Choosing Your Marketing Agency
There are many highly qualified marketing agencies in Boston, the Merrimack Valley and Southern New Hampshire. The really big advertising agencies typically work with very large corporations whose budgets range in the millions of dollars. There are mid range agencies that specialize in certain vertical niches such as healthcare, accounting, finance and biotech. And there are smaller agencies that are more comfortable working in one medium, such as search engine optimization, direct mail, traditional advertising, or strategic consultation.
In order to make a good decision as to which agency can better help you to increase the reach of your brand, create the proper message on the appropriate media platform, and become a virtually invisible extension of your own company, some homework needs to be done.
The first thing you need to do is make as accurate an assessment as possible as to your own marketing goals and budget. A SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) is always helpful. Perhaps you need a professional to help you and your leadership work your way through the difficulties of such an introspective process. It would be helpful to have a good idea of your long range and short term goals and the resources necessary to achieve the success you desire. Finally you must have the willingness to pull the trigger.
Interview a number of agencies. Interview their customers and ask the difficult questions. Determine whether or not the agencies that interest you have all of the capabilities you need in-house, or are they out-sourcing to freelancers – possible overseas. You must be able to establish a level of comfort with the agency leadership and have access to all of the personnel who will be part of your personal marketing team.
It is as true in marketing and advertising as it is in everything else – you get what you pay for. The lowest price may not be the best value for you. Perhaps one agency can produce a website at a lower cost than another, but do they have staff personnel who can properly optimize the website? Likewise, if some sort of collateral material needs to be produced in a hurry, do they have the capability and expertise to design, print and mail your marketing piece in very short order? Does the company that specializes in social media marketing have a good grasp on the intricacies of search engine marketing or running successful adwords campaigns?
In many instances, it makes total sense to work with an agency that is transparent in nature, has all of the capabilities you would ever need under one roof, and has the proven track record of success in all marketing and advertising media. A fully integrated agency such as I am describing will save you time and money, more accurately learn your unique voice, thus representing your company accurately and professionally. This type of agency is rare, but it is worth searching for.
We’re happy to say that The Discovery Communications Group is just such an agency!
George Wallace is the President and CEO of The Discovery Communications Group, a fully integrated marketing company in Salem, NH.
