Project Lavos

- Retainer relationships, 2026.

The relationship, after the work.

A retainer is a Phase-2 offering. It is never the entry point. A new relationship begins with an Audit or a Build; the retainer is introduced four to six weeks after a Build engagement has shipped, anchored on the results that Build produced. The shape below is what gets quoted when the conversation arrives there - not before. If you are reading this without having gone through an engagement yet, the right next page is Audit or Build.

01◆

Director Retainer

$1,250 – $1,500 / mo

One active workstream concurrent

The published anchor. A fractional marketing director shape - monthly Pulse, ongoing execution hours, on-call response.

Included

  • - Monthly Pulse report - analytics review, GEO citation tracking across ChatGPT / Claude / Perplexity / Gemini / AI Overviews, benchmark deltas against the prior month
  • - Four to eight execution hours each month - what the Pulse names as the next move, done
  • - On-call response during business hours for the questions a working engagement actually generates - a tracking gap, a copy decision, a campaign in flight
  • - Monthly thirty-to-sixty-minute strategy session - review what shipped, decide what next month sits on
  • - Continuity of record - the same operator who built it stays close to it

Not included

  • ×No paid advertising spend. Google Ads, Meta Ads budgets go direct to the platforms.
  • ×No commissioned photography or video. Scoped separately when needed.
  • ×No third-party tool subscriptions. Klaviyo, Tidio, Smile.io billed direct to the client.

- Scope beyond Director.

The pattern that emerges in practice - two or three concurrent workstreams, weekly cadence, ad management included, a seat at the table for strategic decisions - is what a fractional CMO arrangement looks like. The pricing on that shape is anchored by Director and derived from what the work actually requires, not pre-published as a tier. The conversation starts from the retainer the relationship has been on, never cold.

- The qualifying gate.

Retainers are introduced four to six weeks after Build delivery, anchored on the results that Build produced - not on a calendar, not on a sales cycle, not on a number you need to hit. The conversation happens when there is real evidence the next layer of work is identifiable. Retainers are never offered cold, never bundled into the initial proposal, never used to extend a relationship that the Build did not earn the right to extend.

Retainers begin where Build engagements end Or start at the front with an Audit

- Commit terms, 2026.

Longer commit, smaller monthly.

Month-to-month

Published rate

The standard. Cancel any month with 30 days' notice.

Quarterly prepay

−10%

Three months paid up front. Same scope. Roll-forward, no refund of unused months.

Annual prepay

−15%

Twelve months paid up front. Same scope. The deepest commit; chosen when the work has earned the year.

- Existing client, 2026.

Reply to your last Pulse. Or send a note.

Retainers are relational, not transactional. There is no checkout. If you are an existing client thinking about the next phase, the easiest path is to reply to your last Pulse report - the thread already has the context. If you are not yet a client, the right starting point is the Audit or Build page.

Direct contact

502.345.0525

- Frequently asked, 2026.

The honest questions.

Why isn't this offered initially?

A retainer that pre-dates the work is a subscription. A retainer that follows the work is a relationship. The Build engagement is what proves whether ongoing work is worth doing - without that proof, the retainer is selling a future the operator has not earned the right to predict. Four to six weeks after Build delivery, the results are real enough to anchor the next conversation honestly.

What does a monthly Pulse contain?

Analytics review against the prior month, GEO citation tracking across ChatGPT / Claude / Perplexity / Gemini / Google AI Overviews, benchmark deltas (traffic, conversions, citation count, ranking position for the queries that matter), the three things that moved, and the next move named explicitly. Delivered as a PDF; the strategy session covers the same ground in conversation.

Can I cancel?

Yes. Retainers are month-to-month. Thirty days notice ends the engagement cleanly - final Pulse delivered, credentials returned, no claw-back, no exit fee. The structure is designed so the client can leave on a day they decide; that constraint is what keeps the work honest.

What if the work grows beyond Director scope?

Director is the published anchor; scope beyond it is quoted from the work, not pre-priced as a separate tier. The pattern that emerges in practice - two or three concurrent workstreams, weekly cadence, ad management included, a seat at the table for strategic decisions - is what a fractional CMO arrangement looks like. The pricing on that shape is anchored by Director and derived from what the work actually requires. The conversation starts from the retainer the relationship has been on.

How long do most retainers run?

The honest answer is: until the work no longer compounds. Some run six months, some run multiple years, some taper to a maintenance shape that keeps the record current without active execution. The retainer that should end is the one where the client could not name what shipped last month. That conversation is on the operator to start, not the client.