Scope Creep Examples — SEO & marketing
A channel that was never in the proposal
The retainer scoped organic SEO and blog content. The client asks the team to start running and managing paid search ads — a different channel, never discussed.
The proposal and retainer scope organic search: keyword strategy, on-page optimization, monthly content. In a quarterly review, the client asks the team to also "just get some paid search running" for an upcoming promotion. Paid media is a different discipline with its own setup (campaign structure, ad copy, bid management, a live budget the agency would be spending on the client's behalf) that was never part of the engagement and never discussed at signing.
Clause typically implicated
Clause typically implicated
Out-of-scope clause→ — Applies as much to a different marketing channel as it does to a different feature — paid search wasn't in the deliverables the retainer defines.
Suggested change-order wording
Suggested change-order wording (illustrative, not legal advice)
Paid search wasn't part of our organic SEO retainer, and managing live ad spend on your behalf is a distinct scope with its own setup, reporting, and pricing. We can definitely help — I'll send over a proposal for a paid search add-on so we can get it structured properly before the promotion launches, rather than standing it up informally.
How this usually resolves
Because the client is asking the agency to spend real ad budget on their behalf, most agencies insist on a proper proposal and sign-off before touching it, even under time pressure — the risk of an informal "just get it running" arrangement going wrong with live spend is too high to skip the paperwork.
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