What to Know Before Hiring a Digital Marketing Agency
When it comes to digital marketing, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Every business is different, and so are its marketing needs. That’s why it’s important to do your research before hiring a digital marketing agency. Here are a few things to keep in mind:
Define Your Goals
When considering a digital marketing agency, it’s important to have clear goals in mind. There are many different digital marketing companies and each has its own strengths and weaknesses. Before hiring a specific agency, you’ll want to make sure that they understand the specific needs of your business and budget, and can help you achieve your desired results.
When defining your goals, think about what it is you want to achieve through digital marketing and consider the following:
Are you looking to attract more customers? Increase ROI? Decrease churn? What are the benefits of using digital marketing vs. the costs associated with doing so? Do some research into current industry trends and how they might be affecting your business – this will give you an idea of areas where investing in digital marketing could be worthwhile. Determine whether or not you need full blown online campaigns (eg: website design/development, SEM Ads), direct email acquisition, or a combination of all three. This will help distinguish which type(s) of agencies would be best suited for helping you reach your objectives. Be transparent about what expectations you and the agency have for each other, including timelines for results, budget information, etc.. Doing this will help ensure both parties are on the same page from the start and there are no misunderstandings down the road.
Check Credentials
One of the initial things to do when looking for a digital marketing agency is to make sure they have the proper credentials. While not all agencies are required to have formal education or experience in digital marketing, most adhere to rigorous criteria that sets them apart from their less-qualified counterparts.
Below are some of the best practices for checking qualifications:
Ask about experience and track record: Ask how long the agency has been in business, what types of clients they’ve worked with, and what kind of results they’ve achieved. The best agencies will be able to point out specific projects they’ve been involved in and share case studies of successful campaigns they’ve designed.
Check references: Ask industry veterans if they would be willing to provide a positive reference for your prospect. It’s important to get names that you can trust; don’t choose an agent simply because they have connections in your industry.
Review online resources: Many firms offer online reviews as part of their profile. Check these reviews before making a decision on who to work with. Bad ratings can indicate problems with service quality or delivery, which is something you want to avoid at all costs.
Request and Evaluate a Proposal
In continuing your selection of a digital marketing agency, check to see if the agency has any certifications or awards. This will give you some assurance that the agency is experienced and knowledgeable in the field. Once you’ve researched the agency’s services. Make and read the reviews, you’ll want to compare pricing before making a decision. Request a proposal from each of the contending agencies. This provides a better idea of what they can offer you and how much it will cost.
After you’ve received proposals from prospective agencies, make sure they’ve successfully executed online campaigns for both small and large businesses. Furthermore, assess the team’s expertise in different areas of digital marketing, such as website design, SEO, Social Media Management, etc. Finally, verify that the team is available on a set timeline and can commit enough resources to your campaign.
Make Your Decision
After asking and contemplating these important questions, and carefully reviewing the proposals, it’s up to you to decide which digital marketing agency offers you the most comprehensive package in servicing the needs of your business at a price you afford.
Conclusion
When it comes to hiring a digital marketing agency, doing your research and knowing what you want are key. Make sure to check an agency’s credentials and ask for a proposal before making your final decision. Working with a reputable and experienced agency can help you reach your business goals.
When you’re ready for your business to become a bigger brand, get noticed, reach more customers, make an impression, and get more sales, through customized marketing strategies from proven experts, start your search where you’re sure to make the most IMPACT. Serving over one hundred happy clients for nearly ten years, with a 100% satisfaction guaranteed, IMPACT Digital Marketing has your best interests in mind when delivering on your goals. Get started, request a quote today!
How to Manage a Marketing Budget for a Small Business
If you are running a business, digital marketing strategies and techniques can help you sell more of your products or services with ease. Building a strategic marketing budget will help as you reach more customers and build your ROI.
For marketing companies in Michigan or elsewhere, a strategic marketing budget is crucial to determine how much to allocate for advertising and design, marketing communications, and many more aspects. Failing to strategically fund marketing campaigns can result in a lack of results from insufficient reach.
Strategic marketing budgets are essential for business longevity. The best way to ensure that your money is being well spent is to develop a strategic marketing budget to then formulate a reliable marketing plan. Below we’ll discuss the four important factors to consider in order to build and manage a marketing budget for your small business.
1. Developing Your Marketing Strategy
Before you set your marketing budget, take the time to first align your marketing goals with your business goals and aim for future growth. This will help you gain more satisfactory results. In case you plan to grow your business value by 25%, but only invest very little in marketing just enough to get new business cards for your team, you probably won’t see much growth from this small investment.
Set Specific Goals
Your goals are essential components that help make up a successful marketing strategy. Of course, the end goal is to increase sales, however, you want to be more specific at this point. Decide whether your marketing goal is to increase engagement with the audience on social media platforms or to drive traffic to your website, or both. Being more specific with your goals will help you create the right marketing strategy.
Focus More On Your Customers
As a small business owner, it’s important to understand the channels that work best for your business to reach potential customers before setting a marketing budget. To determine the best channels for your business, in-depth research on your target audience is required.
Most marketing companies in Michigan start by learning about the basic demographics like general age group, income level, geographical area, types of brands they gravitate toward, and other information that can be useful to create a marketing strategy tailored to your target audience.
Once you get an idea of the needs and requirements of your potential customers, it will get easier for you to figure out the best channels to better guide your audience through the strategic sales funnel.
2. Setting Your Marketing Budget
Once you have set your marketing goals, your next step is to identify the budget you want to invest into marketing. Setting a marketing budget will allow you to develop a comprehensive marketing plan that can support your marketing strategy. Here are a few methods most marketing companies in Michigan use to calculate the marketing budget.
Revenue
You can determine your budget for marketing purposes by reviewing your annual revenue reports. Some companies will usually invest between 6.5% to 8.5% into marketing. Newer businesses often go for a higher percentage to boost starting sales.
Competition
You could do a little research before you decide on the budget for your investment depending on how much your competitors are spending. Remember to also investigate the results of the competition’s efforts in addition to the budget for the purpose of ROI.
Goals
Determine your management expenses and marketing goals, and then you can set a budget that will prepare you to achieve those goals.
3. Creating Your Marketing Plan
Once you have your marketing goals and budget, now you can move on to developing a tactical marketing plan to achieve your goals. The marketing budget you have set will determine the complexity of your marketing plan. In addition to the plans in mind, consider adding components related to social media, SEO, paid advertising, and email marketing for more support.
4. Banking On Your Marketing Budget
Once you have a plan in hand that supports the marketing goals for your company, the next step is to implement the budget. Here you will need a team of qualified designers, marketers, and technical experts to ensure the successful implementation of your plan.
Keep in mind you can always come up with innovative ideas to market your business without spending extra money, too. There are countless channels, platforms, and marketing techniques you can try on for size. Don’t be afraid to dabble.
If you’re not sure what to try, start with your marketing goals and remember to focus on fulfilling the needs of your audience and accentuating how you can solve their problems.
If you are ready to dive into creating a more professional, strategic marketing budget, IMPACT Digital Marketing is one of the top marketing companies in Michigan. We have the expertise and knowledge to prepare a marketing budget that supports and works for your unique business needs and goals. With us, you will get services from top-notch marketing experts and the chance to work with a team of talented individuals that strives to succeed and prove the value of its services. Contact us today to talk about building a strategic marketing budget for your business.
