Assessing a quote that includes a "search engine optimization" starter kit

BACKGROUND: Our company has received a quote for publishing a 150-page print report as web pages (in HTML). The quote includes something called an SEO starter package for ~ $5500, which I understand means careful coding of web pages to ensure search engines find, spider and rank our report, thus ensuring optimal exposure of our report on the web. Normally our reports our in PDF format and behind a registration page. For this report, we are being encouraged to offer it up as a "loss leader" in a sense  take it out behind our registration page, forgoing enriching our database of names, and make it freely accessible to everyone on the web. The links within the report will point back to our company website. (The report is free of charge, regardless of whether it is behind our registration page or not.) The report itself is data-rich, about prosperity, innovation, education, ranking 18 countries on about 50 indicators. The research is excellent, and this report would serve as a good "ambassador" for our company if easily accessible on the web and got optimal rankings on the web.
QUESTION: I am part of a committee analysing this quote, and am not equipped to answer whether paying $5500 for the "SEO starter package" makes sense, although intuitively I agree with this approach. Our manager of our current electronic library of reports, who has far more understanding about the web, says the SEO starter package is unnecessary: he feels the text in the report alone will generate the web hits. The company who has provided us with this quote has a depth of experience that is impressive, and has developed websites for top companies around the world, so I am more inclined to take their advice, but am being challenged by others who think it might be a money grab. So I thought it would be a good idea to turn to the experts on this website for advice!
Thanks in advance,
Andrea