Anyone who runs an online business knows how complicated the process can be. Anytime you are outsourcing marketing and web development services, it’s vital to ensure that you are dealing with a company that understands your needs as a small business. Many companies choose to deal with an all-inclusive provider. By building a relationship with a company that can handle every aspect of your digital marketing, you’ll be able to take advantage of cohesive services that are tailored to the needs of your specific business. Before you sign a contract, make sure that your service provider can supply you with all of the following services.
Web Hosting
If you were going to open a retail store you’d need to rent commercial space. Just like the store, your website also needs somewhere for the data to be stored so clients can access it at all times. Web hosting provides the server space necessary to make your website accessible online. If your website goes down due to a service outage, your sales will be impacted. Because your page load times can factor into the customer experience as well as your search engine rankings, make sure that the company that hosts your website is the same one responsible for marketing it.
Web Design and Development
The design and function of your website are the primary elements clients will use to make an initial judgement of the quality of your products or services. Because your marketing agency is taking responsibility to help you grow your business, they are the ideal provider to design and program your website. Because conversions directly impact their ability to successfully promote your business, your marketing agency is the best choice to turn to for web development services.
Search Engine Optimization
Once you have a website, you’re going to want people to be able to find it. Search engine optimization is the process of modifying your website so that Google can understand your content, as well as promoting it online so that your website is displayed for relevant search terms. Using the same agency that developed and hosted your website means that they will already understand how it was built, and will know the most effective ways to promote your website online.
Paid Advertising
While SEO is an extremely cost effective way to promote yourself online, your agency will need some time before you will be able to see permanent results. Paid advertising campaigns give you the ability to see instant results, but it’s important to balance costs with conversions. A company that is already handling your SEO will be able to develop campaigns that deliver results until your SEO efforts have a chance to pay off.
A Cohesive System
While there are many parts to a successful online marketing campaign, all of these individual pieces need to work together to function effectively. Attempting to use multiple service providers simply creates opportunities for ineffective services as they are unable to fully understand every aspect of your business. Taking the time to deliver a relationship with a single company and ensuring they understand your needs is vital to remaining efficient and competitive in the modern global marketplace.
