What To Look For In A Cincinnati Digital Marketing Agency
With our mission to always be a company that puts our customers first, one day we asked ourselves, if we were a customer, “What would we look for in a Cincinnati digital marketing agency?”
Over the past few years we’ve generated over a million dollars in business for our multitude of customers.
After careful reflection, the answers came, changed, and finalized into these core 5 details.
If you’re a company considering a marketing agency, or any partner company, here’s your checklist.
1. A Phenomenal Website
So, where do you even start?
I’ve found that a good starting point is to check out their website and do a deep dive on what they do and why. This initial info and design is often enough intel to stick around or move onto to another business.
As a Cincinnati website design company, we’ve seen businesses thrive and struggle solely based on their website alone. Why’s this the case?
Research shows you only have 50 milliseconds to impress your audience with the visual appeal of your website. That’s not a lot of time.
You’re going to want to make sure that the people you hire will keep people on your site, by seeing if they keep you on theirs.
If you visit their website and you want to stay, they understand the conversion game and might be the agency for you.
First look at their homepage. Is it easy to find information and is it modern and sleek? Take our homepage for example.
Our brand is in the upper left corner so there is no confusion about whose site you’re on.
The theme of our site fits our aesthetic. It’s not cartoony or overly colorful, it’s very modern and simple. The fact it’s black and white speaks to our black-and-white motto of making customers money and saving them time. That’s all we focus on.
There are also call-to-actions prevalent across our site that lead viewers to become customers and to contact us.
There are multiple places on the page that tell the viewer what we do with tabs that direct you to landing pages that outline in more detail those aspects of our business.
Finally, we have testimonials that share what satisfied customers have to say about our business. These features build social proof and credibility that lead themselves well in future sales conversations.
Essentially, you want the website of the marketing agency you’re considering to check off the boxes you would want for your own website.
If they do it themselves, they know what to do for you.
Don’t just stop at their website though. Ask for a few case studies from previous customers to really affirm that they know what they’re doing when it comes to online marketing.
Also make sure to check out their website on your mobile devices. A lot of websites will fall short when it comes to mobile views. You don’t want to be one of those sites as mobile popularity soars.
Blogging
Finally, check out if they blog.
Content marketing brings in 600% more conversions than traditional marketing methods.
And with blogging being a crucial role in digital marketing, the agency is either lazy, uninformed, or strapped for money if they choose to not publish content.
You should question if they are going to get you the conversions you really need when their blog is M.I.A. or hasn’t been updated since 2017.
Also, check out their content on their blog. Is it persuading? Do they make strong arguments? Do they educate their target audience and make offers?
Blogging can take up a good amount of time and you don’t want to sacrifice quality for quantity.
You might decide to have the agency you choose to write your content for you. So read their posts and decide if their blogs are engaging and informational.
Would their blogs convince you to sign up for the email lists when they post something new? Would their blogs convince you to become a customer?
Now that you’ve checked out their website and blog, let’s move down the checklist to pick the best Cincinnati digital marketing agency for you.
2. A Team Worth Bragging About
You should want to know who you are working with and what they’re all about
Do they have a big enough team for you? Do they have a small enough team for you?
Is the CEO involved in the company and has a proven track record of success?
Their team leaves clues to affirm or contrast your hypothesis. These are the people that are going to be handling every aspect of your marketing plan.
You want to make sure that you’re working with people that are pleasant to work with and that have the experience necessary to effectively market your business.
There are a few things you’ll want to look for in a team:
- The number of people on the team
- Diversity in skills
- Diversity in roles in the business
- Experience
Hard skills
To begin with, you need to decide what size team your business will require. There really is no right or wrong answer when figuring out how many people you’re going to need to run your marketing.
Some larger businesses prefer to have a decent sized team that includes a general marketing manager and specialized roles for each aspect of their marketing plan (a person on SEO, a person on content, a person on paid ads, etc.).
Some smaller businesses may decide they really only need the one generalized marketing manager to run their online presence.
Buffer did a chat on Twitter where they asked their followers to answer questions about effective marketing teams. This could prove to be a useful source for you when deciding sizes of teams.
Your business may also change and you will need to adjust your team to either add or subtract people. This is why it’s vital to choose an agency that has a staff diverse in their skills.
A digital marketing agency should have people that are qualified in every aspect of digital marketing. So you shouldn’t be afraid to ask if they have team members that cover SEO, social media and any other part of digital marketing you may need.
Soft skills
Finally, you need to look at the soft skills of the team. You are going to want to work with people that are active listeners, collaborate well with one another and possess both analytical and creative thinking.
Those skills are all necessary qualities for effective marketing. Especially if you are looking to work with an agency that has a lot of their employees specializing in different categories. It is vital that this diverse group can work effectively with each other.
Get picky when it comes to the people of the company. You’re going to be working closely with them. You don’t want to have a miserable experience because you didn’t see eye-to-eye with someone.
Now that you have a star-studded team, it’s time to look at the experience your potential Cincinnati digital marketing agency has to offer.
3. Relevant Experience
Experience is the most important thing to consider when choosing a Cincinnati digital marketing company.
In an industry like marketing where the barrier to entry is essentially saying you have a marketing company and getting a free domain name, you don’t want to hire an agency that has little to no experience with digital marketing and uses your company as their test subject. You’ll lose money, they’ll gain experience and money on your behalf.
The way to avoid inexperienced marketing teams is to ask the hard questions to their face.
Always ask:
- Who have you worked with?
- How long have you been doing online marketing?
- What’s your best customer success story?
- What types of companies are you looking to work with, and why?
- Who are some references I can speak to about your past results?
- What do you specialize in?
- Why should I pick your company over others?
- What’s your fulfillment process look like?
- Who will be our account manager?
Since digital marketing can be a broad term, put them on the spot to figure out what they specifically specialize in.
For us, we specialize in turning traffic into profit, using our Cincinnati SEO, paid ads, and sales funnels team (website design). Other companies may specialize in videography or press relations. Some may do it all—but this is often a sign they do nothing exceptionally well
Analyze your company and determine where your digital marketing needs the most help, or interview a view marketing agencies to see how they would audit your business. Now you can use the audit they submit as a test to see what marketing firm to hire.
Figmints posted an article outlining 51 questions to ask a digital marketing agency before hiring. You may think 51 is a bit excessive but we’re talking about your brand’s image and income here. This isn’t something that you can afford to do half-heartedly. I would consider reading through these and asking what is relevant to your marketing plan.
Once you have narrowed down agencies that specialize in what you’re looking for, check to see if they offer success stories based on their own customers.
Google reviews are a good place to start.
Then look at their website and see if they offer case studies and ROI for you to check out.
For example, on our own website, we showcase SEO case studies that show you the results from our marketing efforts. We show you the success that we have had with our own customers to make the leap of faith to working with us easier.
If you’re impressed with the results you see, consider hiring that agency. If it worked for another customers of theirs that has a similar set up as your business, chances are, it will work for you as well.
You also will want to look at other brands they have worked with. Compare their business to your own.
If you’re a small business and you see this agency has primarily worked with large businesses, you might want to choose a different agency.
It’s not saying that agency wouldn’t give you some positive results. It’s just saying that they don’t have much experience working with smaller businesses that have different needs and goals than large businesses.
Really personalize your search to find the perfect fit for you. Actually take the time to think about if the agency is going to give you what you need based on what they have done with their past customers.
Again, you’re allowed to be picky. This is your business we’re talking about here.
4. Give More Than They Receive
It’s important to find a digital marketing agency that fits in your budget, but it’s unwise to just go with the cheapest option only because you want to save money.
The better the digital marketing agency, the better your results will be. You may spend more upfront, but if they get you better ROI then you’d be making way more in the long run.
Think about it this way, you’re going to get what you pay for.
Your digital marketing isn’t something you’re going to want to be stingy about.
Yes, it is important to create a budget and be realistic about your choices but at the same time you’re going to lose if you choose an agency simply because of price.
Many agencies offer different packages and options that offer different levels of involvement in your company.
If you’re in love with an agency but they’re a bit above your price range for what you want, consider looking at a slightly less expensive package that can get you on your feet.
Once the ROI starts and your business becomes more profitable, you can upgrade to the package you originally wanted and really start to see the results you hoped for.
The payout is going to be worth the money you spend on it.
This is why it is so important to do your research and really take your time deciding which Cincinnati digital marketing agency is right for you because you’re going to be investing a lot in them.
If you pick the right one, the marketing will pay for itself.
We want to see your business thrive with our marketing techniques. This isn’t just another transaction for us. We will be just as invested in your business as you are in ours.
5. A Culture That Matches Your Culture
The final box on your checklist for a Cincinnati digital marketing agency is to find one where, ideally, their company culture matches yours.
Are they focused and ready to dominate, or are they more laid back, enjoying themselves at happy hour while producing results? There is nothing wrong with either culture, but you do want to make sure it vibes well with your culture.
If you get this wrong, then I’ve found that expectations are often misinterpreted. The business owner emails the agency at 2 AM hoping for a response, when the marketing owner is on vacation for a week.That business owner will start doubting, “Are these guys taking my business seriously?” when maybe he’s right and they aren’t cause they taking nothing serious. Or they’re fully on it but they take their time to get results.
Again, define what you’re after.
Are you looking for a company who will sit down with you and meet in person, or are you too busy yourself and just want a company who can get the job done without your input? Again, not one strategy is better than another, it’s your personal preference!
When discussing with companies, ask about their working style and how it’d go if you signed with them. The more info you get up front, the better decision you’ll make.
If you’re just starting out and you would prefer to be taught digital marketing instead of having a company do it for you, you’ll want a company that offers both services and consulting and is aware this is what you’re after.
All these scenarios show why it’s crucial to come up with a plan before you conduct your search to make sure the agency you choose fits all the criteria you come up with.
You also want to find an agency that you feel will operate well with the values your own company shares. Marketing can become shady and if you don’t want your business to even come close to the line, let alone cross it, you’ll want to vet for this too.
If your company puts an emphasis on teamwork and collaboration, you don’t want to choose an agency that values independence and independent work.
It’s okay to choose not to go with an agency that you loved up to that point if you feel they would clash with your company’s culture.
Long term relationships with your marketing agency will form from seeing eye-to-eye and quality communication. Best to prioritize that before you go down the wrong road with someone who will never understand your vision or working style.
And chances are, at some point you’re going to be spending some face to face time with the people at the agency you choose and you want these interactions to be pleasant.
Once you find the agency that checks that final box on your list, you’re ready to start your partnership.
Wrap Up
To sum it up, do your research.
- Is this agency credible and experienced?
- Does this agency practice what they preach?
- Who is their team?
- What is their working style?
- What results have their other customers gained?
- Does their culture mesh with ours?
Remember these are the people that are going to be handling one of the most important aspects of your business. So they should be vetted a good degree.
Be picky, ask questions, and don’t stop until you find the agency that is perfect for you.
And it’s our belief that the more agencies do right by customers, the easier it is for us to partner with companies in the future. A rising tide lifts all boats.
So whether you work with Robben Media or another company, we want you to succeed.
Good luck with your search for a Cincinnati digital marketing agency!
What else would you look for in a marketing company?
The Pitch You’ve Been Waiting For
So if you’ve found this guide helpful and are seriously looking for a Cincinnati digital marketing agency, let’s talk.
Give us a call at 513-607-7272 or click “Contact” in the header and we’ll reach out to you.
If this sounds like something you’d want to start now instead of later, then schedule a call soon before we’re fully booked out.
All the best!