Introduction
According to Statista the global spend on digital marketing is increasing every year and expected to reach a whopping $398 billion in 2021. There are many reasons why digital marketing has become so popular with businesses of all sizes and if you’re reading this article then you are probably already investing in digital marketing or thinking about doing it in the future.
Do you need a digital marketing agency?
The first question for you to consider is this: should you manage your digital marketing activities in-house or hire an external agency to do it for you?
On the surface, it can appear that digital marketing is quite straight forward. Just set up a business profile with Google and/or Facebook, then start running some paid adverts. Easy right?!
But in reality, digital marketing requires a great deal of knowledge and experience to get the best results and return on your investment. It is definitely possible to learn this, however is it worth the time, effort and costly mistakes that are inevitable when starting from scratch?
Digital marketing agencies will typically employ a team of experts who have been in the industry and learning their trade for years. So therefore, they are much more likely to achieve the results you are after, in a shorter space of time and more cost effectively.
What do digital marketing agencies do?
There are many different services that digital marketing agencies can provide, which include:
- Market research
- Google ads
- Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
- Social media adverts
- Social media management
- Email marketing
- Web design
Some agencies can provide all of these services whereas others will specialise in only a few. Before trying to find the right digital marketing agency for you, it’s worth taking a bit of time to consider which digital marketing services you require. If you are not sure, then it might be best to choose an agency that covers a broad spectrum.
What are your digital marketing requirements?
There are two main aspects to consider when thinking about your requirements. How much do you want to spend and what are your goals?
The general rule of thumb for calculating your marketing budget is to spend between 5-15% of your total revenue on these activities, and a report by Deloitte confirmed that the average figure is 11%.
When it comes to defining your digital marketing goals, it’s important to think about what you want to achieve. For example, it could be to get more brand awareness, increase website traffic or generate a greater amount of sales. This will have a big impact on what type of digital marketing activities will be best for you.
What should you look for in a digital marketing agency?
Location
Is it important for you to use an agency who are based locally so you can have face-to-face meetings with them? If the answer to this is ‘yes’, then you’ll want to search for companies who are based near you and have meeting facilities available.
Experience
There are low barriers of entry into the digital marketing industry, so there could be agencies or freelancers advertising their services who do not necessarily have very much experience. Therefore we highly recommend that you complete due diligence to make sure that the company you’re considering is legitimate and has adequate experience. You could do this by reviewing their website, looking them up on Companies House, checking reviews or even giving them a call.
Testimonials and case studies
Any digital marketing agency that is worth it’s salt, will have testimonials and/or case studies on their website. This will give you a good indication about the way they work and the results they deliver.
Culture
When you hire an agency to look after your digital marketing, you’re going to be forming a long term relationship with them (hopefully) and working together on a fairly regular basis. Therefore it’s important to find a company with a culture that you will gel with. You can get a good feel for this by checking out their social media channels and having a chat with them on the phone or in person.
Price
The cost of digital marketing services varies dramatically depending on who the agency is. You’re probably going to want to get the best value for money, but bear in mind that if you choose the cheapest provider you may not get the best return on your investment.
How to work with a digital marketing agency?
Once you have chosen an agency to handle your digital marketing requirements, here are a few tips on how you can get the most value.
Come prepared
Before meeting with your chosen agency it definitely pays to do some preparation first regarding your goals, your budget and any data you might have from previous marketing endeavours.
Don’t second guess their ideas
You’ve hired a team of experts, so it’s important to trust their ideas and suggestions. Try to be open minded because digital marketing does require some experimenting (especially at the beginning) and the technology changes so fast.
Use data and reports
Data is the king when it comes to digital marketing. Make sure the agency you have chosen will provide regular reports and use data to drive decisions for the future. This is how you can effectively monitor the performance of your strategy and ensure that the money you are spending is achieving the results that you desire.
Be prepared to increase your investment
Once you’ve seen a return on your investment it might be worthwhile to increase your spending to maximise your results.
