In your business, you likely rely on many vendors and platforms to support your in-house team’s efforts. These vendors are key in strengthening your business.
Your digital marketing agency is no different. You likely spend a significant investment with this organization, and you want that investment to pay off. Strong performance and results are important, but don’t overlook the value of a collaborative, effective partnership.
Whether you’ve been with your agency for months or years, it’s important to make sure you are getting the most out of your partnership. Here are some questions to ask to assess your agency’s value.
Do They Understand Your Business?
Consider the last time your agency asked about your business. Are these conversations a regular part of your client-agency meetings?
You don’t necessarily need to work with an agency that has prior experience in your industry. But, your agency should aim to understand your business and industry as well as you do. Digital campaigns are more likely to produce good results when your team understands your customers, business challenges, and competition. This also goes a long way in building trust and empathy between your organizations.
Does Your Agency Provide New Solutions and Ideas?
If your agency is thinking strategically, they’ll present ideas and creative solutions to help your business grow. They should notify you of trends, changes to service offerings, and emerging channels that could impact your marketing efforts. Your agency partner should always be one step ahead of you, thinking about what is best for your business.
How Do They Handle Reporting?
Reports are key in understanding if your online marketing efforts are working. Review your reports and ask yourself if the data includes enough context. Do they provide an explanation of what happened, and how their efforts impacted results? If campaigns are underperforming, do they present ideas for how to improve performance? Are they reporting on the metrics that matter to you and your C-Suite?
Reporting is a key function of an agency, and it can often separate the good agencies from the best agencies. The best agencies are transparent, honest, and thorough with reports. Their reports also reflect the goals and key performance indicators that matter to your organization.
Related Post: Work with Your Agency to Get the Right Reports for Your C-Suite
Is Your Team Agile?
If COVID-19 taught us anything, it’s that things can change in an instant. Even the most carefully formed plans can be turned upside down.
While changes may not always be this extreme, you need a digital marketing agency that is flexible.
Your agency team should be able to pivot as your goals and expectations change. They should be able to adjust their strategy to work towards meeting and exceeding those goals.
When you have this kind of team, you know they are putting the needs of your business first.
Do They Set Realistic Expectations?
A transparent, honest agency will be realistic about expectations. If your agency makes extreme guarantees or lacks data-informed decision-making, this could be a red flag. With digital marketing changing so often, you want a partner that remains focused on best practices.
Your digital agency should help your business grow. Use these questions to build an effective relationship with your agency. These questions are also helpful should you choose to transition to another partner.
We intentionally used the word “partnership” in the title of this post because we believe your digital marketing agency should be more than a vendor. Your agency should provide value to your business. They should help you think strategically. They should want to produce the best results because when you win, they win.
Are you looking to work with an agency that values your partnership? Reach out to WTM Digital. Our team of talented digital marketers is excited to help your business grow.