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If you're a business owner you'll eventually get to the point where your question changes from, "Do I really need marketing help?" to "How do I find the best marketing help?" This will help answer that.
1) The Work. Marketing firms and "experts" tend to be personable and persuasive, but don't always
have the work, experience, or talent to back it up. That's why you need to start by investing a couple minutes on their site to view the work and see how effective they are in marketing their business. After all, would you really want to work with a marketing genius who has a sucky site? And, if it's not truly impressive, move on.
2) Credentials and Experience. Professional history is very important. So, a bio should be on
the website and it should be impressive. And, though someone with experience in your specific niche is always
nice, it's less important than overall quality of experience and professional pedigree.
3) Results. Ultimately, it comes down to this. So, do they have impressive, believable testimonials?
Do they include case studies? And, do they talk about RESULTS?
4) Be aware of The Hidden Agenda. The problem with many "expert marketing" firms and advisors is that, they really aren't. What I mean is ... sure, they may be expert at their specific niche, be it web design, or social media, or PR, or brochures, or radio, or whatever it is. But, that usually means they'll also have a hidden (and sometimes no-so-hidden) agenda to get you to buy whatever it is they specialize in. And, that may not be what's truly best for your business.
5) How well do they market themselves? As mentioned earlier, if anyone should be great at their own marketing it should be the marketing firm you're considering hiring. There's no excuse for any marketing firm not to be a great example of great marketing. Which ties into ...
6) G-Cred. (Google Credibility) is what shows up when you "Google" something, or someone. It's
an easy, important litmus test of any marketing service or person. Wanna test it? Google: "Follis marketing"
7) Do they know Social Media? And, more importantly, are they on top of it? Do they have a
great blog, podcast, Facebook brand page, video page on YouTube, Twitter account, etc?
8) Awards. Have they won many? Any?
9) Press. Press-worthy work is a fabulous, free, added benefit for you, the client. So, have they
gotten any? And, if so, are we talking the local penny saver or The New York Times?
10) Are they a respected thought leader? Have they been published? Do they give talks? Have they been interviewed? Are they profiled on Wikipedia?
11) Do they make it easy to work together? Spending money for marketing help can be a scary
proposition for a small business owner, especially for the first time. So, have they developed
a way that makes it less scary to get started and test the waters?
12) Passion. This is one of the most important, yet most overlooked, items on the list. If you're
passionate about your business you'll want to work with someone equally passionate about theirs. It really does make a difference. (See: "The Power of Passion")
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© 2010 Follis Marketing Therapy
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