Digital marketing is a challenging career that requires both creativity and business acumen. Success and prestige often come to those who can meet the challenge, so it's unsurprising that many entrepreneurs turn to digital marketing. However, if you don't have a solid plan for success, you can easily fall short. Here are five secrets that helped me build a thriving digital marketing agency.
Focus on Your Strengths
Digital marketing agencies do a lot, from social media to web design and videography. You don't have to do it all when you first start out. In fact, you probably can't do everything. Focus on your strengths. For example, if you have a strong social media presence and understand the nuances of different platforms, begin by highlighting your social media marketing skills. As you and your business grow, you can bring in others to help fill in the gaps and offer a full digital marketing suite of services.
Network with Other Digital Marketers
One of the risks of focusing on a few marketing areas is that you'll lose clients to more established full-service agencies. This is where networking comes in. Build a network of digital marketing contacts who have the skills you lack. This gives you specialized people you can refer clients to as people you can, in turn, receive referrals from. As you look to expand and grow, your network can also be the place you find your first partners.
Choose a Strong Team
As you begin to expand your agency, choose your team carefully. The people you hire and partner with should,
Match the vision you have for the agency
Enhance your agency's style
Compliment your and each other's skills and expertise
Be invested in the agency's success
This means choosing employees and freelancers who can fill in gaps, believe in your agency's goals, and work well as individuals and in a team.
Build Long-lasting Relationships with Clients
Build the kind of client relationship that lasts even if you lose the client. We always want to aim to keep our clients. However, keeping the client is not the bottom line. Build your client relationships around trust, mutual respect, and understanding. This means open communication, meeting and exceeding expectations and owning up to mistakes and failures. When you evaluate your relationship with a client, ask yourself a question. If they had to stop doing business with me tomorrow, would they still recommend my agency to someone? If the answer is no, then you know you have work to do.
Set Clear and Achievable Goals for Growth
Realistic goals aren't just for your clients. Consider your skills and expertise as you look at where you are growing your agency. What are your goals for the next six months, the next year, and the next five years? What needs improvement, and what resources do you have to develop yourself, your employees, and your agency? As you answer these questions, you can map out your goals and a plan to achieve them.
Starting a digital marketing agency isn't easy, but it is rewarding. Taking your skills, creativity, and talent and building something that helps another person grow their business - that kind of success is incredible. Your own recipe for success will have its own ingredients. These five, however, will help your agency thrive.