Saving time, energy and money on marketing

By selecting the best marketing agency to meet your needs

If you're in the process of seeking an agency to help with brand strategy, positioning, execution, or any other advertising agency services, you've probably wondered if there's an easier, more efficient way to ensure that you're selecting the best partner for your specific needs. The Internet, as a search tool, makes finding an ad agency easy – but it makes differentiating between the thousands of choices extremely difficult. How then, should you go about selecting the right advertising agency for your needs? Consider the following steps to uncover which agency will end up saving you time, energy and money.

1 – Understand the process

Most agencies have a spin on their "proprietary" process, so it's important not to be dazzled by jargon or presentations. Asking specific questions about the process is the best way to differentiate between and choose the right marketing agency partner.

Five key questions to ask:

1 – What is your process and timing for analyzing and understanding our needs?
2 – What is your process and timing for arriving at accurate positioning?
3 – What is your process and timing for generating and executing concepts, ideas and solutions based on the positioning?
4 – How do you ensure accurate and timely execution of concepts, ideas and solutions?
5 – What results can we expect?

2 – Understand the cost of your decision

Pricing is often a driving factor for companies choosing an agency partner. But other, less tangible costs can prove to be more important than price alone. Speed of discovery and accuracy of execution can cost you dearly if the process takes too long or if the execution is poor or off–target. You may be spending fewer dollars up front, but how much is it going to cost you to re–do it if it's wrong? To mitigate risk regarding intangible costs, you should factor the following into your decision:

Speed of discovery: How many meetings will it take to arrive at accurate positioning? If the agency has a solid, buttoned up process for brand extraction, accurate positioning should be achieved within one meeting and presented and agreed upon in a second. With fewer meetings to get to your brand essence comes less time and energy costs, reduced frustration and increased ROI.

Accuracy of execution: What are the steps and timeline for execution? The agency's process should clearly define precise steps for executing upon the agreed upon positioning. You need to know how many rounds of revision are expected and needed. They should provide a clear timeline that provides dates of completion for the steps involved. An inefficient and unclear execution process will no doubt cost you more time, energy and further frustration.

3 – Make the Final Decision

Speed of discovery and accuracy of execution, both determined by process, are the two most important considerations when differentiating between and choosing an agency partner. The potential cost of inaccurate positioning and poor execution can be catastrophic and potentially damaging to your company. The opposite will can bring your brand fame and fortune.

Want to know more about how Colorado–based ad agency, LeeReedy, does it? I'm here to talk when you have some time kreedy@leereedy.com.