My friend’s boss asked him to create a policy to guide them to hire a superb marketing agency.
He asked for my thoughts which I decided I should write down and post here at The Marketing Sage. I wouldn’t be surprised if many readers are considering hiring a digital marketing agency to help them in 2021. So, this advice is both practical and based on forty years of experience hiring superb marketing agencies.
It is rich in common sense – and uses almost no magic or secret potions. I like common sense – that seems to be missing today from the business world.
Be specific. What precisely do you need the superb marketing agency to do?
There are so many marketing agencies that it helps to start by getting clear why you are looking for help? Do you need someone to help you with lead generation, SEO, creating ads, or event marketing? Does the agency have to be an expert in designing a new website, or do you need brand architecture strategy assistance? Is this assignment about naming new products or creating tradeshow booths? I’d begin by outlining what areas you need help with and have the budget to support.
Focus on outcomes, not the tactics or skills, per se. I’d be highly skeptical of any agency that claims to do everything. I’m not a fan of generalists.
Will You Use an RFP?
An RPF or Request for Proposal forces you to write what you are looking for in an agency partner. And what you don’t want. It allows you to clarify what is needed and your expectations of finding a good fit for your need and culture. It also gives you a chance to explain how you will evaluate candidates. Putting together an RFP also allows you to get consensus internally from stakeholders who may only be tangentially involved in the process but will be essential partners in your program’s success.
Many agencies are reluctant to fill out complex and lengthy RFP’s. It costs them money to do it. So, if you have a modest budget, don’t expect everyone to jump through hoops filling out information pages. If you are spending millions – feel free to get a lot of hoop-jumping and get all the details necessary.
An RPF doesn’t need to be lengthy. It needs to be specific, explicit, and informative.
Competencies Needs
In a recent assignment, I needed to find a digital agency to assist a client with demand generation. We outlined all the technology they required to have skill and expertise and a sense of what we needed them to execute. For example, they would help set up content and design for outbound marketing to become knowledgeable about its core capabilities. The agency also needed to bring new ideas for qualifying leads. We outlined ten different areas they needed proficiency – and a few that would be bonuses.
Comparative Hours
I like to ask for a blended rate for services, so I have some relative way to compare agencies. For example, what’s the average hourly rate charged for copywriting, creative design, account management, strategic services, etc. Then, what is the range for blended hourly rates? In this situation, three agencies came back with composite rate averages ranges between $115-130 per hour while one was $220-250 per hour. So, it was clear who was on the high end and which agencies were closer in fee structure.
I also estimated that we would need about 100 hours per month for the first six months and then would reconsider hourly needs for the next six months. That gave each agency something to estimate against that was reasonable for them and us.
Presenting their RFP
I prefer to have an RFP presented – not just sent to me. Each agency had one hour to submit their RFP in a deck or whatever format they liked. And we reserved 30 minutes for questions. This allowed me and my client to get a sense of what the personalities were like on their team, how diverse they were, and how their experiences were relevant to our situation.
We recorded each pitch, and I shared it with about ten individuals within the company, so they all had an opportunity to weigh in and have their voices heard. Even though only two out of ten participated, I invited input and collaboration – and made it easy for them to be a part of the hiring process.
One of the three agencies had so little experience, and we quickly realized they weren’t a fit. But three others turned out to be much better aligned with our need. We eliminated one where we all were a bit put off by the presenter’s lack of humility. He seemed a bit too arrogant to be a good mesh with our team.
Be Clear on Timing for a Decision
We made our decision after two weeks of considering each option. I created a scorecard where we could rate each agency on a scale of 1-5 to see how everyone independently evaluated the RFP and feedback. The scorecard was useful because some people ranked one agency exceptionally low in a critical area that mattered to us. This colleague picked up on some inconsistencies that others missed.
Once we came down to two agencies, we asked to speak to three to five current or former clients who could provide us with a reference. The reference discussion is one more important data point and helped us make a final choice.
Decision. Contract. Begin.
Once settling on a superb marketing agency winner, it took a few more weeks to negotiate the final contract. But we felt confident we made a solid choice and that we were entering into a partnership – not a vendor relationship. This attitude made a big difference because it forced us as the client to bring some empathy to the learning curve our new partner would go through. And we agreed to a realistic onboarding process that worked for everyone’s schedule.
Who Do We Like And Who Can We Learn From?
I put a high value on relationships, so I want to both like the marketing agency partners and see an opportunity to learn from them. Who do I want to be on a long-term journey with?
When I was responsible for marketing at GoodMark Foods (Slim Jims) who was acquired by ConAgra Foods, one of my proudest accomplishments was to have several marketing agencies as partners, not vendors, to help us accelerate growth.
From North Castle Partners (strategy and advertising), French West Vaughan (public relations), and GMR Marketing (event marketing), these agencies’ colleagues became friends and teachers to my team. Agency people like Jo McKinney, Steve Marks, Steve Garbett, Hal Rosen, Britt Carter, and Dave Rosenberg became part of my league of marketing superheroes.
The results – we doubled revenue and tripling profits over five years and had a great time in the process.
In Summary
- Be clear about what skills are needed.
- Get recommendations from friends who rave about their agencies.
- Use an RFP as a tool, not a crutch.
- Have each agency present to you.
- Record the presentation and share it to get buy-in internally.
- Understand hourly blended rates.
- Find partners you like and who you can learn from.
There often isn’t just one superb marketing agency, but several experts from different agencies. Your job is to identify them and then stitch them together with your marketing team so you can align to achieve your goals.
Considering hiring a superb marketing agency?
I can help. You can set up a time to chat with me about your marketing challenges using my calendar. Email me jeffslater@themarketingsage.com Call me. 919 720 0995. The conversation is free, and we can explore if working together makes sense. Watch a short video about working with me.
Photo by krakenimages on Unsplash
