A web design agency can add content marketing without building a full writing team. You can hire in-house, use AI with strong human review or work with a content partner. The right model depends on your client demand, margins, internal skills and the level of oversight you can provide. From there, the key is to price the service properly, choose a reliable production process and start with an offer your agency can deliver consistently.
You build beautiful websites. The client is happy at launch. Then six months later, the site has the same placeholder blog posts, half the service pages are thin, and the client wonders why their website is not generating leads.
This is the empty website problem, and every web design agency knows some version of it. You hand over a polished product, but without enough useful content, the website has less to work with. The client gets frustrated, and the value of the project becomes harder to see.
Content marketing can help solve that problem while creating an ongoing service for your agency. Here is how to add it without hiring a full team of writers or pretending to be something you are not.
Web design is a project-based business. You build the site, you invoice, you move on. The client might come back for a redesign in three years, or they might not.
Content marketing is different because the need can continue after launch. Monthly articles, service page updates and campaign landing pages can all recur. Agencies that offer content alongside web design may see three practical benefits.
The objection most agency owners have is “We are not writers.” That is fine. You do not need to be.
Best for: Agencies with 10+ staff and consistent content demand.
Hiring a content writer or content manager gives you full control over quality and output. But it comes with fixed costs including salary, super, leave and training. If content demand drops, the employment cost remains.
Typical cost: $60,000-$80,000 per year for an experienced content writer in Australia. You need to consistently sell enough content to cover that cost plus margin.
The risk: If you lose two or three content clients, you still have the salary expense.
Best for: Agencies that want to test the market before committing.
AI writing tools (ChatGPT, Jasper, Copy.ai) can produce first drafts quickly. Some agencies use them to offer a basic content service at low margins.
The reality: AI tools produce draft-quality content, not publication-quality. Someone on your team still needs to do the following.
When you add up the time your team spends on briefing, editing, and quality control, the “cheap” AI content is not as cheap as it looks. And if the quality is inconsistent, it damages your agency’s reputation with the client.
Best for: Agencies of any size that want to offer content without building a team.
A content partner handles the research, writing, and quality control. You white-label the output under your agency brand or present it as a collaborative service. You set the margin.
Advantages:
The risk: Choosing a bad partner. More on that in a moment.
There are two common pricing models:
You buy content from a partner or freelancer at their price and add your margin. If a blog post costs you $150, you sell it for $250-350. Your margin covers account management, client communication, and quality oversight.
Pros: Simple to implement, clear margins.
Cons: Clients may compare your prices to direct content providers.
You include content in your web design packages or monthly retainers. Instead of selling individual articles as separate line items, you might offer a monthly growth retainer that combines maintenance, content and reporting.
Pros: Higher perceived value, harder for clients to compare line items, stickier relationships.
Cons: Requires more planning and consistent delivery.
Our recommendation: Start with the bundled model. It positions content as part of a complete service, not an optional add-on.
If you go the partnership route, here is what matters:
Red flags:
For a deeper dive on choosing a content partner, read our guide: White-Label Content Writing: How to Choose a Partner That Won’t Embarrass Your Agency
You already have clients with websites you built. Here is how to introduce content as a service without making it sound like a generic upsell.
The website review approach. Offer a free 15-minute review of the client’s key pages. Point out where service information is thin, outdated or missing, and compare that with the questions customers are likely to ask. The goal is to identify useful improvements, not simply prove that the website needs more blog posts.
The “your website is working, but it could work harder” conversation. Frame content not as fixing something broken but as unlocking potential. “Your website looks great and works well technically. The missing piece is content that brings people to it.”
The competitor comparison. Show the client what competitors are publishing, but focus on usefulness rather than volume. A competitor with more articles is not automatically performing better. Look at whether their content answers important questions or covers services your client’s website barely explains.
Start small. Do not pitch a 12-month content retainer on the first conversation. Offer a trial: “Let us write 3 blog posts for you over the next 6 weeks. If they perform, we can talk about an ongoing arrangement.”
You do not need a full content department on day one. Start with this:
The point is to start somewhere. A website with thin or missing service information has less chance to explain the client’s value clearly, and that can reflect on the project even when your agency did not write the copy.
Related reading:
Want to discuss a content partnership? Get in touch to talk about how we work with web design and digital agencies.
