# Link building — quote comparison worksheet

Meridian · 2026-09-20 · Blank procurement template, not a price list.
Companion guide: https://withmeridian.org/blog/link-building-pricing

## Common project inputs

- Website, target pages and intended readers:
- Markets and languages:
- Existing useful assets and subject expert:
- Delivery goal and separately measured business outcome:
- Internal reviewer / decision owner:

## Compare the same scope

| Field | Proposal A | Proposal B | Unresolved question / owner |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Provider, quote URL/file and date | | | |
| Currency, taxes, billing period | | | |
| Monthly / project / per accepted placement | | | |
| Research, screening and target-page planning | | | |
| Writing, design, original research, revisions | | | |
| Outreach and follow-up | | | |
| Publisher fees / sponsorship / approval | | | |
| Method, editorial control and link attributes | | | |
| Source and destination approval | | | |
| Acceptance, invoice trigger and missed-target treatment | | | |
| Reporting and post-publication checks | | | |
| Removal / replacement terms and support period | | | |
| Asset ownership, cancellation and handoff | | | |

## Budget — fill using your own currency and terms

- Agreed external delivery fee:
- Separately priced asset production (do not double count):
- Approved tools / publisher charges / taxes / other external expenses:
- External cash total:
- Internal review hours × planning hourly cost:
- Combined planning total (cash and capacity kept identifiable):
- Exclusions and uncertainty:

Article illustration only: USD 2,000 project + USD 600 asset + 8 × USD 75 internal hours
= USD 3,200 planning total; external cash USD 2,600. All figures fictional. No outcome count assumed.

## Placement acceptance record

| Source URL | Destination | Context / anchor | Actual rel attributes | Known commercial arrangement | Approved by | Live date | Checked date | Status / next action |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| | | | | unknown until checked | | | | |

Pending and declined opportunities are not live placements. Paid links must be evaluated against
Google's current guidance; a dofollow or permanent-link promise does not prove method quality.
Keep delivery, referral visits, target-page search observations and business outcomes separate.