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 If you are like many Chicago area business owners you are
probably unsure how to select the right online advertising agency. Am I right?
We understand
and we hope that this article will help you understand what factors to consider when making your
selection so that the needs of your business align closely with the experience and expertise of the
agency you choose.
What Industries
and Demographics Are the Focus of the Online Advertising Agency?
While the
mechanics of online advertising are similar no matter what the business, there can be differences,
so it makes sense to hire a company that has worked with industries similar to yours… to a
point. You see, too narrow of a focus can be problematic as well. Be wary of companies with too
narrow of a focus because what you receive from them may be “cookie cutter” and
recycled.
Another drawback
of too tight a focus? It’s possible that their narrow focus is keeping them sheltered from the most
current online advertising trends leaving you outdated approaches.
A company that
serves similar categories of industries (professionals, contractors) of similar sizes and
geographic coverage is likely your best bet.
For example, if
you are a local or regional accounting firm you will likely best be served by an online advertising
consultant who has experience with professional firms, local search marketing, local and regional
SEO and/or geo-targeted pay-per-click advertising.
Firms that serve
larger companies often don’t have this type of expertise and do not have the high-touch level of
customer service and support you will need.
PPC vs.
SEO
Okay, there
certainly is more to marketing on the Internet than pay per click and SEO but for a local business
such as yours either PPC (pay-per-click) or SEO (search engine optimization) should be at the core
of your online marketing efforts. Sure, some firms may have expertise in both areas but given the
complexity of each more often than not you will find that agencies specialize in one or the
other.
Having worked in
both camps for a number of years we have seen a decrease (documented by numerous third-party
studies) in consumer response to pay-per-click advertising. It is for this reason as well as the
higher level of trust placed in results provided by organic search that we have built organic
search marketing into the foundation of the FetchLocalCustomers marketing system.
Complete
Turnkey System or a Drain on Your Resources
Feeling as
though you already have too much to do is something I'm sure you can appreciate as a local business
person. Therefore, it is important that you understand exactly how the local online advertising
agencies you are interviewing work in regards to the amount of time and energy that will be
required from you and your staff.
For example,
online Agency “A” has impressive credentials and really seems to be well versed in their craft. So
far so good, right? Well it also turns out that Agency A’s approach to online marketing is far more
“advisor” than “doer” and neither you nor your staff have the extra time to do the work
yourselves.
Hiring Agency
"A" would be a mistake because instead of getting a marketing solution you would be getting an
enormous strain on your company's resources.
Contrast this
with online agency “B”. Agency B has equally impressive credentials and Agency Bs approach is to
provide a turnkey marketing system for its clients.
A review of
Agency Bs process shows that with the exception of some upfront interviews and final content
approval very little of your time or your staff's time will be required. For the busy business
owner who is already wearing too many hats Agency B is the far better choice.
Broad Expertise
and Experience
The expertise
and experience an online advertising agency brings to the table is an extremely important point of
comparison. You should be looking for a broad experience base that covers a variety of industries
as well as deep experience in the art and science of marketing. Relevant expertise to look for
would be selling, sales process, strategy and maybe even pricing.
This is
important because your business is undoubtedly unique in some ways
and an online
advertising agency that is to narrow in its focus both in terms of industries and marketing may
struggle to integrate their online advertising into your larger sales and marketing
vision.
Campaigns or a
Complete Marketing Process?
I've saved this
point for last because it is by far the most important. Many online agencies create campaigns for
their clients rather than creating complete marketing processes.
These campaigns
might involve pay per click, e-mail marketing, Facebook marketing or banner advertising. They would
have a defined start date, finish date and hopefully some form of results monitoring.
But what they
wouldn't be is a complete marketing system that was built upon a foundation of evergreen content,
fundamentally correct site design and structure and a built-in conversational marketing element
that would produce positive returns on investment for years to come.
Many years ago I
made the statement at a conference that marketing is not an event it is a continuous process and
today we built complete turnkey marketing processes for our clients that provide sustainable
long-term results.
You deserve and
should demand nothing less for your business!
The other day after speaking to a group of
business owners a gentleman raised his hand and asked "If you only had $100 to spend on local
online marketing, how would you spend it?"
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