Inbound lead generation is on your goal list for this year. How do you find a B2B inbound marketing agency to help you accomplish this? You’ve gone to Google and you were presented with tons of options, but no… direction. What agency is the right fit for you? We can help.
We’re Vendilli, a digital marketing agency in Pittsburgh, and we put together the ultimate guide to choosing a B2B inbound marketing agency.
From comparing digital marketing agency retainers to looking for niche experience like B2B eCommerce marketing or manufacturing inbound marketing, we got you covered.
Table of Contents
What should you look for when hiring an inbound marketing agency?
Identify your goals and make sure the agency is a match. Start by asking yourself these questions.
1. What is the discovery process like?
Will you begin the engagement with a personalized onboarding or kickoff? Or will you be handed a bunch of pre-filled suggestions before the agency knows what you need? If they don’t discover, they don’t deliver.
Agencies have standard processes and documents they use over and over, of course. But each time those documents are used for a particular client, they change. The exercises are standard, but the way each client approaches them are what makes them work.
2. Is the agency providing case studies and testimonials for you to review?
If an agency has happy customers, you should know about it. Do they showcase their work on their website, have testimonials flooding their socials, tout that most of their work comes in via referrals?
Ask and do your own research. Have they won awards? Are they showing up on top local lists? Do you know anyone that has worked with them personally? If they have successful results, they should want to show them off.
3. What is the cost and what is included in your service agreement?
This is the big one and it’s complex. Budgets shift. Sometimes they grow, sometimes they shrink. What are you signing up for? What happens if business is slow? What happens if business is fast and you need help right away? What is in your contract and is every fee outlined in a way that makes sense to you?
Talk about all the little line items. Ask questions on areas you are unclear about. An agreement is there for a reason, but there is always room to negotiate and strategize.
4. Who is on the team and what do they do?
The size of the agency is not as important as who will be on your team.
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Will you have a dedicated account manager and point of contact?
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Do they have employees in-house for content, design, SEO, PR, video, etc. or do they outsource? And how will that affect deadlines and workflow?
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Does their team have specialized skills and certifications? Do they participate in ongoing professional development?
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Are they on trend with new technology and know how to use it? Do they write content or go on podcasts acting as thought leaders in the field?
Check out the about page on the agency website. Does the team have a personality and style that you resonate with or do you feel like it wouldn’t be a great fit? A website can tell you a lot.
5. Are they local?
Are in-person meetings important to you? Do you want an agency that understands your market? The benefit of being able to get into a room together to brainstorm and strategize is important. But we also know that with online meeting tools and emails, communication can still be solid remotely. It’s really up to you and your specific needs.
6. Are they strategic or task based?
You have goals and you certainly have specific tasks you’ll want to work on right away. It might be a new website or the launch of a PPC campaign. What happens before, during, and after the task? Is there strategy at every stage or is it just checking it off the list?
A new website is a task. A content audit and design refresh is a strategy. If you are looking to put an agency on retainer, a team with a strategic mindset is extremely important. Getting things done is great, but quality of work and the reason behind the task are what differentiates strategic partners from an agency just going through the motions.
7. What do meetings and reporting look like?
Are services so standardized that you feel like just another client? You should feel like the only client and your engagement should be customized. Do you prefer shorter weekly meetings to check in more often or a lengthier monthly meeting? Do you want to receive reports bi-weekly or see quarterly reviews?
What is their reporting structure? How do they define success metrics? Agencies are all about numbers. If they can focus on internal billable hours, they better be showing you the numbers you want to see.
8. Do they have knowledge on the systems you use?
You are coming to an agency with a tech stack in place. Do they know and understand what you are using and are they ready to offer suggestions for improvement? Find an agency with a broad understanding of everything from HubSpot to Al. Find agencies who know the importance of integration and automation.
9. What do they do in the community?
This might be important to you, it might not. But it’s something to consider.
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Are you working with an agency invested in their local community?
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Are they sponsoring events?
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Do they work with charities?
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Does their team sit on boards or hold leadership roles?
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Do they promote events and people doing great things on their social media?
It will give you insight into the type of team you are about to hire (or not hire).
Ready to Find Your Perfect Inbound Partner?
This guide is a starting point to finding an inbound marketing agency that works for you. And we’d love to toss our hats in the ring as YOUR next agency. We customize, we share results, we know our tech, we work with multiple budgets, we have a fully in-house team, we keep learning, we are out in the world, we care about your vision and we do great work, but we also have a lot of fun.
Reach out to us anytime at vendilli.com and let’s start a conversation.
