If you’re looking for a cost-effective way to hit your growth targets, then working productively with a marketing agency is often the best way to achieve this. But how do you ensure that you get the results that you’re after?
- Start by agreeing on goals, roles and realistic expectations
A clear brief is a mandatory, but so is agreeing a realistic view of what ‘success’ looks like, and who must do what to achieve it.
Beware of agencies offering generic ‘ecommerce’ advice with ‘quick wins’ that are completely untailored to your actual business. Avoid this by agreeing a defined strategy with KPIs that align with your business goals (so the whole team knows when it’s on the right path to success).
- Be honest about lead generation
Lead generation takes time, and there are lots of moving parts, including content generation, website optimisation, lead nurturing, and referral targeting.
But once leads do start to come in, it’s crucial to be honest with your agency about their calibre – that is, whether they’re qualified or unqualified. If they are predominately unqualified then your strategy clearly needs to change.
- Communicate, communicate, communicate
Communication can make or break a project so make sure you agree an effective method that suits both parties – whether that’s daily texts/emails or regular status reports/face-to-face meetings.
And agencies aren’t mind-readers, so remember to share relevant information with them as things change.
- Embrace honesty throughout
From being totally open about what budget is going to be available, to giving difficult feedback, it saves everyone time and frustration if you can get beyond the politeness and be upfront about the exact situation; especially as things change.
- Keep a sharp eye on what’s being spent on what
And talking about budgets, ensure that your agency has been crystal clear about the project scope right from the start - so you don’t fall into the murky waters of ‘scope creep’ and get hit by the resulting additional costs.
- Maximise the value of your marketing assets
Always look to create and exploit marketing assets that can be used across different channels or campaign segments. For instance, a video has multiple uses, as do customer testimonials.
- Make sure that Marketing and Sales are working in unison
The absence of a cohesive alignment is often the biggest point of contention between companies and their marketing agencies. If things aren’t in unison then Marketing and Sales often end up pointing the finger at each other to explain the lack of customer conversion.
So early on, define the expectations of both the Sales and Marketing teams. Particularly agree on the ideal number, type and quality of leads that need to be delivered, and over what time period.
Ultimately good results will come by picking the right agency and then investing time and money developing a positive, trusting relationship where both parties work in unison to hit a defined target by a specific date.