When it comes to internet marketing, the decision to hire a marketing company is not easy. After all, digital marketing companies bring expertise in the unique and ever-changing digital landscape, and they can devote the time necessary to build and execute your campaign that you likely don’t have while you’re trying to run your business. The hard part is deciding which company to hire. You will probably notice that a lot of digital marketing companies talk about the same kinds of services, but the reality is that the way they execute them can be vastly different. Further, it doesn’t take much for someone to set themselves up with a website and call themselves a digital marketer, but that doesn’t mean that they have the knowledge and skills to get the job done.

Choosing a digital marketing company can be complicated, so it is important to know what separates one company from another. Knowing what to look for will help you pick the best fit for your brand. As you consider your options, keep these factors that differentiate marketing agencies in mind.

Types of Clients

Some digital marketing companies work with small, local brands, while others focus exclusively on major, national accounts. Some companies work with all types of clients. The first step is considering whether your company is a natural fit for their existing client list. If you have a small business, and the clients a marketing company works with are huge, national brands, then they are probably not the right fit for you, because you’d be a small fish in their pond and unlikely to be their priority.

Alternatively, if you are trying to make a regional or national impact and the company that you’re considering working with only has expertise in the local market, then you are not likely to achieve your goals by working with them. If you want flexibility to grow your brand, you may want to opt for a company that works with a variety of types of clients, so you can achieve marketing success at every stage of growth.

Services Offered

Digital marketing encompasses a huge number of activities, from paid ads to social media to live chat and email marketing. Some digital marketing companies only specialize in a few of the services required for a comprehensive campaign, while others offer a broad menu of services that you can put together to meet your needs.

It’s a good idea to work with a digital marketing company that provides a full list of marketing services, even if you don’t need each service offered immediately. Working with multiple digital marketers on different campaigns becomes difficult to manage and makes it almost impossible to accurately track results. However, beware marketing companies that promise that they do certain kinds of work but can’t offer any evidence that they have the necessary experience. Look for a company that not only sells services but that has a track record of providing them.

Company Core Values

Every business has its own culture, and it’s important for yours to jive with that of your marketing company. You will be working very closely with your digital marketing company and sharing important, potentially sensitive information with them on a regular basis. For a worthwhile experience, it helps if your company culture and values align.

What are the things that drive your business? How do your employees work together? How do you define success? If the answers to these questions don’t line up with the answers your digital marketing company gives, you are unlikely to develop the kind of natural, easy working relationship that is required for an effective campaign.

Marketing Campaign Promises

When you’re evaluating digital marketing companies, does one company seem to be promising much bigger results than the rest? If so, then that is the company you probably want to stay away from doing business with. Qualified digital marketing companies will give you a realistic projection of what they think they can achieve for you, based on factors like your current digital presence, the products, and services you offer, your target customers, and more. They won’t sell you unrealistic projections that will only leave you frustrated when the campaign is over.

Even if another company is promising much bigger results, trust your gut about what is realistic and choose a company that is upfront with you about both what they can achieve and the challenges that you may face. Transparency is also critical, so look for a marketing agency that can explain its projections and that has a plan to share the process and results with you at each step.

Online Reputation

Reputation management is frequently a part of digital marketing. Bad reviews can follow your brand and damage your ability to keep your existing customers and attract new ones. It makes sense for you to consider the online reputation of the digital marketing company that you want to hire.

You’re likely to find that some digital marketing companies have great reviews, while others have poor reviews or mixed reviews—or have no reviews at all. Be suspicious of digital marketing companies who don’t seem to nurture their own online reputations, since it hints of how they may treat your brand’s reputation as well.

Make the Right Choice with Salem Leads

At Salem Leads, we know how big the decision to hire a digital marketing company can be, and we’re here to help at every step. We offer a comprehensive range of services to help you get discovered, build awareness, and generate leads, no matter what stage you are in with your business and what your current digital presence looks like. We work with clients of all sizes across the country and can assist with hyper-local marketing campaigns and national level efforts. We’re committed to clarity and transparency, and we build customized plans to meet each client’s unique needs.

To find out more about how can help you, let us conduct a free digital analysis for your company to define where our services could support your work. You can also call us at (617) 691-2513 for more information.