Looking At SEO As An Investment
SEO Based Ideas
There's no doubt that some people view search engine optimization as being something that costs a lot of money. This is partly an issue of perception, with many professionals having a relatively weak understanding of what SEO is all about.
Source: Internet-and-Businesses-Online:SEO
It is a good investment but one must understand that the greatest investment in this will be time because no one payment will magically make you reach first place in the search engines, you have to invest ongoing time into it.