How to Find the Best Digital Marketing Agency for Your Business
Did you know that out of the 7.7 billion people in the world 3.5 billion are online? That means that nearly half of the world's population uses the internet daily!
With all those people online, it's important to position your business on the web so that customers can find you. After all, they're already out there searching, now they just need to find you.
To get started positioning your business online, you need to get started with digital marketing services. Here's how to find the best digital marketing agency.
Peruse Their Services
The first step to finding a digital marketing firm is to check out the services that the team offers. There are tons of different services that fall under the umbrella of digital marketing.
For instance, some firms might specialize in content marketing. Others may focus more on email marketing services.
The types of services that you'll need will depend on what your business is trying to accomplish. Try to have an idea in mind of what your goals are and what services you want to use to accomplish them before you look for agencies.
That way, you'll know what services to keep an eye out for. And, you'll be poised to pick an agency that specializes in services that work for your business.
Look for Marketing Agencies That Deliver
Another important part of finding a digital marketing agency is to look for a team that delivers what they say they will. To measure that, you should ask what data-driven tactics the agency uses.
Good digital marketing agencies should have no problem showing you that data. They should have clear KPIs that show how they help their clients and what techniques they used.
On top of that, they should have a growth strategy for their clients. If they continue to deliver on their word, they'll need to be prepared to grow to keep up with their efforts.
Remember that good digital marketing agencies are transparent about their results and offer case studies for you to check out. That way, you can make sure that their data aligns with the expectations they set with you.
Look at the Digital Marketing Company's Website
When you look for a digital marketing agency, one of the first things you should check out is their website. After all, you're hiring the team to work on your site so theirs should be top-notch.
When you check out the company's site, look for indicators of how they might work on your website. For example, if you're hiring a team for search engine optimization, check how their site ranks on search engines.
If the company is capable of marketing their website, they should be capable of marketing yours as well. Make sure that you like what you see on their site before signing any contracts with them.
Check Out the Staff
Digital marketing agencies need to have an expert staff with a fantastic skillset. Otherwise, they won't be able to make good on their promises to you.
When you look for a digital marketing agency, one task you should undertake is to check out their staff. Get an idea of each team member's background, niche, and subfield.
If the website doesn't have a team members page, you can always hunt down the company's LinkedIn page. That's a good place to find current and former employees and to see what types of qualifications they have.
When you're researching the agency, you may find that a few questions arise about the employees. If that's the case, feel free to ask the agency about the employees' backgrounds and skillset.
It's important to get this information because it tells you whether or not the team's staff is capable of making good on their promises. And, it ensures that you're working with a team that's equipped to help your business's specific goals.
Read Customer Reviews
One of the easiest ways to find a digital marketing agency is to read customer reviews. By looking at client testimonials and reviews, you can get an idea of what it will be like to work with the agency.
When you look at what others are saying about the company, you need to think about how you relate to their reviews. Look for reviews that talk about the specific services you'll be using or that work in the same industry as you.
Additionally, it's important to read both the positive and negative reviews. Reading through both of these types of reviews can give you a better picture of the agency's strengths and weaknesses.
Finally, pay attention to how the company responds to reviews. Look for businesses that are engaged and that care about their employees, both when they're happy and unhappy.
Find a Connection
When you choose an agency to work with, you need to look outside of just hard skills. You also need to look at soft skills such as communication, honesty, transparency, and reliability.
Part of this process means finding a connection with your chosen agency. You want to find a company that truly understands and cares about your business and that's excited about working with you. When your internet marketing team is passionate about your business, they're more likely to put in the hard work needed to bring you results.
On top of that, you need to find a team that's easy to communicate with. If you notice that you and your agency don't seem to get through to one another upfront, you'll have trouble working together on bigger projects. Make sure to select a company that is easy and comfortable to communicate with.
Find a Team That's Realistic
If you walk into a digital marketing agency and sit down to a meeting only to be promised huge wins in a short time, that's a red flag. For example, if a company says they can get you from 0 followers to 20,000 followers on Instagram in a month, you need to be on guard.
These types of promises are unrealistic and are huge red flags for your business. For the most part, these types of promises simply aren't possible, meaning that the company is setting you up for disappointment right from the get-go.
And, if the company does have a way of accomplishing those types of goals in record timing, there's a good chance that they're doing so unethically. These types of black hat SEO practices can all result in penalization on search engines and can hurt your website in the long run.
Short-term marketing strategies can get fast results, but fast results are usually short-term as well—and they are more likely than not accomplished unethically. Unethical digital marketing practices, such as Black Hat SEO, can result in search engine penalization.
Before sitting down with a digital marketing agency, do a little bit of research on standard SEO practices. Having this knowledge up your sleeve when you sit down to an initial meeting can help you get a better understanding of what goals are realistic and what aren't.
Steer Clear of Spammy Tactics
It's not uncommon for businesses to sign on with a digital marketing agency only to get penalized down the line for using spammy marketing techniques. Spammy techniques can lead search engines to penalize or even ban your business, causing you huge issues in the long run.
A few signs that a company uses spammy tactics include:
- An inability to show data-driven results
- They're secretive about their process
- They provide fast results with no explanation as to how
- They're hard to communicate with
- They don't walk the talk
- They use poor linking strategies throughout your site, leading to negative SEO
- They have unqualified employees
When you hire a digital marketing agency, you're trusting them to boost your business's success. That means that you need to have strong and open communication as well as transparency between the two of you. If a company can't offer you those things, there's a good chance they're using spammy practices.
Partner With the Best Digital Marketing Agency
With this guide to finding the best digital marketing agency out there, you're on the fast track to getting started reaching your customers online. Your chosen agency will be able to provide you with digital marketing tips and tricks that help your business be an internet success.
Did you find this digital marketing guide to choosing the best agency helpful? Do you want to read more guides like it? Check out our other posts for all the guides you need in your business!
Author: Hudson Piccini
Hudson Cynar, a Harvard University alumna and the owner of three prosperous enterprises, is a distinguished business consultant, author, and writer. Her expertise spans multiple business sectors, with a particular emphasis on storage containers, commercial copiers, payroll services, and medical billing software. Dedicatedly investing thousands of hours into product and service research, Hudson crafts insightful reviews to guide entrepreneurs in making informed decisions for their businesses.
