How to Choose the Best SEO Digital Marketing Agency
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How many digital marketing agencies are there in the US? According to Ibis World, there are over 5000 digital advertising agencies in the United States.
The decision to hire a digital marketing company is easy but getting the best can be frustrating. With the internet, you can even access the services of any agency across the globe.
The vast number of companies to choose from does not give you options but a headache. You might end up in the hands of amateurs who understand little about the industry.
But should you give up on hiring a digital marketing agency? Definitely not.
After working with businesses across industries, we understand what you are looking for. That is why we have curated a list of factors to consider when hiring a full-service digital marketing agency.
You will also know the process of hiring a digital marketing company to avoid any pitfalls. Whether you are in the USA or any other part of the world, the rules of the game are the same.
But before then, we will look at some of the services online advertising companies offer.
Internet Marketing Agency Scope of Services
For startups, it is not uncommon to hear this question: what do digital marketing agencies do? For most businesses, the role of an online advertising company is not clear.
The primary services of digital marketing companies include:
- Web Design
- Content Marketing
- Social Media Marketing
- Pay Per Click
- Search Engine Optimization
- Digital Analytics
1. Web Design & Development
Today, almost every business understands the value of a website. Web design involves the front-end creation of what you see on a website. On the other hand, web development refers to the back-end creation of a site’s functionality for the internet.
A website is a necessity if you want to scale your business and tap the online market. Characteristics of a good website include a responsive interface, fast loading, good choice of brand colors, and easy to navigate.
Digital marketing agencies should have staff to create and maintain your website. A site helps you to build your brand and create credibility. Most buyers must check a product online before any purchase. That is why you should have one.
2. Content Marketing
Content marketing refers to the development of informational, entertainment, or social media posts in the form of videos, images, or words to attract your target audience.
Although this is a task that you can do for your company, digital marketers bring professionalism. Digital Marksmen uses tools like SEMrush and ahref to analyze the impact of content on your brand.
For most companies, it is not easy to maintain consistency without compromising the other aspects of your brand. A digital marketing agency gives you the freedom to focus on other areas of your business.
3. Social Media Marketing
Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter, Pinterest, and other social media give you touch with your audience. It is possible to interact with your potential customers, answer questions, advertise, and create polls through social media.
Social media is also a sure way to analyze your competitor performance. This is one of the platforms you can get first-hand data from other players in the industry.
It is essential to identify the best social media platforms for your brand. For example, if you are selling products to millennials, Facebook and Instagram are the best platforms.
For a corporate audience, LinkedIn will be a good option. Digital marketing agencies create relevant content for each platform and maintain consistency.
Your brand image should create a long-lasting impression from the first time potential clients interact with it. That is why it is important to know what your audience wants.
4. Pay Per Click
PPC or pay per click is an internet marketing that charges businesses for each click on their post. Some platforms that offer pay-per-click marketing opportunities are Google, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, Apps, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Bing.
For this marketing strategy to be effective, you should get some metrics right. You should understand your target audience to get positive results.
Although some of the platforms offer automation option, it is not the best because you might not be able to control some features of your campaigns, like the budget. Hire a digital marketing agency for PPC ads if you want guaranteed results.
5. Search Engine Optimization
SEO was simple in previous years. However, search engines are updating algorithms to make the user experience as good as possible.
Consequently, it has become challenging to rank without technical search engine optimization. Factors like website speed, on-page, and off-page optimization require an expert to fix.
Are you wondering why you are not ranking high on search engine result pages? Maybe it is time you try a digital marketing company to fix your website.
6. Digital Analytics
Numbers are an integral part of marketing. You need to see what you are putting into it and the results that you will get.
Blind digital marketing can land your business on a downward trajectory. Therefore, you should have the stats correct. Analyze the expenses and the income your marketing strategies are bringing.
Some of the most important digital marketing analytics are content engagement, click-through rate, bounce rate, conversion rate, and cost per click.
7. Email Marketing
Most businesses confuse email marketing with sending bulky and general emails without any focus. Although you may get a few replies, this can also create adverse effects on your brand.
It is advisable to avoid spamming inboxes with messages about your products, services, or offers. Creating a successful email marketing campaign requires analytics before you execute the plan.
Digital marketing agency services include email marketing to increase conversions.
Why You Need an Online Marketing Company
A local digital marketing agency has the experience of the market trends in your location. If you want data on the audience trends in your target area, you can contract or hire an online advertising company. What are the benefits of hiring a professional digital marketer?
1. Increase Conversions & Business Growth
Most businesses struggle with results from their marketing campaigns. Have you tried to create content and ads on social media or your website, but the results are the same?
A digital marketing agency can help you improve results through market research and the implementation of successful strategies.
Digital marketing companies use tools that track the progress of your marketing campaign. Therefore, you can know when you are making losses and when the results are positive.
Digital marketing takes time to bring results, especially if you want to get organic traffic. However, PPC strategies and email marketing are good short-term options if you want instant results.
2. Budget Management
Return on investment is a concern for any visionary business. The first step in having positive results from your marketing is tracking your expenses and revenues from campaigns.
Digital agencies analyze the best platforms to leverage for your business success. The companies then set up campaigns, evaluate results and choose the most successful.
It can be hectic trying to manage other aspects of your business as you focus on market research and analytics. If you have a Facebook page, website, Google, emails, and ads on your plate, you can neglect some and miss out on a potential clientele.
3. Focus on Other Business Aspects
SEO digital marketing agencies are experts in the field. They have interacted with businesses across industries. Therefore, they understand the best marketing approaches for most companies.
Hiring a digital marketing company gives you the freedom to focus on what you do best. For example, if you are a plumber, you can focus on your work as we help you get more clients.
Digital Marksmen allows you to focus on other aspects of your business as we help in marketing. After years working across industries like solar energy, home improvement, NGOs, ecommerce, and health, you can count on us to set your business to grow.
4. Supplement Your Skills
Unless you are an expert in digital marketing, you need to bring in an expert for business growth. Most startups have no financial muscle to hire a full-time digital marketer. However, this is an essential part for the success of your business.
Another challenge might be the time required to learn all the loops of online marketing. A digital marketing company comes in and sets up a campaign that will yield results.
Digital marketing agencies also work with several companies and have experience. Therefore, it will take a short time for results to start streaming in.
5. Get Access to Necessary Tools
Guesswork doesn’t work if you want to grow your business. There are necessary premium tools if you’re going to see results from your campaigns.
Most of the tools may strain your revenues because the cost is not sustainable. Digital marketing agencies have different tools to measure various metrics. Because the software are shared between many businesses, it is easy to sustain.
You can get the metrics on PPC campaigns, organic traffic, and email marketing. The insights are essential in improving your margins and reducing costs.
Factors to Consider When Choosing a Digital Marketing Agency
Hiring the right digital marketing company can take a toll on your time. Apart from that, it is challenging to get the best from a pool of over 5000 agencies in the USA. Digital marketing is an online service that is not limited by boundaries; therefore, there are even more to choose from.
We’ve created a list of factors that should help you a reliable digital agency for your business. Let’s dive in.
a.) Diversity of Skills
As highlighted in the first section of this article, the scope of digital marketing agency services is diverse. Therefore, you need a company that can offer comprehensive services.
The idea of hiring different agencies can lead to a lack of consistency in your campaigns. Because some of the data you share with digital marketing agencies is confidential, reducing the number of hands handling the information is essential.
Another reason why you need an agency that offers various services is to reduce the expenses and errors. When different people manage your business marketing, errors can arise due to a lack of communication.
Digital Marksmen is the best agency if you want all your marketing under one roof. We offer social media, PPC, content marketing, email marketing, digital analytics, and web design services.
Our experts have years of experience across several industries. We work as a team to deliver the desired results and give you feedback on the best marketing strategies for your business.
b.) Transparency in Communication
There is no magic pill to conversion or ranking number one on search engines. It requires consistency and quality work for you to outdo competitors.
However, some digital marketing companies may promise you Google position zero within 2 weeks. Although this is possible, no one should guarantee such results within a specific timeline.
Another aspect of digital marketing that requires honesty is communication. The company you contract should give you the correct information about results and figures. Some agencies may present bloated statistics which don’t reflect on your margins.
Although most online advertising companies don’t have a physical location, they should provide a responsive website and active contact for ease of communication. If they dodge your request for their details, it is time you take off and save your wallet.
c.) Your Budget & Pricing
You don’t have to break your bank to hire an SEO digital marketing agency. You should evaluate your budget and what you are getting from your potential service provider.
Some factors that may affect the amount you pay for digital marketing services include the scope of service engagement and frequency. If you want a complete digital marketing package, you will pay more than someone who wants content marketing services.
When comparing different pricing, you should not compromise on the value. Return on investment is an essential factor because you want to increase your margins. Some digital marketing agencies may charge low, but the results are dismal.
d.) Portfolio, Reviews, Testimonials & Case Studies
The best thing about digital marketing services is that you can have an online portfolio. Therefore, the potential company should showcase its previous work. From the samples, you can tell whether the services match your needs and expectations.
Although there may be digital marketing agency startups with little work to show, their website speaks volumes. The responsiveness, speed, and user interface can tell you if it is a hit or a miss.
Apart from that, online reviews and testimonials from previous clients speak volumes. You can also look at different case studies where the company has been involved. This shows you what the agency did and the impact it had on the business.
There should be consistency of information across different platforms. For example, if the reviews on Google show that they are a reliable company, it should be the same on Facebook.
e.) Data Priority
The objective of any company when hiring a digital marketing company is to increase margins. However, it can prove futile trying to improve returns without data.
Digital marketing agencies provide the necessary data to show the impact of the services. The information should give insights into what is working for your business.
Because some metrics might be difficult to understand, the agency should take you through each and let you know what it means for your business.
Data analytics helps you make critical decisions about budget allocation and expansion strategy. As earlier noted, there should be transparency in the presentation of reports so that you can get the correct view of your company’s performance.
Key performance indicators (KPIs) should be in line with your business. After sharing your internet marketing objectives, the company should show track metrics that show you have reached your goal.
f.) Innovative Approach
Online marketing keeps changing. What used to work 5 years ago is quite different from what works today. A digital marketing agency should keep up with the trends in the industry to remain relevant.
Google keeps updating its algorithm, and some marketing methods are rendered obsolete. The same case with social media and email marketing. The agency should foresee any forthcoming changes to advise on the best course of action before things happen.
Creativity should also be in the blood of an internet marketing agency. There is enough boring content online, and you don’t want your company to be on the list.
Your competitors are also working to push you out of the game. Therefore, you should also set the standards for them. You can only do that if you have the latest marketing agency services integrated into your system.
Flexibility to meet your standards and align with other systems in your company should also be a plus. Check out the willingness to move with your company flow.
Steps to Follow When Choosing an SEO Digital Marketing Agency
i. List Down Your Company Needs
What are the objectives of your digital marketing campaigns? Before you even engage any company, you should know what you want. A plan makes it easy to know which agency can help to accomplish your goals.
Some of the goals you can consider in your plan include:
- Increase conversion rate by a certain percentage
- Reduce bounce rate on your website
- Increase organic traffic
- Improve your website ranking on search engine result pages
- Increase your brand awareness
The objectives should be specific and achievable. You can use the famous SMART strategy to set the goals.
ii. List 3 of the Best Digital Marketing Companies
You already know the budget your company can sustain at this stage. Therefore, you should list the top 3 digital marketing companies that match your budget. Although pricing is an essential factor in hiring an internet marketer, you should not compromise on the value you get.
Another factor you should consider when selecting the best fit for your business is skills-match. The companies should offer a comprehensive package of the services you need. There is no need to hire two digital marketing agencies to deal with different areas.
iii. Do Some Research on the Agencies
After listing the top 3 competitors, it is time to do in-depth research and kick out two so that you can end up with the best. Try to find out how well they match your business objectives, flexibility, and communication.
The company should be willing to offer customized services. Flexibility shows how well the agency adjusts to meet your needs. It should be about what you want as the final result, not what the company feels like doing.
iv. Contact Your Selected Digital Marketing Company
At this point, you have your preferred internet marketing agency. It is time to go ahead and contact the company and confirm whether the information you have gathered is accurate.
v. Ask Questions
When contacting the SEO agency, you should ask questions and clarify any information which is not available online. You should ask about customization of services to meet your needs, other costs, the contact person when the project will be running, the metrics, and key performance indicators.
vi. Develop a Communication Strategy
After confirming that you should go ahead with the deal, you should discuss communication. Apart from the daily or weekly updates, the company should track your performance and share the metrics regularly.
It is okay to ask about the meaning of different insights and how they affect your business. At this stage, you may want to understand terms like click-through rate, keyword difficulty, SEO ranking, cost per click, acquisition per click, the average cost per click, and so on.
You may have heard about some of these terms, but most likely, you will encounter new ones. Take this as a learning period so that you can work in tandem with the SEO marketing agency.
Vi. Hand Over Digital Marketing Management
Interaction with the internet advertising company allows you to know the agency. After gaining confidence with the company, it is time to hand over the digital marketing.
You can integrate your system with that of the agency for easy monitoring. At this stage, you might share confidential company data like passwords and financial statements but avoid handing over management of the accounts. A transparent and trustworthy relationship needs to be maintained at this stage.
Parting Shot
You are good to hire a digital marketing agency to help you grow your business. It is essential to know your objectives, track performance, and regularly evaluate to see the impact of contracting an online marketing company. You can adjust goals after the first month to fit your results.
Digital Marksmen is a trustable company if you want internet marketing services. Through our years of experience, we have worked with clients across industries. We have seen growth of up to 1000% in revenues and organic traffic through dedication and commitment.
Your business could be next. Contact us for a custom offer for your business.