Agencies Provide Knowledge And Resources
As a rule, the role of any great marketing agency is twofold: to provide you with knowledge and to provide you with resources. First, the agency should offer you knowledge and education about the advertising industry.
They should inform you about how the advertising industry works, what makes things happen and what will help you make money from it. Additionally, the agency should provide resources on topics such as search engine optimization (SEO), creative work, social media and any other resources you might need that best fit your practice.
Agency Analysis
As a practice owner, your next step is to ask and understand three basic questions:
1. Does my practice understand what drives lead generation from marketing?
2. Does my practice have the time and capabilities to create and execute campaigns consistently?
3. Does my practice have performance reporting to ensure positive ROI?
1. Does My Practice Understand What Drives Lead Generation From Marketing?
The best way to tell if you understand what is driving lead generation for your practice is to count the number of leads you’re getting. If it’s not ideal, consider a few things: Do I understand how social media is going to create leads for me? Do I understand how SEO is going to create leads for me? If you can answer these things, check this box and keep going.
2. Does My Practice Have Time and Capabilities To Create And Execute Campaigns Consistently?
This is a really important question to grasp. Ask if you and your practice have the time and the capabilities to replace the knowledge and resources an agency is trained to bring. If you’re in a large enough practice, maybe the best move is to hire those agency resources for yourself, so you have fully committed resources on hand whenever you need them.
On the other hand, you may have an individual at your practice who is skilled and qualified to do those things instead of an agency. Consider all your options and make the decision that works best for you and will most positively benefit your practice.
3. Does My Practice Have Performance Reporting To Ensure Positive ROI?
This question comes down to technology. Do I, as the business owner, have the technology or the understanding to make sure I’m getting a positive ROI? How is my revenue going against my marketing costs?
If you have an understanding at an ROI level of how you’re performing with your knowledge and resources, you’ll be able to make a decision, and in turn, act quickly and consistently to grow your practice.
