What are you looking for in a marketing agency? Do you even know? Choosing a marketing agency is an important decision for your business, so it needs to be an informed one. What questions should you ask? What qualifications should you consider? If you invest the appropriate amount of time and energy into the process of choosing a marketing agency, you will end up with a team of people who will understand the vision that you have for your business, will work hard to turn that vision into a reality and will be the key ingredient to the overall success of your business. But how do you find the ideal partnership with the right marketing agency? We’ve got some tips to help guide you in your search.
Do Your Homework
The search for a marketing agency isn’t one to enter into blindly. Just as you would with a job interview or any other business decision, there is a certain amount of ‘homework’ involved in preparing to meet with potential agencies, or even to decide which ones are deserving of a meeting. What does this ‘homework’ consist of? Here are a few things to get you started -
· Spend some time on the agency’s website to familiarize yourself with their story, the services that they provide and the clients that they have on board.
· Invest some time in determining what your ideal marketing agency looks like – what can your ideal agency do for you and your business?
· Brainstorm with your team and come up with a list of starter questions that you need a potential agency to answer.
Consider Each Agency’s Workload
Of course, you want to choose a marketing agency that is successful in and around the community and that has worked with a wide range of clients, but it is important to consider the current workload of each agency.
Does the agency have so many clients that it would be difficult for them to devote the necessary time and attention to your business? Do they have so few clients that they may not have enough experience under their belt to provide top quality services? Consider both ends of the spectrum.
Request Samples of Their Work
There is no better way to get a good idea of the type of work that a marketing agency can offer than by seeing it for yourself! Don’t hesitate to ask a potential agency to provide samples of their work. Certain content may be unavailable due to confidentiality agreements, but it doesn’t hurt to inquire about other types of work/content that they can provide.
Keep an Open Mind
The best marketing agency is one that you can learn something from and that can provide you with fresh ideas for your business. Be open to experimenting with new ideas that could set your business apart from the competition. Those fresh ideas are also what will set a marketing agency apart from the others and help you make your decision. Don’t settle for the same ideas that they are offering to every other client.
Evaluate Their Communication Skills/Methods
blog.udemy.com
Communication between the marketing agency that you choose and your business is key. Talk to each agency about their preferred method of communication and make sure that those methods are compatible with your business. Also, during the preliminary stages of talking with the marketing agency, setting up meetings and discussing business plans, pay attention to how quickly and efficiently they respond – if their communication skills are slacking early on, that’s not a good sign for your business.
Trust Your Gut Instincts
Even if you ask all of the right questions and they provide all of the right answers, there is still a lot to be said for trusting your gut instincts. If you are on the fence and struggling to make a decision after meeting with potential agencies, chances are that your gut instinct will swoop in to help you make the call, so be sure and listen to it.
Are you ready to start telling your story? Reach out to us at The Storyteller Agency. Call us at 850.267.0931 or send us an email to info@storytelleragency.com. We would love to help you craft your brand's story and we have the resources necessary to allow you to share it via a multitude of creative outlets.
