It goes without saying that old school marketing doesn’t cut it anymore. There is a place for things like direct mail advertising and distributing flyers and brochures to customers at the point-of-sale. But if you really want to compete in the modern environment, you need to pay attention to digital marketing. The big question is this: should you hire a digital marketing agency or go it alone?
Here in the U.S., the digital marketing and advertising industry is worth an estimated $460 billion. It is estimated to eclipse $786 million by the end of 2026. Those numbers alone do not tell you much about what your company should do with digital marketing. But it does tell you that a lot of companies are spending a lot of money on professional digital marketing services.
Part Science, Part Creativity
Some of the tried and true principles of traditional marketing apply in the digital sphere. Creativity is a big part of both traditional and digital marketing. But there is an added element to the digital realm: science. Digital marketing agencies utilize all sorts of data and analytics tools that just were not available prior to the internet.
At Webtek Digital Marketing in Salt Lake City, UT and Austin, TX, analytics are a core component in what they do. Analytics tells Webtek team members how their current digital marketing campaigns are doing. It gives them a glimpse into past campaign performance. It also charts a course for the future.
Going alone is fine if your company knows how to gather the right data and use it in the best way possible. But without strong analytics supporting digital marketing efforts, your team isn’t going to achieve the results it otherwise could.
Digital Marketing and SEO
It should also be noted that search engine optimization (SEO), while often treated as a separate entity unto itself, is intrinsically linked to digital marketing. If you want to know why, look no further than Google. Google is the world’s most dominant search engine. It is among the top three companies exercising the most control over what happens online.
Google doesn’t control just the search market. It also controls PPC advertising, video marketing (via YouTube), mobile advertising, and more. So if you are going to master the digital marketing game, you also need to master Google. That means knowing SEO inside and out.
Marketing Is What They Do
The advantage of hiring a digital marketing agency is the fact that marketing is what they do. Marketing is their only business. Just like your company specializes in whatever business you’re engaged in, digital marketing agencies specialize in marketing. They are the most qualified of all professional entities to help you make the most of your online marketing efforts.
You Get What You Pay For
You are undoubtedly familiar with the phrase you get what you pay for’. In terms of digital marketing, it is absolutely true. A lot of companies try to go it alone so as to do it on the cheap. But the results reflect an unwillingness to spend money. The truth is that quality digital marketing requires a financial investment. Companies not willing to make that investment ultimately have to live with less than stellar results.
Should your company hire a digital marketing agency or go it alone? Only executive management can determine that. But if market stats are accurate, going it alone means not competing with other companies willing to bring in professionals. Weigh the implications of not competing before you make a choice about who is going to handle your company’s digital marketing.
