Starting up a digital marketing agency

8 years ago

What exactly are you wanting to do?

My first recommendation would be to figure out the specific service or services you can offer and fulfill. Digital marketing itself, is pretty broad. Do you want to sell SEO services? Web design? ORM?

Hubspot has a lot of great content, though most of it is geared towards inbound marketing. If you want clients, you should probably ask this in the Offline Marketing forum, you'll get a lot more answers over there.

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time4vps

8 years ago

If you are starting with a reason that's more than money - then it's a good first step! Don't fortget to focus on something specific rather than doing EVERYTHING. Another thing, start with networking, not cold calls

And the golden rule is - it's good to have funding, it's better to have partners, and it's best to bootstrap alone

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sharingoffer

8 years ago

Originally Posted by time4vps

If you are starting with a reason that's more than money - then it's a good first step! Don't fortget to focus on something specific rather than doing EVERYTHING. Another thing, start with networking, not cold calls

And the golden rule is - it's good to have funding, it's better to have partners, and it's best to bootstrap alone

I completely agree, just to ad on, it is hard road to go as i been there for over 4 years now, just a tip: the best foot in the door service is service that provides immediate ROI (return of investment) for Local businesses and has little or no competition in your Local market space!

regards

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TrafficsNinja

8 years ago

Many thanks for your input. I'm very much clear with these facts, read them somewhere online few weeks back.

Originally Posted by time4vps

If you are starting with a reason that's more than money - then it's a good first step! Don't fortget to focus on something specific rather than doing EVERYTHING. Another thing, start with networking, not cold calls

And the golden rule is - it's good to have funding, it's better to have partners, and it's best to bootstrap alone

Thanks

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Yvon Boulianne

8 years ago

And don't be the guy that work for everybody, you need a niche or you will be a tiny small fish in the ocean ..

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Steve B

8 years ago

Originally Posted by TrafficsNinja

. . . starting up a digital marketing agency, and looking for your advice on how to go, and how not to go about this.

IMO, someone who is setting up a marketing agency should have a whole bunch of experience in . . . surprise . . . marketing! If you are going to ask clients to pay you to promote their business, it seems to me, you should already have mastered the process of setting up and running a digital business.

If you are asking others how you should begin this process, it's my guess that you aren't quite ready yet to be offering others your own expertise. If I'm looking for a marketing agency to promote my business I want someone that is already well established, has a track record of promoting others, and knows how to get results.

If you are just now reading articles and looking for places to learn about the subject . . . it's my feeling that you're not ready just yet to assist others in the trade.

Steve

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jbsmith

8 years ago

Totally agree with Steve - you need to bite off one platform for digital advertising and get to know it inside and out, then start to build a track-record - start with some local businesses where you work based on returns to get your feet wet.

J

Originally Posted by Steve B

IMO, someone who is setting up a marketing agency should have a whole bunch of experience in . . . surprise . . . marketing! If you are going to ask clients to pay you to promote their business, it seems to me, you should already have mastered the process of setting up and running a digital business.

If you are asking others how you should begin this process, it's my guess that you aren't quite ready yet to be offering others your own expertise. If I'm looking for a marketing agency to promote my business I want someone that is already well established, has a track record of promoting others, and knows how to get results.

If you are just now reading articles and looking for places to learn about the subject . . . it's my feeling that you're not ready just yet to assist others in the trade.

Steve

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TrafficsNinja

8 years ago

Thanks for your response sand I do appreciate.

On another note, I can't disagree with you more, may be I wasn't clear enough in my first thread. Asking questions doesn't mean I lack the understanding of the subject... For your information, I have a diploma in Digital Marketing, several other qualifications alongside a first and second degree in other subjects that are not directly related to digital marketing. I'm only looking to broaden my horizon and explore other options by starting up a digital marketing agency, having previously managed an online SEO company. What I am asking for is practical advice, like a template that I can use to form the basis of my processes and client briefing. Digital marketing encompasses several services, most of which I have expertise in... the only one I'm short of ideas is the "digital marketing strategy", which is what I'm asking advice on.

I was hoping people who are already established in this industry could point me into the right direction.

Originally Posted by Steve B

IMO, someone who is setting up a marketing agency should have a whole bunch of experience in . . . surprise . . . marketing! If you are going to ask clients to pay you to promote their business, it seems to me, you should already have mastered the process of setting up and running a digital business.

If you are asking others how you should begin this process, it's my guess that you aren't quite ready yet to be offering others your own expertise. If I'm looking for a marketing agency to promote my business I want someone that is already well established, has a track record of promoting others, and knows how to get results.

If you are just now reading articles and looking for places to learn about the subject . . . it's my feeling that you're not ready just yet to assist others in the trade.

Steve

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JohnMcCabe

8 years ago

Originally Posted by TrafficsNinja

Thanks for your response sand I do appreciate.

On another note, I can't disagree with you more, may be I wasn't clear enough in my first thread. Asking questions doesn't mean I lack the understanding of the subject... For your information, I have a diploma in Digital Marketing, several other qualifications alongside a first and second degree in other subjects that are not directly related to digital marketing. I'm only looking to broaden my horizon and explore other options by starting up a digital marketing agency, having previously managed an online SEO company. What I am asking for is practical advice, like a template that I can use to form the basis of my processes and client briefing. Digital marketing encompasses several services, most of which I have expertise in... the only one I'm short of ideas is the "digital marketing strategy", which is what I'm asking advice on.

I was hoping people who are already established in this industry could point me into the right direction.

Yep, you definitely weren't clear enough in your first post. I just read it again, and it sounds like a lot of the wannabe "offline gold" seekers, who might have a bit of experience here and there and have read some stuff and now want to sell themselves to offline businesses.

Here's a template that worked for me in doing client briefings...

Before the contract is signed"

"Here's where you are. Here's where you should be. Here's my plan for getting you from here to there."

After the contract is signed:

"Here's where we started. Here's what we've done. Here's where we are now. Here's what we do next. Here's when to expect results."

Keep it simple. Unless the client insists, stick to results. "After the first phase of our social outreach program, email opt-ins are up xx%." You don't have to lay out every person/site you contacted.

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boomboombenoit

8 years ago

I've been discussing this on a LinkedIn group as well. From that discussion (which consists of a number of startups and startup services), the overwhelming advice is really to ensure you have a solid business plan and not to invest in overhead until it makes sense.

Lease instead of buy and contract work instead of hiring employees. That keeps your startup nimble with minimal commitments. It also provides tax deductions as you don't have to pay payroll taxes on contractors

If you need any software development help just let me know. I work with an offshore development house for specifically this reason

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nishadhasan

8 years ago

udemy also has some good course on digital marketing, check them over to gain some knowledge and many of them also for free.

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mbh

8 years ago

I've spoken with a couple of marketing agencies across the world in a consulting role and one of the biggest issues I've heard from them when starting out is to attract clients outside of their local market.

Usually these clients are apprehensive on giving projects to offshore agencies since there are a lot of agencies out there trying to just fool their clients. In order for you to stand out as an honest & effective agency, I think best way is for you to show some kind of screenshots, app/URL data of the work being done i.e. ability to monitor work. This will make it easy for your potential clients to trust you and give the projects. And it's not complicated at all, there are tons of tools out there - activtrak, hubstaff, rescuetime etc. You just gotta implement one of them and pitch this to your client.

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milleniwhat 8 years ago

Hey, thanks mbh for recommending Hubstaff. They're one of my clients, so if anyone has any questions about their software just let me know.

I also use their software and it's pretty awesome (I'm a remote worker with clients in the Philippines and USA). Just like mbh says, I tell my clients that I use it to track my time and they're much more comfortable with hiring someone international. It records randomized screenshots that I use as proof of work, activity levels (productivity gauge), URLs, apps, even locations if I my billable time is on-the-go.

Also, in regards to the original questions--I'd say aim for clients who have clients. For example, one of the clients I just started working with is a consultant for marketing agencies. I've already gotten a referral from him. He provides consulting and I provide digital marketing services, so it's a win-win and we can cross-refer.

Good luck!
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TrafficsNinja

8 years ago

Thanks guys, I really appreciate your contributions and advice. More like what I was looking for; practical advice and personal experiences.

Thanks

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andraeking1991

6 years ago

Here are some guide i wish it could help you with your promblem

Industry Overview
Market Research and Feasibility
Digital Marketing Agency Business Plan
Business Name ideas
Licenses and Permits
Marketing Plan
Cost of Starting a Digital Marketing Agency
Marketing ideas & Strategies

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riley1jones

6 years ago

It is a brilliant idea. I would suggest you to go through the necessary things that are needed before starting a digital marketing venture.
Good luck
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Mikaela Pierre

6 years ago

I think you should research more in starting an agency.

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Starting up a digital marketing agency

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