Modern marketers are expected to be experts at everything: web design, UX design, social media, paid and organic search, even offline advertising. It can be almost impossible to manage all of these things in-house and manage them well without a large team. That’s where digital marketing agencies come in.
Working with the right digital agency can transform your business, which is why making the right choice is so important. So we’ve listed 6 criteria to consider when selecting the right digital agency for you and your business.
1. Set yourself clear goals
The first thing to do before engaging with an agency is to determine what you want to achieve. Not having goals is a recipe for disaster; you won’t be able to measure your campaign results and it will be difficult to hold yourself or your agency accountable.
From an agency perspective, they’ll need to know what your goals are so they have a foundation to work with and to know what is expected of them. It’ll save you a lot of time and money in the long run.
Tip: Try and keep your goals specific and achievable.
2. Find an agency that fits your needs
Refining your goals is a great step to towards narrowing down your choices. There are many great agencies out there, but they aren’t necessarily perfect for you. Do your research and find agencies that have experience in your field and have a good portfolio of successful work (more on testimonials and case studies later).
Being able to do work is one thing, but there are other factors to consider too. Do you have the budget? There can be a huge variance in what digital agencies charge for their work so find agencies within your budget.
Another feature of a successful agency relationship is the relationship you have with your account management team. You’ll be communicating with them on a daily basis so you need to form a strong bond with them.
Tip: Before you commit to an agency, try and get to know the people who will be running your account first.
3. Do your research
It makes sense to do your research before shortlisting. A good way to test a digital agency is to look at their own website. Do they “walk the walk” when it comes to their own digital marketing? What are they ranking for? How good is their own content marketing? Do they even have a blog. You don’t want to be trusting a company to build your website if their own is lacklustre and full of errors. Similarly, a social media agency should have a stellar social media presence of its own.
Tip: Be thorough and check out their site visibility both organically and on social media (and their paid ads if you’re looking for PPC management services). Ask for recommendations from your network and on LinkedIn as well.
4. Case studies
So you’ve found an agency that fits your needs and has its own digital marketing in order — now it’s time to find out what they’ve done for their clients. A good agency should be falling over itself to provide you with case studies and the successful work they’ve done for other companies.
In our own roundups of the best agencies, we’ve been able to list previous clients for this very reason. If you’ve worked for the biggest companies in the world, why wouldn’t you talk about it?
There are some caveats. If you’re thinking of using a newly founded agency, then case studies probably won’t be available. This isn’t necessarily a dealbreaker as the people who have formed the agency should be able to provide you with a portfolio of work they’ve been involved in previously.
Some companies also want to stay private which means case studies will be anonymous but the results aren’t so keep that in mind.
5. Testimonials
In addition to case studies, digital agencies should provide testimonials from current clients. Most agencies will include client testimonials on their website and in their marketing materials. You can also check sites like Google, Facebook, Capterra, and G2 for reviews.
Tip: The best kinds of testimonials are success stories and we have an article about that very thing so check it out: Success Stories Of Brands Using Digital Agencies
6. Costs
A lot of client/agency relationships come undone due to budgets. As we mentioned earlier, setting a realistic budget is important so you aren’t wasting time talking to agencies that are way out of your price range.
There are other things to consider when it comes to costs too.
- What services are you getting for your money?
- What is included in the price and what isn’t?
- At what rates will additional hours be charged?
Being clear about this at the outset will avoid a lot of frustration later on.
Can Adzooma Marketplace help?
You’ve probably already heard of marketplaces such as People Per Hour, Fiverr and Upwork. If you’re running a small business, on a limited budget, then these marketplaces can seem like a good solution. But the quality isn’t always up to scratch. After all, many of those marketplaces feature freelancers who take on multiple jobs at once. They can’t do everything.
But Adzooma Marketplace doesn’t have that problem. Containing hundreds of agencies covering a variety of areas, Marketplace hosts the most skilled professionals around. Finding the right digital agency works in three easy steps:
- Search for the type of agency you’re looking for
- View their details to find out
- Contact them to see how you can work together
Finding the right digital marketing agency can transform your business and take it to new levels of success. Give yourself the best chance of finding the right one by trying Adzooma Marketplace today.
