– No matter what industry you are in, all businesses would like more customers in order to grow. The question is how to find these customers? Word of mouth is a great way to expand, but there will be a limit as to how far that can take you. To take your business to the next level you will need to invest in some marketing.
Traditional Marketing vs Digital Marketing
Traditionally businesses would turn to newspaper, radio or perhaps TV advertising to get their name out there and hopefully attract some new customers. However nowadays digital marketing offers a much better return on investment, with infinitely better options to target potential customers, resulting in much higher conversion rates at lower cost. For more discussion on the benefits of digital marketing over traditional, read our recent article here.
How To Find The Right Digital Marketing Agency
There are many marketing agencies out there offering digital advertising services. Many businesses will receive calls or emails daily from agencies telling them their website isn’t ranking well enough or offering the best results. How should a business go about choosing the right agency?
NZ Businesses should choose a NZ agency
The nature of digital marketing means it can be done anywhere. But local knowledge counts for a lot. One reason digital marketing can be so effective is that the targeting options are very detailed, be it geographic, demographic or interest based. But for this to work, you need to know the geographic limitations of different businesses and how they apply to the local area. An electrician in Auckland is unlikely to travel to Waiheke Island to install a power point; a plumber in Wellington won’t want to travel to the Wairarapa to fix a burst pipe. A retail store or childcare centre will have a specific catchment area and clientele.
When advertising Kiwi businesses, you also need to know the words Kiwis use, the subtleties of the language, the phrases or interests that have meaning for us but may be completely lost on people elsewhere.
Beware of exceptionally low fees
Remember all businesses need to cover their costs and will be trying to make some profit. A company offering Google Ads management for only $80 per month will either i) be doing the absolute minimum (if any) work, or ii) will be outsourcing the work overseas to countries with cheaper labour costs, or iii) probably a combination of both.
I’d like to say that you get what you pay for. This is definitely the case if you are paying very little. But just a caveat that paying a lot is no guarantee of getting a quality service either.
Choose a Google Premier Partner
It’s not exceptionally difficult to achieve Google Premier Partner status. But you do need to reach certain thresholds of number of qualified staff and the level of advertising spend. Any marketing agency without a Google Premier Partner badge is likely to be small and potentially inexperienced.
Check the company history
Experience counts for a lot in this industry. As does longevity. By checking the New Zealand Companies Register you can at least see how long a company has been in operation. An unfortunate trend in the digital marketing industry is companies who earn a poor reputation then close down only to re-appear under a different name using the same snake oil salesman techniques.
Look at reviews and testimonials
A successful company will have a long list of satisfied customers who have grown and prospered as a result of the marketing services. These customers should be happy to share their success online by way of Google review or testimonials.
A note of caution however – Google reviews can be bought or faked. Reviews from Google business accounts allow you to see if they are in fact a real business. Reviews from people who have also reviewed a number of other businesses all around the world are suspicious. (Click on the reviewer’s name to see their other reviews).
The devil is in the detail
The most important foundation for a successful digital marketing campaign is the targeting. For SEO this means the correct keyword selection (high volume, high relevance), for Google Ads it is keyword selection and location targeting, for Facebook it is location targeting and user interests. If you receive a quote from a marketing agency, make sure to look at the detail. Does it contain keywords, locations, interests, search volumes, audience sizes? Ask them to explain their targeting choices. You need to have confidence that they really do know what they are doing and will be advertising to the right people.
You have to be in to win!
It really is a jungle out there, with people trying to take your money at every turn. But scepticism shouldn’t be an excuse for inaction. Done correctly, digital marketing can be instrumental in taking your business to the next level. If you are unsure, ask for a short duration trial campaign at a lower budget to see if it works. In some cases we’ve had customers start receiving enquiries within hours of launching a new campaign! For more information about what what will work best for your business, speak to the team at Adcelerate.
