don't do SEO

I don't do SEO (at least not for anyone other than myself), but in my business I'm also in a position in which some prospective clients try to "fish" for info and ideas that they can then go implement themselves. In an nutshell, they come to me for detailed marketing communication (marcom) plans, with the understanding that if they like what I propose, they'll hire me to execute it. The problem I faced was that to deliver a plan strong enough to compel them to hire me, I had to include insight and details that went beyond just the tip of the iceberg. The solution I came up with (after a few years of being burned) was to charge a fee for creating and delivering my marcom plans -- a fee that I would apply as a credit towards any work I did for the client if they subsequently hired me.

Works great to weed out the "fishers," and saves a lot of time that used to be wasted working for free.