕ | ✕ | ✓ |
| Reporting | Monthly report plus 30 min call | Monthly report plus quarterly strategy session | Monthly report plus monthly strategy session |
Six month initial term, then month to month.
After the initial six months, the retainer continues month to month and either of us can end it with 30 days written notice. That is the whole commitment.
Here is why six and not one: the work does not produce visible results in thirty days, and neither of us benefits from a contract that pretends otherwise. Content, citations, and entity authority compound. Month one is setup and baselines. The first measurable movement typically shows up between months three and six. A thirty day agreement would push us to chase things that look good in a report instead of things that change the business, and you would be paying for the wrong work.
This is a Signal term. It is not the Novasite web care plan term, and the two are separate agreements.
Already a Novasite client?
Your Novasite monthly care plan fee is waived for as long as a Signal retainer is active. Hosting, maintenance, security, updates, and support all continue exactly as they are. You just stop paying the separate monthly line.
See Novasite packagesStart with the foundation.
Signal Foundation, or equivalent work already in place, comes before a retainer starts. Running a content program on a broken foundation wastes your money and produces nothing either of us can point to in month six. If the technical base and messaging are already sorted, the Signal Audit will confirm it and we can start the retainer directly. The $499 audit fee credits toward whichever you begin.
Retainer questions
What happens if I want to pause?
After the six month initial term you can stop with 30 days written notice, and everything produced up to that point stays yours and stays live. During the initial term we can pause work for up to 30 days once, for genuine business reasons, and the term extends by the length of the pause.
Who owns the content and the accounts?
You do. Every article, page, post, and asset we produce is yours, and every account we set up or manage is registered in your name with you as owner. If we part ways, we hand over access and nothing has to be rebuilt.
Why a six month initial term?
Because the work does not produce visible results in thirty days and neither of us benefits from a contract that pretends otherwise. Content, citations, and entity authority compound, and the first measurable movement typically shows up between months three and six. Six months is the shortest honest window.
Can I change tiers?
Yes, at any time, effective the next billing cycle. Most clients move up after the Build phase, when there is enough evidence to justify adding social, email, or paid media.
Is ad spend included in the price?
No. Paid media management is part of Signal Command, and your ad budget is billed separately and paid directly to the platform. We never mark up ad spend.
Do I need Signal Foundation before starting a retainer?
Yes, unless equivalent work is already in place. Running a content program on a broken foundation wastes your money and produces nothing either of us can point to. If you already have the technical base, the schema, and the messaging sorted, the audit will confirm it and we can start the retainer directly.
What is actually in the monthly report?
Movement on things that matter: AI citation tracking across the assistants, keyword and page-level rankings, Google Business Profile actions, conversions, and what shipped that month against what was promised. Impressions are included for context, never as the headline.
Pick a tier, or ask us which one fits.
Most conversations start with the $499 audit, because it tells both of us what you actually need before anyone signs anything.