The problem
Agencies writing blog content for clients spend a long time working out what each article should cover to rank. An agency writing 8 client articles a month with 90 minutes of keyword and competitor research on each spends 12 hours a month before a word is written.
What the AI does
Surfer gives writers live guidelines for a target search term as they write, plus a content score, and its Discovery plan lists Surfy, an AI SEO assistant, and AI SEO optimization guidelines. Use it to plan headings and topics, write or edit in its editor, then have an editor check every claim and the client approve the post. Discovery allows 120 documents to create or optimize, and on annual plans credits reset yearly, enough for 8 articles a month (96 a year).
A worked example
A four-person marketing agency in Bristol writes 8 blog posts a month for 4 retainer clients. The content lead now starts each article in Surfer instead of researching competing pages by hand.
Before
8 articles at 90 minutes of research each: 12 hours a month
After
If Surfer's guidelines cut research to 30 minutes each: 4 hours a month
What it's worth
About $372£280€333A$538C$526 a month saved, against about $56£42€50A$81C$79 for Surfer. About 8 hours a month saved (12 down to 4), worth about $372£280€333A$538C$526 at an assumed $47£35€42A$67C$66 an hour, if the guidelines really replace most of the manual research (an assumption to test). Cost: Discovery is €49 (about $56£42€50A$81C$79) a month billed yearly, shown in euros for a UK visitor, so about $673£506€602A$972C$951 paid up front; the page lists no monthly price.
How to set it up
- Pick one client and their next 4 articles, and agree the target search term for each with the client.
- Write or edit each article in Surfer, using the guidelines for headings and topics rather than chasing a perfect score.
- If you use Surfy for drafting, rewrite in the client's voice and check every fact and figure against a source.
- Have the client approve each post, and check any claims about their products against the CAP Code's rules on misleading advertising.
- After 3 months, compare traffic to these posts with posts written the old way before renewing.
What goes wrong
- Discovery has 1 seat, so only one person can work in it. More writers means Standard at €99 a month with 3 seats.
- Annual billing means paying about $673£506€602A$972C$951 up front; the page doesn't show a monthly price.
- Writing to a score can produce stuffed, unnatural copy. Write for readers and the client first.
- AI-drafted articles can contain wrong facts. Every claim made for a client must be accurate and something they can back up.