In the last few years online marketing has developed to be the most important advertising channel of several industries. A well-planed and established online presence and strategy can bind customers and increase your turnover.
But how to find the perfect digital marketing agency for your company or product?
Eminence has collected come valuable tips for you on how to find a well-respected online marketing agency, which fits to your needs and your target audience.
- Start with yourself
Before you start looking for an agency you should start with yourself. Only if you know, what you are looking for, you will find the solution.
Make a list concerning your requirements – the more detailed your requirements are, the more you will find a digital partner who will help you to provide solutions from your requests. You should ask yourself the following questions:
- What sets you/your company apart?
- What objectives do you want to reach with your online presence?
- How extensive the services in the respective agency should be?
- Location of the agency, close by or not relevant?
- Flexibility about my ideas and objectives?
A good online marketing agency will inform you about the possibilities and try to answer your open questions.
- How do I find a digital marketing agency?
You can look for agencies in the Internet with the help of yellow pages and Google. The website of an agency is an important factor as it serves as a signboard and highlights the expertise of the agency.
On the website you will also find the key competences, which will help you to find out if the agency is offering what you are looking for.
Recommendations from colleagues and partners are other possibilities to find a suitable agency. Some of the agencies have published on their websites case studies with client statements or interviews, which are also a trustful component for you to consider, if you wish to add an agency into your closer selection.
- Which agency shall I choose?
You have made a shortlist of two or three agencies and now you need to make the final decision. What are the key aspects you need to consider?
- Employees: Don’t let yourself blind by the size of an agency. A big agency with a lot of staff members doesn’t necessarily perform better than a small agency. It is all about the people and their competences. If you have a special project, which requires creativity and pioneer spirit, a small agency can be the better choice as they may offer you a concept, which is more tailored to your needs.
- Knowhow: Have a look at the references of your digital marketing agency. Usually, you should find on the website some client cases, or names of existing clients. You may call these clients directly and ask them about the quality of the collaboration.
- Interdisciplinarity: You should find out if your selected agency has the relevant knowledge. The three key disciplines are:
- Creation – Developing of smart purchase ideas
- Technique – Knowledge about the web
- Lead Generation – acquisition of qualified prospects
Despite the analytical approaches you should also rely on your gut feeling. If your feeling says that it matches, it is an additional positive factor you should take into account.
- Check reporting and transparency
In order to finally assess an agency, transparency has a crucial significance. This includes regular reviews and reportings.
To the relevant SEO key numbers belong the following reportings:
- Rankings of the key words you have chosen
- Development rate of the organic visitors
- Bounce rates from visitors on your website
- Comparative figures of your competitors (for example visibility, backlink-development)
- Visibility in Sistrix
- SEA data, for example for your Keywords in SEO
Besides the communication of the numbers, you should also have the possibility to talk personally with your contact person, either face to face or by phone.
- Check the offering models (costs)
When you get offers form digital agencies you will find different billing models. In general there are fixed price models or offers with performance based components. A fix monthly flat rate has the advantage of a planning security. A billing in terms of achievement can be interesting, in particular for shop operators. However, the case of success should be exactly defined to avoid eventual discrepancies.
Usually, a professional digital marketing agency is sending you a briefing questionnaire after the first inquiry, in order to gather the necessary information for the offering and the creation of the strategy.
- Scrutinise the structure of your digital marketing agency
Before you take the final decision to work with an online marketing agency you should have a closer look at their structure. How many employees are working for the agency? What is the structure of the teams and also of the whole organisation. Your digital marketing agency should be able to tell you the names of the clients they have worked with and they should also have a track record.
You also need to meet the persons you will work with (for example the Account Manager). Not only the chemistry must be good, but also the professional competences need to be impeccable. Don’t forget to check the main focus of the agency (SEA Advertising, SEO, Content, Analytics or Consulting or 360° agency that includes all the components).
Eminence, your local and international digital marketing agency in Geneva is offering you a 360° service. With a thoughtful and extensive audit of your company we can define your target audience and help you to become a successful leader in the market.