What is Online Marketing?
Before you can define the added value of an online marketing agency for yourself, you have to fundamentally understand online marketing. So, let’s see:
Marketing describes all activities of a company aimed at increasing sales. To achieve this, potential customers are approached and won over with advertising measures tailored to the target group. In the past, this was the domain of offline marketing: TV, print and billboards were big in the race. Today it’s different, life is digital.
Online marketing describes all marketing measures that take place on the Internet. These measures are insanely diverse, with new possibilities being added every day. Big players like Google, Facebook and Instagram are continuously creating new options for specifically addressing customers. This is extremely good, but it also makes online marketing a field that requires experts.
However, online marketing does not only refer to the placement of digital advertising media, but also and above all to the constant adjustment of these. This possibility of fine-tuning makes online marketing the most effective way to advertise today.
Online marketing channels and formats
To understand online marketing, it should be clear what channels and formats are. Channels are the platforms on which marketing activities take place. Examples are YouTube, Facebook, search engine optimization (SEO), content marketing, email marketing, influencer marketing or affiliate marketing.
Formats describe the content that is made available to end users. This can be videos, podcasts, images, graphics or texts.
Successful online marketing
The goal, of course, is to get the most out of the advertising media. This is made possible by various tools and algorithms. With them, the effect and success of advertising activities can be measured and analyzed. Consequently, online formats and channels can be ideally combined with each other, scatter losses reduced and sales increased.
A one-time definition of the optimal mix of online marketing activities is not enough. That would be too simple. The digital world is so fast-moving that advertising measures have to be adapted to the rules of the game of the platforms as well as to the target group and its digital behavior.
In-house or agency?
It’s clear that online marketing is a must. The only question that companies have to ask themselves is not whether, but how. Should the whole thing be handled in-house or should an online marketing agency be hired? In principle, both are possible. The important thing is that it’s done right.
First and foremost, the right thing to do means defining a strategy and following it. Far too often, companies proceed online completely haphazardly because they underestimate the importance of online marketing despite the digital advance. The costs are also often underestimated. That can’t happen when an online marketing agency takes over.
Advantages of the online marketing agency
- An agency bundles the knowledge of many experts from a wide variety of fields. This case service approach can hardly be implemented in-house, as a number of experts would have to be hired. Hardly any company wants to bear the costs for this.
- It can be assumed that most online marketing agencies have gained experience in many different areas. Thus, beginner mistakes can be avoided and faster success can be achieved.
- The experts at a good agency are up to date with all the possibilities and guidelines in digital marketing. In-house employees would have to be provided with ongoing, expensive training.
- Structure and different departments allow agencies to perform quickly and at a high level.
- Online experts know the market and often look after several customers at the same time. They can therefore think beyond the industry and deliver exciting ideas.
- Agencies have important and very good tools to measure success, control measures and perform analyses. Very few companies would acquire these tools and programs.
Disadvantages of the online marketing agency
- Since account managers (contacts for companies) of an agency take care of several customers at the same time, they cannot be available for each one 24/7 with full attention. Appointments must be made for consultation.
- It may happen that the agency contact person changes due to a change in staff.
- Of course, an agency does not know its customers and their corporate philosophy and history as well as its own employees do. Important details could be lost if they don’t get to know each other well enough.
Conclusion
Basically, a good online marketing agency is absolutely worth its money. Of course, the hourly rate for the work of an agency is higher than that for an internal employee, but as a company you get the full breadth of expert knowledge bundled here. This diversity of expertise ultimately means that less money has to be invested.
For the work between company and agency to work, absolute transparency is important. But beware: It’s not easy to find a good online marketing agency. Empty promises of success, long term contracts and no direct contact person are signs of black sheep among creatives.
The best way for agency and client to get to know each other personally is through a detailed meeting. Fancy a coffee?
