My firm is pretty much on the other end… we do full-service SEO on an ongoing basis. This way we are able to stick around long enough to see the results (and be accountable for them) and also we’re able to adjust as we go, tweaking things when and where needed. I’ve done a few “consulting only” projects and didn’t enjoy it. I’d rather “do” then “write about what to do”. Plus, I got frustrated when I did a bunch of work and came up with great recommendations, got paid, but the client never implemented them. It wasn’t fulfilling.

You indicated that when you don’t have access to the client’s site directly that you can only do consulting. What about link building? You could “do” that rather than only consulting on that.

Anyhow different strokes for different folks. My comment here seems to belittle consulting. That’s not my intention. Rather, I just personally prefer the full-service model, that’s all.