As a marketing manager, it is reasonable to assume that you cannot handle every aspect of your business’s marketing efforts on your own. This is why many businesses that already have a marketing manager also hire a marketing agency.
A marketing agency is not meant to replace your marketing manager, but rather to enhance marketing efforts and fill in where help is needed. If you are a marketing manager for a business that is looking to also bring on a marketing agency, continue reading for our guide to finding the right marketing agency to work with.
Why Hire a Marketing Agency?
As a single person in a company, it can be difficult to manage all of the business’s marketing efforts successfully. Perhaps you are exceptional at certain aspects of marketing but fall short in other areas. Or, maybe overseeing all marketing efforts is simply too much for one person to handle (which is okay). This is where hiring a marketing agency comes into play.
Choosing the Right Marketing Agency
When looking for a marketing agency to work alongside your marketing manager, it is important that both parties feel a true partnership can be formed. By trusting one another with the overall marketing message, there will be a cohesive representation of the brand and messaging surrounding said brand.
In building and maintaining trust with a marketing agency, it is important that as a marketing manager you are honest about your strengths and weaknesses in the marketing realm. The right agency will be able to fill in where you need assistance and allow you to take the reins where you thrive.
Developing a Solid Marketing Strategy and Setting Goals
It is also important to make sure that the marketing agency and marketing manager have the same set of clear goals for the business, which will allow for better results from all marketing efforts. The right agency will listen and be responsive to the goals set forth by the marketing manager.
By clearly defining the goals of the marketing efforts, you will be able to clearly track the results of your marketing strategies and make any necessary adjustments as time passes. If at any time a marketing agency tells you that your goals are not important, or they skip the goal-setting part of the process, this is a red flag and you should move on to another agency.
Make Sure You Are Working with Experts
When looking for a marketing agency, it makes sense that you would want to work with experts in the marketing field. After all, if you were going to hire an internal marketing team, you would certainly make sure those that you hired were qualified. Hiring an agency should be no different.
Some common things to look for when hiring a marketing agency are:
- Do they allow interns to handle client work?
- Are they outsourcing certain services to freelancers or other agencies?
- Is there a clear point of contact should you have any questions?
By working with experienced marketing professionals at the marketing agency, you can be sure that your messaging and branding will be cohesive, and that there is an expert team working to bring you the most ROI for your marketing dollars.
Understand Pricing for Agencies
Pricing for agencies is not a one-size-fits-all solution. As you look for a marketing agency, it is important to ask and understand which pricing model they use. Some of the most common pricing models used by marketing agencies include:
- Fixed Pricing: Agencies that use a fixed (retainer-based) pricing model work off of a standard monthly retainer for their services. At ROI Amplified, this is the pricing model we choose to use for all of our clients. With a fixed pricing model, there is never a question about how much your monthly bill will be, and the marketing agency is more inclined to give you the best results while spending the least amount of marketing dollars.
- Percentage-Based Pricing: Some agencies will use a percentage-based pricing model for their clients. With this pricing model, the marketing agency gets paid a percentage of your monthly ad spend. With this model, agencies are actually encouraged to spend more of your monthly marketing budget, because the more you spend, the more they are paid.
- Hourly Pricing: With an hourly pricing model, the marketing agency is paid based on the number of hours spent working on your particular project. While this model may seem good to the client, it is important to realize that if a project takes longer than anticipated, the cost will increase each extra hour spent working on it.
Are You Ready to Hire a Marketing Agency?
Once you understand the basics of how to choose the right marketing agency, all that is left is finding the right fit. ROI Amplified is a full-service digital marketing agency that has experience working with marketing managers to make the most out of your marketing campaigns and get your business the best ROI for your marketing budget.
Schedule a consultation with ROI Amplified and learn how our expert team can help improve your marketing strategy today.
