Did you know that 1 in 5 small businesses don’t use digital marketing? This means that they’re missing out on the power of email marketing, social media, and search engine optimization (SEO).
You don’t want your business to miss out on these important tools. But what if you don’t know much about digital marketing or have the time to learn it?
A professional digital marketing company can be the fastest way to get results from tried-and-true digital marketing strategies. But how do you choose which company to go with?
In this guide, we’ll cover 10 essential questions you should ask a digital marketing company before you hire them. Keep reading to learn everything you need to know.
- “How have you helped businesses like mine?”
Just because an agency says they can help any business doesn’t mean they’re the best choice for you.
If you know what services you need, check the company’s portfolio. You can also ask about their previous clients and what goals they helped them achieve.
If you don’t yet know what digital marketing services you need, check if the company has worked with other companies in your niche and ask them what strategies they might recommend.
- “How much will it cost?”
Every small business owner has to be careful about costs, so you need to make sure that your digital marketing services fit your budget.
Make sure to discuss all the costs fully, as well as what happens if any extra costs occur. You don’t want to be shocked at any unforeseen costs, nor stay stuck in a contract with a company you think is dishonest.
You want to have all this information in writing so that there are no disputes later on.
- “Who will work on my business?”
You can almost guarantee that having several specialists working on your digital marketing strategy is better than having one generalist work on it.
This way, you benefit from everyone’s expertise while having a dedicated team collaborate on your digital marketing strategy.
To get these benefits, you want to get a company with a team of specialists, like this Digital Marketing Agency.
- “How have you marketed your own company?”
One great way to see how well a company does with digital marketing is to examine the strategies they use for their own business.
While you likely aren’t in the same niche as the company, this strategy can show you how they work and how they might approach your business.
For example, you could learn whether the company keeps up with digital marketing trends. You can ask them about the results of their own strategies, branding, and campaigns.
- “When can I expect results?”
Expert marketers know that quality digital marketing techniques take time, so be wary if a company promises you instant results.
At around 6-8 months, you should start to see some results. You may not see substantial results until around the 1 year to 2-year mark.
It usually takes 3-6 months for you to see any results with inbound marketing at all. Don’t be quick to dismiss your digital marketing company if you don’t see results right away, and make sure to wait a bit to let the campaign do its work.
- “How do you measure the success of your campaigns?”
Next, you want to ask how the company defines and measures the success of its marketing campaigns.
This is most often measured by key performance indicators, otherwise known as KPIs.
Common KPIs include new visitors to your site and your bounce rate, which is how often someone exits your site without visiting another page.
The best marketing agency not only measures KPIs using analytics but targets the right KPIs for your business and its goals.
- “What is your company’s work process?”
A huge red flag is when a company tells you that it will create a marketing strategy but doesn’t tell you how. But when you ask them what their process is, they’ll have to tell you exactly how they’ll help you achieve your goals.
This includes whether they have a process for thinking of ideas, their process for getting backlinks, and their process for building trust with your audience.
- “What is included with this contract?”
Not only does a contract include cost, but you need to know what kind of services are included each month.
This is where you need to get specific. How many blog posts are included each month? What about social media posts or automated emails?
You also need to be clear on how long the contract is and what happens if you no longer want to proceed with the contract.
- “Who will I communicate with, and how often?”
How often can you communicate with the company? Can you go to them when there’s a problem without any extra costs?
Professional marketers will make sure that you have a person who’s a point of contact for you at all times.
Whoever your point of contact is, you need to make sure they’re available and that your contact person isn’t always changing.
- “What are your team’s skills and specialties?”
While you should have specialists working on your campaign, the company needs a team versatile enough to handle all the required aspects of your digital marketing strategy.
These skills include email marketing, search engine optimization, content writing, and branding.
If you are a brick-and-mortar business, consider hiring local marketers to help you. They’re more likely to understand the local business landscape and how you can better target the needs of your local audience.
Ask Your Digital Marketing Company These Questions
Hiring a professional digital marketing company can give you some of the best return on investment for your company.
Always remember to hire a reputable agency that understands your business needs, communicates in a timely manner, and has a team of experts in various marketing strategies.
We hope this article helped simplify the process of hiring the right digital marketers for your business. If you enjoyed this article, take a look at more blog posts from our business category.
