Digital Marketing In The Vancouver Area
Vancouver is a major Canadian hot spot that is home to many different industries and fields. The eclectic diversity of the city is represented from one end to another, and opportunity continues to abound as growth continues to take shape. Businesses operating in the Vancouver area are actively involved in a highly competitive economic sphere, which makes it very important to find the right digital marketing agency that is capable of increasing your presence.
In fact, without a good digital marketing team on your side, it’s extremely difficult to stand apart in a sea of talented competitors. What should companies in the Vancouver area be looking out for when considering digital marketing? Let’s examine.
#1) Be Confident About Your Role In Your Industry
It’s important to seek to seek out a digital marketing agency that is confident in how to operate within specific industries. For instance, many digital marketing entities narrow their field of operation to only a specific few industries in order to stay on top of evolving trends and changes within. This prevents an agency from spreading themselves too thin over too wide an area, which can have negative side effects for their clients.
For this reason, it’s important to identify and reach out to digital marketing firms that know your particular industry inside and out. Don’t fall for the trap of going with a particular agency that cannot demonstrate their track record and level of experience in your particular field. Some firms will pay lip service to score a contract and then attempt to deliver after the fact. While there’s no guarantee they won’t succeed, the risks of wasting your money and time are greatly increased.
#2) Understand Your Goals
As a business owner, you can’t be blamed for not understanding how the world of digital marketing works. After all, it’s a highly complex ecosphere that can instantly turn on a dime from something as simple as a Google search algorithm change. That being said, every company should have a basic idea of what they wish to accomplish through digital marketing. The specifics of “how” are not as important as the end goal. The best way to accomplish this is to reach out to digital marketing agencies that catch your eye, and arrange a sit-down or a conference call.
Let them into your world so they can get to know you, your business and its history. By identifying where you wish to take your company over the next 6-12 months, the digital marketing firm can devise a basic overview of their plan to help you achieve it. In other words, start with a broader eagle-eyed view of your overall goals, and tighten the microscope as your relationship with your agency of choice moves forward. With so much to keep tabs on, from SEO to social media marketing and paid advertising, it can be a lot to ingest. Don’t get overwhelmed at the start. Rather, allow your digital marketing agency to educate you piecemeal as you go along.
#3) Ask For A Track Record
A good digital marketing agency will sell you on their services, not the other way around. Be on the lookout for agencies that have a lot to show you in terms of stats that demonstrate real-world ROI. It’s one thing to promise the world, but it’s quite another to show a stat-based breakdown of their accomplishments. Confident and successful agencies won’t be afraid to hide anything. In fact, they’ll be anxious to show off their victories and help you achieve your very own.
Vancouver is a bustling city with an equally energized market, and there are a lot of digital marketing agencies across Canada that are well suited to assist in your endeavors. Bear in mind that it is not necessary for a digital marketing agency to reside within Vancouver in order to generate excellent results. This particular kind of agency can operate remotely from across the nation, provided they understand your business and what you seek to accomplish. The digital marketing sphere is interconnected over the worldwide web, which means it’s easy for them to quickly identify your standing in relation to your target market. This is another opportunity to see their proven track record with remote-based clients, and the success they’ve brought to the table.
#4) If It Sounds Too Good To Be True…
Gone are the days when digital marketing and SEO companies were operating in a shady manner and fibbing to clients about organic growth. Nowadays, it’s very difficult for these agencies to operate, given the changes in web standards and search engines that have come down the pipe in recent years. Still, it’s not impossible for companies to stretch the truth in order to secure your contract, so stick to the old saying “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.”
Strike a balance with this tip, however. Many digital marketing agencies are simply very confident that they can deliver fantastic results for your company, and you shouldn’t shy away from that enthusiasm, provided they can prove their worth. However, companies that promise digital marketing miracles in the space of 2-4 weeks are probably up to no good. Digital marketing is a process that requires patience, calculation and careful execution. There is no magic button for success. A good digital marketing agency will let you know that this process involves constant monitoring of your campaign, re-evaluation of techniques, and the ability to chuck out what isn’t working, while beefing up the techniques that are generating results. This may sound like a con, but it’s actually part of the fun. Not only will your company grow its business organically, but the foundation of your relationship with your customer base will be strengthened tenfold. Remember – customers are keeping a close eye on companies!
#5) Biggest Isn’t Always Better
This goes back to a previous point about digital marketing agencies operating out of Vancouver, as opposed to the rest of Canada, but it is a poignant one. Many companies make the mistake of thinking that greater success is derived through dealing with major multimillion dollar agencies. Actually, that’s usually the opposite of how things work. These large firms have contracts with iconic international brands, and they will freely admit that they are probably not the best fit for your company.
This is a good thing. Not only does it save your company a ton of money, but it can open the door for a talented, savvy and highly dedicated digital marketing agency to focus specifically on your needs, and your business, without anything else getting in the way. Just as a great agency doesn’t have to be physically situated in the Vancouver area, neither do they have to be a major international firm. Digital marketing ROI is achieved by having a team with eyeballs on your company’s SEO, advertising and online reputation. Your success runs parallel to theirs, which means they have a vested interest in making sure you hit the top spot and are able to stand apart from your competition.
#6) Grill Your Agency
Your money is on the line, which means you have full rights to question your digital marketing agency and see the progress being made. A good agency will be proactive in this regard and be more inclined to share data and results with you before you even ask it. They will set up a schedule that constantly keeps you up to date on how well your digital marketing campaigns and initiatives are going. They also won’t be afraid to show what isn’t working, and recommend a course change if required.
Always bear in mind that digital marketing agencies are not clairvoyant, but the good ones have analyzed the shifts in market trends and patterns, and will be in a better position to predict which way the prevailing winds are blowing. It’s not an exact science, which means alterations will need to be done in order to keep your company at the top of its game. However, if you suspect that an agency doesn’t have what it takes to pull it off, or is lagging behind in terms of results, don’t be afraid to put the microscope on them. A proper agency will understand!Operatio Marketing loves working with clients right across Canada, and we specialize in identifying market trends in specific areas such as Vancouver, where we have experience. If you’re ready to move your company forward in the digital marketing space, we invite you to reach out to us so we can get to know you, your company, and where you’d like to take it.
