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The new standard for marketing is digital marketing, but many owners of small- and medium-sized enterprises aren’t clear on what digital marketing agency does and how one can benefit an SME.
In this blog, we’ll look at those questions, talk about how a digital marketing agency can bring customers to an SME, and offer some advice for choosing one.
Let’s dive right in the benefits of a digital agency for small and medium-sized enterprises!
What is a digital marketing agency?
A marketing agency, traditionally, was a firm that created advertising for a company. They did all the design for magazine ads, television ads, and wrote scripts for radio ads.
With the advent of the internet, social media, and search engines, marketing has changed radically. While all the old ways of marketing still exist, the digital side has become the fastest, most direct way to reach potential customers.
The internet is built on data about every consumer. From the moment they first log on to the time they spend on social media to every purchase they make, a profile is built about each individual. Digital marketing agencies use the tools provided by sites like Facebook, Google, Twitter, and Instagram to create marketing and advertising aimed directly at an SME’s potential customer base.
Think of it this way: A billboard is simply there. Everyone sees it, even people who will never need or want your product or service. Digital advertising puts ads and marketing materials directly in front of people who are likely to need and want your product or service.
Examples of what a digital marketing agency can do
The complete toolbox of a digital marketing agency could fill a book with details, but in this short blog, let’s look at a few examples of how a digital marketing agency can benefit an SME.
Responsive web design - Your website is the place where your potential customers will most likely find you. Over 90% of all purchases start with a search on the internet. If your website doesn’t look great, you can lose customers right inside their homes.
SEO - Search engine optimization is how potential customers find you. SEO helps Google find your website among the billions of sites on the internet. Making sure your SEO is up to par will drive more traffic to your website.
CRM Integration - A CRM (customer relationship management) program is an excellent way to ensure that every customer is treated well and that you take every opportunity to sell to them. Integrating your CRM with the rest of your marketing, advertising and media efforts will help you see what every customer has ever done.
Automation - Using automation, you can guide every customer through their journey effectively. Emails, phone calls, SMS messages and much more can be automated to arrive at the right moment on their journey.
Social Media Marketing - Whether it’s social media posts or paid advertising, the entire world is on social media. A digital marketing agency can help you reach all your customers.
Traditional Marketing - Great digital marketing agencies do more than just online marketing; they use traditional marketing to reach customers too. Radio, TV, billboards, etc. are all still excellent tools for brand building and reaching a specific geographic customer base.
Design Assets - Because so much of what digital agencies do requires impeccable design skills, they design logos, marketing materials, and much more. Having one team do everything is one of the best ways to ensure that all your marketing efforts are moving in the same direction.
Choosing the Right Digital Agency
There are millions of digital agencies in the world. Since they operate online, it can seem easy to choose the cheapest one. Sometimes, that’s not the best idea. The agency you choose needs to have certain skills and knowledge to ensure success.
- Experience - The agency should have a lot of experience in your industry or related industries. They should be able to show they’ve successfully helped companies like yours increase their customer base.
- Audience understanding - A clear skill for finding the right audience is imperative. Defining your audience is at the heart of all digital marketing. They should be able to tell how they’ll find your audience and what marketing will reach them best.
- Broad skill set - Some agencies only do Facebook advertising for websites. You need someone who can do all of it and more.You want a partner that can handle the marketing needs you have today and the ones you’ll have in a year or two.
- Easy communications - You’re going to need to put a lot of trust in your agency. Not only will you be paying them well, but they’re going to be defining your business to the world. It’s imperative that you can communicate with them clearly and easily.
- Trust - You have to trust the agency you’re working with. If you don’t feel they can do a great job, you’re not going to trust their judgment about what to do and how to do it.
- Metrics - There are agencies that tell you there’s no way to measure their success, that it’s all amorphous. Marketing can be measured just like everything else in the digital world. Ask for th
ose metrics. In fact, they should volunteer them, providing you with reports regularly about what they’re doing and how successful they are.
What can a Digital Marketing Agency do for an SME?
In short, a digital marketing agency can deliver more customers and more revenue. The entire world is connected through the internet; a digital marketing agency can find those people and bring them to your business.
They also define your brand, create an identity that your customers and potential customers will come to recognize instantly. Using graphic design, websites, social media, and more, they create the assets that tell the world what your business does and why they should do business with you.
Digital marketing isn’t the wave of the future, it’s the present. It’s now. It’s the only way to reach your potential customers easily and quickly.
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