If you’re a business owner looking to hire a marketing agency, there’s more to consider than just prices and services. The people you work with should understand your business, the service you provide, and the culture you cultivate— and that means you should, too.

It seems like a small ask, but it does require a little bit of reflection. Businesses and roles evolve over time, dependent on things like business size, changes in technology, and how your product has changed as well. When you’re looking for a place that can effectively market your business, be aware going in of what your niche is so that the marketing agency you hire gets the message right.

Understanding and Evaluating Your SEO Needs

For example: I worked at a restaurant in high school, then again in the same restaurant when I was in college with a gap of two or three years. In that time frame, a woman who was a waitress there when I was in high school was able to buy the restaurant from the owners and turn it into a nicer establishment with totally different clientele. If she decided to hire a marketing company, it wouldn’t make sense to appeal to people in the area looking for a quick bite. She would want to be visible to customers looking for a finer dining experience—and her web marketing should reflect that, too. It might involve updating the restaurant’s listings on Google My Business, putting up photos of the upscale events they’ve catered catered, and working on pinpointing their Facebook ads, but it all comes down to knowing who your business appeals to, and how to best serve them.

So what kind of web marketing does your business need? Would you benefit from informative landing pages with detailed explanations of your services? Do photos tell the whole story? If you’re not sure, that’s fine, too.

Smart boutique marketers will help you understand the SEO services that work best for your business and why. All it takes is diligence and careful attention to the details of your current website, and an in-depth conversation with you about your business. 

If you’re looking for a small, local agency to help you evaluate your SEO needs, learn more about our digital audit.