In the digital age, marketing is more science than art. The era depicted in the hit series “Mad Men,” where advertising executives made decisions based on intuition and self-confidence, is gone. Taking their place are data-driven methods that allow you to have diverse programs that can be recalibrated at a moment’s notice.
Understanding this new science of marketing can be complicated, and it is often best to leave it up to the professionals. However, before you turn it over to an experienced digital marketing firm– do your homework. Here are six things you should identify first, before you hire a marketing firm.
What Are Your Marketing Goals?
The first thing you should know before hiring a marketing firm is what your business goals are. Until you have identified what business problem you are trying to solve, engaging with a marketing agency may not be particularly fruitful.
While you don’t need all the answers to every step of the sales funnel right now, you do need a basic understanding of what success looks like. That vision will help guide you toward the right marketing agency.
What Expertise does the Agency have in Digital Marketing?
The marketing mix now consists of a broad range of disciplines, from traditional public relations, advertising, and graphic design to newer fields such as search engine optimization (SEO) and influencer marketing. Some large marketing agencies will decide to become one-stop shops and offer a range of services. Others may decide to niche down and focus on one or two disciplines. With your marketing goals in mind, you can create a short list of the types of marketing firms that may be able to assist you.
How Does The Marketing Firm Approach Digital Strategy?
You and the marketing agency you hire will need to work together to develop a clearly articulated strategy to accomplish your objectives. There’s no one “right” way of developing strategy.
However, you need to understand the process your marketing agency will follow to create and execute that strategy. It needs to align with the goals and timelines of your organization and approach. To ensure that you are all working in the same capacity, ask questions focused around strategy, and request specific examples about how they execute. EWR Digital has a specific growth methodology we follow.
How has the agency performed for other Digital Marketing Clients?
While past performance is not a guarantee of future results, it can certainly set your mind at ease. Ask your marketing firm to provide examples of their work on prior campaigns, or view any testimonials or case studies on their website.
Ideally, they will have done work that is similar to what you are looking for. Also, ask if they have received industry awards or recognition and request references. Talking with a current or existing client can lend a lot of clarity to the question of whether this marketing firm has provided good work in the past and is a good fit for you.
How Does the Marketing Firm Measure and Report Results?
When you hire an agency to take over your marketing, you are not only spending a lot of capital for the service, but trusting them to make the changes you need for your business. To determine if the investment was worth the cost, the right agency should provide you with specific measurements and reporting metrics that show ROI, or can depict the campaigns process and milestones. Ask them for examples of metric tracking or reports they have filed with prior clients.
Who Is on the Marketing Team?
Ask your marketing firm how they will structure the account team and who will be responsible for managing your work. Typically, more junior members of marketing firms get assigned to complete day-to-day assignments.
For the more challenging questions and for any problems that may arise, you want to make sure that senior-level account executives are also involved in the work on your account. Senior team members can help facilitate productive conversation and troubleshoot any problems that may arise; they can also provide transparency into questions of billing and pricing and managing your budget.
Partner With EWR Digital for Marketing Support
Building a marketing strategy in the digital landscape today is more challenging than ever. The digital era has opened significant new channels and new approaches to getting noticed, offering ways to reach audiences through digital technology. EWR Digital is a nationally recognized full-service digital marketing agency that delivers for our clients with services such as digital strategy, SEO, web design, paid media, branding, video production, and more.
Our team works closely with clients big and small to create digital and omni-channel strategies and creative content that increases their digital presence, drives customers to their sites and, most importantly, delivers results that exceed their business goals.
Our ideal customer is the executive suite, leadership teams in sales, marketing, and IT at enterprise companies and brands across North America. Contact us online today to schedule a time to explore if we are the right agency for you?