Is It Out of Scope? — SEO & marketing

Is migrating SEO tracking after a site redesign out of scope for an SEO retainer?

Usually yes. It's native technical-SEO work, but a redesign-triggered migration is a defined project with its own checklist, not routine retainer maintenance.

Tracking migration after a redesign is squarely technical-SEO work — redirects, updated properties, re-verified tags — but it's triggered by a project the SEO retainer didn't scope for and typically requires a burst of hours well beyond the monthly cadence.

Is it out of scope?

Usually yes. It's the SEO team's discipline, but a redesign migration is a defined project — full tracking and redirect audit, property updates, verification — not part of routine monthly retainer work.

Clause typically implicated

Clause typically implicated

Out-of-scope clause→ — Ongoing tracking maintenance is covered by the retainer; a redesign-triggered migration project is a one-time volume spike beyond that.

Example contract wording

Example contract wording (illustrative, not legal advice)

Tracking migration after a redesign is exactly the kind of work we do, but it's a defined project — redirects, property updates, verification — on top of the regular retainer hours. I'll scope it as a one-time add-on tied to the redesign timeline.

How MarginFlow flags it

MarginFlow flags redesign-triggered migration requests as outside_scope on SEO retainers even though the work is native to the discipline, with the explanation noting it as a defined project rather than routine monthly maintenance.

Catch scope creep the moment it lands in your inbox

14-day free trial · No credit card required