Choosing a New Marketing Agency: 5 Questions to Ask
Marketing is essential to running a successful business, so it’s important that you have the right team on your side. But while there are definitely some red flags to avoid when searching for an agency, there’s no such thing as a one-size-fits-all.
In other words, you need to make sure the agency you choose to work with is well suited to your goals. After all, you’re going to be working alongside them (and hopefully for a long time!).
So how exactly do you know what to look for?
To make the search a little easier, here are five essential questions to ask before committing.
How Many Services Do They Offer?
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: A multi-channel marketing approach is going to get the best results, no matter what your business. This is why you need to work with an agency who can easily add new services as required.
The alternative? Having to outsource different marketing services to different agencies. Why work with multiple agencies (and pay higher fees) when you can trust one team to handle everything for you?
“A service’s name might indicate what it does, but it won’t tell you what’s actually included.”
Granted, even agencies with a plethora of services will likely specialise in particular areas. Try to look for an agency that specialises in what you need, whether that be eCommerce, social media advertising, or SEO.
What’s Included With Each Service?
Let’s use social media management as an example. The name itself is fairly self-explanatory— you’re paying someone to manage your social media accounts for you. But that can include so many things.
Is every social media platform covered under this one service? Does it include responding to comments and messages? Following other accounts? Increasing engagement and following? Creating content for the calendar, including graphics and photos?
A service’s name might indicate what it does, but it won’t tell you what’s actually included. Before signing up for any marketing service, make sure to ask for a clear list of inclusions.
“You’re paying for years of collective education and experience that all attributes to your brand’s success.”
How Experienced Are They?
As much as marketing is about talking a big game, it’s important that your agency can also walk the walk.
The most reliable way to discern if an agency can do what you need them to do is to look for proof. Check out the case studies on their website and pay particular attention to the results. That means numbers. Ask which other clients they are currently working with and if they’ve worked with any brands similar to yours, currently or in the past.
Do they have a blog? They should. Have a read and see if they’re writing about the latest developments in their industry. This shows that they’re staying ahead of the curve and proactively growing their own knowledge and expertise for their clients’ benefit.
What’s Their Pricing Model?
Many agencies have two types of fees. There’s the initial service fee, and sometimes an additional cut of whatever profit you happen to make from your campaign, or the media spend that you invest. This means they can take some seriously big bucks from positive results, or an increase in budget.
Personally, we don’t use this pricing model. We prefer to let our clients fully enjoy their success and simply charge a standard price every quarter. This also allows us to remain transparent and, in our opinion, build a stronger sense of trust with our clients.
“As much as marketing is about talking a big game, it’s important that your agency can also walk the walk.”
Remember, you’re not just paying for the hours the agency is putting in. You’re paying for years of collective education and experience that all attributes to your brand’s success. And it’s worth every cent. Just think of it as an investment.
How Are Results Shared?
Here at Emote, we’re all about the results. But no matter what agency you’re with, you need to make sure that you’re seeing positive outcomes from what you’re investing in.
Whether it’s a regular monthly recap via email or regular in-person meetings, you want to be kept in the loop on how everything’s progressing. We give our clients access to a live reporting dashboard so they can check the status of their services any time they want.