It is fair to say that digital marketing services are easy to come by these days. Every major city offers dozens of marketing agencies capable of handling just about any industry. That says nothing of the digital marketing agencies that serve clients nationwide. But is paying for marketing service worth it? And if so, which services should a company pay for?
Digital Marketing Involves a Lot of Things
Asking about particular services is rooted in the understanding that marketing agencies do more than one thing. An agency like Salt Lake City’s Webtek Digital Marketing could provide your company with a comprehensive package that includes every service on their menu. Another marketing agency might offer fewer services or work based on an à la carte model.
Here is a list of the most common digital marketing services companies like Webtek offer:
- Content marketing
- Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising
- Social media marketing
- Email marketing
- Mobile marketing
- Affiliate marketing
- SEO services
In addition to the listed services, agencies also tend to offer analytics and at least some marketing automation. If your company could afford an all-inclusive package, that would be best. But if not, the following services are well worth paying for:
SEO Services
We start with SEO services because they truly are the foundation of digital marketing. Never forget that Google runs the internet. If they do not know your website exists, most of your digital marketing efforts will ultimately be in vain.
SEO services are worth paying for because they account for things most business owners do not know. And because SEO is constantly evolving, businesses that don’t keep up aren’t going to perform well in organic searches. It is better to just let the professionals handle it.
Content Marketing
Although content marketing may not be the most attractive strategy in ROI terms, it is the most critical element in maximizing SEO efforts. The thing with content marketing is that it needs to be done in line with SEO principles and standard marketing tactics. It is not as easy as writing a few blog posts or creating a handful of videos. Content marketing is a discipline that incorporates certain principles. Doing it right requires skill and understanding.
PPC Advertising
More than one company has attempted to get on the PPC advertising train without fully understanding how it works. Companies are better off paying for PPC services unless they understand the details intimately. This includes the details of PPC ad fraud and how it is perpetrated. Without intimate knowledge, a company could end up spending its entire marketing budget on ads and never realize a single sale from them.
Everything Else
If your company could only afford a limited number of digital marketing services, the most important services worth paying for are SEO services, content marketing, and PPC advertising. But what about the rest?
Social media marketing can be managed in-house if you have a few social savvy team members. They are not hard to find these days. In terms of email marketing, a team member with basic marketing skills can put together a newsletter and a series of email blasts. As for mobile and affiliate marketing, they do not apply to most businesses. They are specialty services for specific types of companies.
Now you know the types of digital marketing services that are worth paying for. If you are handling all of your digital marketing in-house, how are things going? Putting a ton of effort into digital marketing without seeing a measurable return is a strong indicator that you need some help. Consider building paid digital marketing into your budget for next year.
