Most companies are aware that Search Engine Optimization can do wonders to improve their website, drive traffic, generate leads, and increase sales. The question most companies ask is whether they should hire an agency for SEO or keep it in-house.
What does a digital marketing agency do?
Before we can show the value of an agency, we first have to answer: just what is a digital marketing agency?
Digital marketing involves using various initiatives, such as SEO, online advertising, content marketing, and social media, to market a particular product or service. The ultimate goal might be to attract more customers or to raise overall brand awareness.
An agency draws on the combined experience of its team members (developers, creatives, consultants, analysts, and account managers) to execute a certain strategy with maximum efficacy while remaining on time and under budget.
Putting the “digital” in digital marketing
Unlike traditional marketing agencies, digital marketing focuses solely on digital media and tactics to accomplish its goals. Digital is not only more efficient and more prevalent than traditional media, but the insights gleaned can be more easily collected, analyzed, and acted upon.
Some of the projects a digital marketing agency may be involved with include:
- Developing a search engine optimized website
- Creating a strategy that helps funnel visitors into loyal customers
- Ranking higher on a search engine for greater awareness and traffic
- Writing blog posts and press releases for organic search visibility
- Using PPC and online advertising to target the ideal customer
- Analyzing the behavior of a visitor that lands on the website
- Identifying the topics and content that resonate with the potential customer
- Connecting with an audience through social media
These are just a few examples of what an agency does. In reality, the scope of work can vary between clients and industries.
Advantages of Hiring an SEO Company
Unmatched Expertise
A professional SEO agency has a team of experts with years of combined experience. Most members of an agency have previous experience working in marketing or digital media. That experience comes out in the knowledge of particular subtleties and best practices: such as a copywriter experienced in keyword research, or a developer that understands how site architecture relates to SEO. An agency can outsmart and out-strategize a single person with a limited understanding of digital marketing.
Insightful Reports
Agencies have access to certain digital marketing tools that would be far too expensive for a single person. But more important is understanding the data these tools generate. A good SEO company will know how to run a report, but a great SEO company will understand how to analyze the report and convert it into business action. For example, a website can yield countless statistics: traffic, bounce rate, conversion rate, and so on, but none of those statistics matter without a solid marketing strategy in place with clear business goals and objectives.
Time and Cost Saver
SEO demands time for its tasks, from keyword research to content creation and development, to link building. Some initiatives, such as link building and citation building, can take months. Even then, search engine algorithms are complex and constantly changing, which is why anyone involved in SEO must be able to adapt quickly. This is the reason why companies often outsource these services or hire assistants. An SEO agency will have a dedicated staff to work on these tasks, 24/7.
Ongoing Consultancy
SEO agencies specialize in strategy. More than any individual task or initiative is how it relates to the overall business. An agency will know how to activate projects that best benefit the company while avoiding busy work that simply wastes time and effort.
Questions to Ask an SEO agency
If your company wants to hire an SEO Agency, make sure to ask these important questions:
- Which services do you offer, and what do you specialize in?
- What are your strategies for content optimization?
- What kind of businesses do you work with?
- What is your experience with our industry?
- How will you analyze and report campaigns?
- What kind of results should we expect?
SEO agencies can be a worthy investment, but be sure to do your research before deciding on one. Always see if you can do an in-person meeting to see how well the two brands fit with each other.
For more information on SEO, content optimization, and all things related to digital marketing, please visit the Arcalea blog. To find out how Arcalea can help your business in search marketing, contact us today.
