Conventional marketing tactics have taken a backseat in brands’ bid to capture the attention of the right audience. Increasing Internet penetration has opened up new opportunities for brands to ramp up visibility, authority, and sales. All of that at much more affordable rates. This fact is corroborated by the rapid scaling of digital marketing in recent times. According to reports, the digital marketing industry was valued at $310 billion in 2019 with a growth rate of 12.8%. In fact, the biggest brands today are spending more than 21% of their budget on digital marketing alone.
Most big-budget brands tend to outsource their digital marketing needs to other agencies. While in-house marketing needs still exist, going digital is no mean feat. There are over 10 different segments of online marketing that need to be considered. From content marketing and emails to search engine marketing and social media, the scope of digital marketing is immense. Most companies cannot possibly keep up with the latest innovations in digital nor can they spare manpower and resources to handle each segment. This gap between the brand and the audience is filled by competent digital marketing agencies.
Hubspot revealed, in a survey, that over 66% of B2B companies outsource their digital marketing needs to other agencies. After all, it’s better to leave the marketing to the experts, right? Creative marketing companies make the pivotal process of designing a digital strategy much more streamlined. They have better resources to tap into and more experienced marketers to work with. But with scores of new agencies popping up worldwide, how do you filter out the best ones to work with?
Here is a 5 step blueprint you can follow to evaluate a digital marketing agency :
- What are your marketing needs?
Before you even begin to look for a digital marketing agency, you first need to introspect your own business.
What are your marketing goals? And how much money are you willing to spend on an agency? Asking yourself the right questions will help you narrow down your expectations from digital marketing.
Once you have a clearer idea of your needs, it’s time to start looking for the perfect agency that can elevate your brand.
2. Find an agency for your company
No one wants to trust a random agency from the market. That’s why it’s important to look in the right places. Start with a simple search on Google and analyze the results that show up. Look up their websites to see if they provide the services you want.
Another place to search is on LinkedIn. The best agencies usually have a robust social media presence. What better way to prove your marketing genius than to market yourselves?
A good marketing agency should have a solid website, an active social media presence, a certain degree of brand authority, and loads of testimonials.
3. It’s time for some background research
When Gandhi asked us to practice what we preach, only the best digital marketing agencies took him seriously. The best way to judge a marketing company’s worth is by stalking them online for a while.
Look at the content they are producing. Is it of the same quality you’d want for your brand? Are their social media creatives viral? How informative is their blog? Are their emails roping in clients?
If the answer to any of these questions is no, then you might be looking at the wrong agency.
4. Do a little policing
If you’ve watched Sherlock Holmes then you know how to ask the right questions. Before you sign up with a digital marketing agency, here are some questions you should ask them.
- Ask for their client portfolio and case studies, if available.
- Ask for the analytics for their own marketing campaigns.
- Who will be leading your campaign?
- What results can they promise you?
- What are their preferred KPI measures?
The answer to each question should be in line with your own goals.
5. Review a small task
Unfortunately, at times, even the best agencies might not be perfectly suited for your business processes. By asking them to do a prepaid sample task, you can understand how they work and how effective their communication is. Make sure that the task requires just a few days of work. If you like the end results, you can confidently sign them up for your brand.
Once you’ve gone through the five steps, all you need to do is call them up, set up a meeting, and sign the contract.
Selecting the right digital marketing agency isn’t an easy job. There’s a lot riding on your marketing campaigns. It’s always a better choice to do thorough research about your preferred agency to ensure that you achieve all your digital goals in time.
