Having tackled the process of finding the right digital marketing agency, this article focuses more on inbound marketing agencies and how you can tell which one is best for your business.
Digital marketing and inbound marketing are sometimes mistaken for synonyms. Yes, they’re largely similar, but definitely not synonyms. Examples of digital marketing are social media posts, blogs, search engine optimization (SEO), display advertising, marketing emails, etc. Inbound marketing, on the other hand, is the process of employing the digital marketing tools, that are either sought by the customer or seek marketing permission from them, to generate revenue.
It’s true that traditional, or outbound, marketing also has its uses, but the popularity of inbound marketing has to do with the fact that it targets customers who are already interested in your type of product or service. On the other hand, outbound marketing is to interrupt the customer to inform them about what you offer which they may or may not happen to be interested in at the exact same time in which they receive your cold call or see your Pay Per Click (PPC) ad.
Many, of course, claim to be experts in inbound marketing. And if you’re someone with little to no experience about marketing, you may feel unsure how you can make the right choice in that matter. However, the process is simple and easy if you know what to look for.
- Full-Funnel Agencies
A full-funnel inbound marketing agency is one that carries out your full inbound marketing strategy from A to Z to convert the marketing practices into sales and potential customers into buyers with loyalty to your brand. This is especially important because working with more than one agency may cause unnecessary distractions which you could certainly do without.
- Research and Recommendations
Ask you connections, especially those in your line of business, to recommend inbound marketing agencies they have worked with and which you can trust. This saves you half the time and effort you can spend in your search.
- Comparisons
Compare the agencies from your research and your connections’ recommendations according to their portfolios and previous work. Look for things close to what you want and see if this is similar to how you want things to be. To further double-check, compare the reviews and how each agency was able to help its clients’ businesses grow.
Another important step in your comparison is to check every agency’s website and social media pages. An agency’s website is its mirror. It should be their best work, same as their social media profiles. So, unless you really like what you see, do not proceed.
- Certified HubSpot Partners
Wick. advises to only deal with an agency if it’s a HubSpot partner. This means that the inbound marketing agency has the required experience and proficiency to apply the stages of the inbound marketing funnel to your brand, thus generating leads and turning potential customers into buyers.
- Support Availability
Before you sign up with an agency, make sure you can find them when you need them. Try to contact their customer support and see the different options they offer – can you only reach them via phone and email/contact form or do they also offer chat support? Also, is it round-the-clock or only during their working hours?
One more important piece of advice is not to rush such a decision as hiring a marketing agency and to take your time comparing the different options. After all, you’ll be paying quite a budget on a monthly basis for that agency, and you want every cent to count and to know that you can rely on whoever you’re trusting with your business. For this very reason, too, it’s best to avoid unreasonably cheap agencies and to know that hiring a trusted agency may be expensive but it, literally, pays off.
