is your inbound agency lying to you?

Is Your Inbound agency lying to you?Five Warning Signs Every Marketer Should Know

MORE BRANDS ARE LOOKING FOR OUTSIDE

HELP BECAUSE OF THE LEVEL OF EXPERTISE –

An Agency’s portfolio includes a breadth of

work unrivaled by a single, in-house

marketer.

It’s no surprise why more brands are outsourcing their content creation: An agency can take its experience across multiple industries and successfully apply the best ideas to your brand.

An agency shouldn’t try to compete with your in-house team – it shouldelevate your efforts through a shared dedication to great content.

However, all brands have the same concern before working with an outside agency: How do I know whether or not it’s trustworthy?

Here, we’ll walk you through five warning signs that may indicate whether or not an agency is lying to you.

You’re left with a bad first impressionafter initial contact.

Red Flag#1

Is your inbound agency lying to you? 03

Initial contact that feels impersonal is a good indicator of low-quality work.

Some questions you’ll want to ask:

• What do you know about our brand?

• How will you help us reach our key audience?

• Have you worked with someone in our industry before?

• How do you measure success?

Free services – If it’s not expecting you to pay, expect little to no effort on its end.

Scripted pitch – When you’re not hearing specifics about your industry or brand, the agency hasn’t done its research.

Industry jargon – Promising something will “go viral” leaves an agency less accountable to solid goals.

Clues An Agency is untrustworthyIt’s easy to overlook critical questions when meeting with an agency for the first time. You want to make sure an agency’s pitch focuses on how it can help elevate your brand within your industry and offers ways to reach your target audiences.


A simple online search provides little to no information about the agency.

Red Flag#2


Digital marketers and agencies leave digital footprints, so if you can’t easily find information about one, it’s a good indicator that it has something it’s trying to hide.

Inbound marketing agencies can offer your brand an entire team devoted to generating and promoting great content, and these are some key positions you want an agency to offer:

YOU SHOULD FEEL

CONFIDENT THAT THE

AGENCY YOU’RE WORKING

WITH HAS THE RIGHT

BACKGROUND AND SKILL

SET, PLUS A LARGE

ENOUGH TEAM TO HANDLE

THE WORK.

Account Manager

Brand Strategist

Project Manager

Researcher

Programmer/Developer

Graphic Designer

Copywriter/Editor

Media Relations Associate


The agency doesn’t have a portfolio that backs its “guaranteed” results.

Red Flag#3


Case Studies

There should be

concrete examples of

effective strategies

and client wins.

Previous Campaigns

Not only should there be

previous examples, but

you should also see an

evolution in content type.

Results

Look for exact figures

and growth percentages

along with short- and

long-term results.

An agency should have a portfolio readily available, and these can provide you with a great sense of its work.

What are some things you want to find in a well-rounded portfolio?

Press Mentions

There should be examples

of client placements as

well as articles that

feature the agency.


The agency doesn’t provide a concrete set of metrics it uses to measure results.

Red Flag#4


The agency should have no problem proving its work gets results. Here are some key metrics it should provide as ways it measuressuccess:

Social Shares Links Brand Mentions Traffic

Conversions Leads ROI

WATCH OUT FOR DUBIOUS PROMISES, LIKE ACHIEVING SPECIFIC SEO RANKINGS OR producingCAMPAIGNS THAT WILL simply “GO VIRAL.”


Below-market pricing usually indicates lower-quality work.

Red Flag#5


Rates should reflect the amount of time and resources required for high-quality work.Fractl took a closer look at how agencies are running their content marketing programs. Our survey results revealed that the common practice is to offer retainer packages.

These retainers tended to fall into four brackets: $1,000–$5,000,

$5,000–$10,000, $10,000–$50,000, and $50,000–$100,000.

Factors to consider whenoutlining your budget

Many brands are outsourcing their inbound marketing efforts because they simply can’t produce the quality content they need internally. As a business owner, how much should you pay freelance writers and marketing agencies for content? Strategy – What are your

campaign goals? This will help you understand the scope and potential cost of a campaign.

Production – The cost of content creation largely depends on complexity and research.

Promotion – There are a variety of options available for content distribution, so pricing varies depending on channel and overall campaign goals.

Is your inbound agency lying to you?

Source: Fractl and Moz – The ROI of Content Marketing vs. Native Advertising

12

AN OUTSIDE AGENCY IS IN THE

BUSINESS TO SUCCEED,AND IT WANTs TO

HELP MAXIMIZE YOURGROWTH AS MUCH AS

YOU DO.

Finding an agency that can work within your budget and deliver the results you’re looking for isn’t difficult if you know what to look for during your initial meetings.

Remember to keep these five red flags in mind when vetting your next inbound marketing agency.

The biggest takeaway? If an agency isn’t tracking or providing insights into how much value it’s driving for your brand, then perhaps it's time to lookelsewhere.

WE LEVERAGE THE SCIENCE BEHIND GREAT CONTENT.

OUR MISSION: TO PRODUCE THE MOST ENGAGING AND EMOTIONAL EXPERIENCES ON THE WEB

Fractl is a full-service digital marketing agency that specializes in content marketing, social

media, and lead generation. Fractl focuses on the high impact of viral content marketing as

it relates to SEO, rankings, and online growth. Fractl is a team with a broad set of talents and

skill sets. Most notably, we maintain a highly talented team of programmers, writers, editors,

PR professionals, technical search engine talent, animators, graphic designers, project

managers, producers, and creative thinkers. Find out how our superior results can increase

your bottom line today.

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