Hiring An Agency Marketing Services Provider You Can Trust

How much you trust your inbound marketing agency isn’t really something many clients think about – what they’re most worried about is how much they can rely on them. But, hiring an agency marketing services provider you can TRUST is equally, if not more, important – remember, you’re TRUSTING them with your reputation! 

So, how can you ensure you’re hiring a marketing agency you have faith can handle your public perception and your livelihood? Here are a few recommendations by way of questions to ask yourself (and of your agency marketing services provider). 

#1. Do They Practice What They Preach? 

Many marketing agencies toot their horns about the services they provide but rarely use them for their own marketing. Does If the your marketing agency marketing services provider  use marketing automation? They should be. Are they is pushing social media, do they have a presence as far-reaching as what they’re suggesting? What about SEO? Ask them what they’re doing to drive traffic to their own site – and how they perform inbound marketing for their own shop. If they’re not utilizing their own purported skill set to market themselves, how can you trust them to do the same for you? The answers may be quite telling. 

#2. Do They Have Case Studies or Client References To Share That Prove Their Worthiness? 

Agency case studies should extend beyond their own results using inbound marketing; they should be able to point to very specific instances of success with client case studies, too. Ideally these align directly with your business goals -- whether it's showcasing industry-specific knowledge, tool- or channel-specific abilities, or a knack for solving for a particular problem, like low lead volume. 

#3. Do They Speak To Your Goals Or Do They Dictate Your Goals? 

Does the agency marketing services provider even know what your goals are? Did they just assume what they would be and come up with a proposal based on minimal interaction? Or, did they walk in the door and present to you a boilerplate blueprint of services? 

There’s going to be a lot of research done upfront – sure – and they’ll want to share some of their expert strategies and ideas with you long before any contract is signed. However, an agency should be willing and able to work with your goals, or, at the very least, work with you to figure out what those goals and potential opportunities might be. If they don’t bother to ask what your goals are or to take those goals into consideration, they’re probably not working to align their marketing services with your goals and addressing your specific business issues.  

Only when the goals are hammered out and agreed upon should a real plan of attack emerge.

#4. Are They Up To Date On Marketing Trends Affecting Your Industry? 

Obviously, you expect your marketing agency to keep up to date on the latest marketing trends, right? You might be surprised how often they do not. More often than you think they do not. Or, perhaps they are experts in areas like mass marketing but what you really need is inbound marketing – how are they going to reasonably be able to help you? 

that frankly does not meet your needs. Before getting into bed with any inbound marketing house, find out how they intend to keep updated the latest and greatest marketing trends. What will they be doing to learn about your competitors to give you a competitive advantage? What processes do they have in place for learning about new tools and tech? What are they doing to keep abreast of other top performers in completely different industries and are they creative enough to see a way to translate those tactics for use on your campaigns? 

Just because they’re a “marketing agency” doesn’t make them a specialist in all areas of marketing. Beware the marketer who plays it safe all of the time – and seems wary of new ideas. The best marketers know what they’re good at and know where they fall a bit short – and do the work to either fill those gaps by expanding their in-house talent base or by hiring out for certain services with a niche marketing expert they know and trust. 

#5. Is Their Bid Based On Your Bottom Line Or On TheirsAre They Too Quick To Accept Your Budget, No Questions Asked? 

If the marketing services provider seems more focused on the size of your proverbial wallet than on the size and needs of your business, they’re probably not a provider you can trust. Of course, agencies exist to make money – but if you get the sense you’re going to be treated like a paycheck instead of a client and a collaborator, it’s probably not going to be a mutually fulfilling engagement. 

You as a customer probably have a certain amount of money in mind that you’re willing and able to spend on marketing – but that might not be enough to reach your goal in the currently allotted time. How your marketing agency handles this scenario is key. 

What an unscrupulous marketing agency might do in this instance – instead of thinking creatively about the matter at hand and speaking openly and honestly with you about your budget constraints – is to take the money, promise the results, and not deliver in the end. 

If the customer drives the bid, agencies will often say “yes” and get in trouble for it later. 

The way the bidding process should work is for the customer to state their goals and for the marketer to build a plan around those goals. In such a scenario, this process could work in an a la carte way, with a number of different cost-conscious options for the client to choose from, each with their stated purpose toward the progression to meet certain goals. 

If the client sees a budget with options, and decides to choose, say, three of the menu items, the marketing agency may have to level with the client and tell them said choices aren’t going to fit within their budget for right now. If the client can’t find any more funds to get there, the marketing agency should be able to collaborate to find a way to at least get closer to the goals within the stated budget. 

Bottom line: beware the agency marketing services provider that agrees to all of your goals and demands blindly. You need to work together to drill down from what you want as a client to the bottom line. 

Have you enjoyed a marketing agency relationship based on trust? What was it that the agency did that ultimately earned your trust? Let us know in the comments below.

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