Orji-Oko Uzor- Introduction
- What does a creative digital agency do?
- Create a creative digital agency
- How do you run a successful creative agency?
- Ways to manage an agency
- What makes a great creative digital agency?
- How do creative digital agencies make money?
Introduction
For decades businesses have been relying on creative agencies, even before the invention of the internet. It was solely the job of the creative agency to handle all the artwork, colors, and branding involved with a business using the artistic talent of the people it employed. It was a type of one-stop-shop for business executives who had great and excellent business ideas but didn’t know how to sell them.
Then things changed. With the advent and rise of the internet, marketing became a distinctly technical activity. It is no more enough to understand branding, but you also need to have an the technical know-how of how it interacted with new digital alchemy, like SEO.
Total confusion was the result of this. Business executives and managers didn’t know who they should run to for help. Should they run to creative agencies to provide them with all the graphic designers and print design services that they needed? Or better still try their luck with the emerging band of digital marketers promising them search and social dominance? It wasn’t totally clear. Because everyone was confused.
What does a creative digital agency do?
To understand fully what a creative digital agency does. We will first break it to know what creative agencies and digital agencies are.
What is a creative agency?
The focus of creative agencies is different from digital marketing agencies. Most time, they don’t bother themselves with marketing at all, especially the practicalities of it. They always hope that when they create beautiful designs, logos, and striking colors, their clients will be able to attract customers as a byproduct. The work of actually marketing the company, the creative agency believes, is the job of somebody else.
When you visit a website of a creative agency, you’ll only find an overwhelming focus on the company’s visual products. The portfolio is entirely shots of what the company creates instead of showcasing marketing success it has achieved. You will hardly see ad like “boost your conversions by 50%” or “get a better ROI.”
What is a digital agency?
It’s very much relaxed with the world created by the internet, and knows the methods that businesses should adopt to do well in it. Digital agencies offer business managers with things like online advertising, web design and development, e-commerce consulting, and search engine optimization. They have deep knowledge of the tools that digital marketing firms must use to be successful on these frontiers.
One can not argue the fact that digital agencies are incredibly important to the modern digital advertising ecosystem. Businesses rarely know how to create potent advertising campaigns: they need people with the skills to do it on their behalf to be able to compete with their peers.
One problem with digital agencies, is that they lack that creative ingenuity to get an advertising campaign off the ground in the first place. Sure, they understand the SEO landscape, and they certainly know which setting to adjust on Adwords, but they’re always tinkering at the edges.
When you go to the website of a digital agency, you’ll find a menu of services. It looks this way: content creation, SEO services, web design, PPC advertising, and “social” – whatever that means. It lets you choose one thing or another and ramp up your marketing efforts in several areas.
Combining the two
From the preceding discussion, there’s a strong point to be stated that marketing agencies should combine the two. Businesses need the creative flair of creative agencies to create and design stunning ads. And the digital know-how of digital agencies to get them in front of their target customers online. A business might go from one to the other, but in practically every case, it is better to have an agency that can handle both.
With this, the creative designers directly work with the technical wizards to come up with a scheme that would synergize both approaches. The wizards could inform the creatives the kind of artistry that works on a particular channel using their data. Then, the creatives will come up with designs that the wizards could never imagine to develop themselves. When this happens, it would be a match made in heaven.
Create a creative digital agency
Networking
Networking is important to building your business. Make use of your contacts! And while you are at it, be sure to maintain positive connections with everybody you work with if you really plan on starting your own agency in the future. Reach out to your old coworkers and colleagues. Then ask them to catch up on the phone, or grab lunch or dinner with you.
Sometimes, these your contacts may have opportunities they’re too busy to manage. Or don’t even know the right resources — this would be a great avenue for an introduction. When you share with your colleagues that you’re starting your own, chances are there they’ll want to support you and keep you in mind next time a creative need crosses their way. Equally know the power of referrals and word of mouth are incredible. People are more likely to buy when referred by someone they know. But, never you wait for these referrals, just ask for them.
Recruiting talent
When starting out, it might be financially tough to hire full-time employees. Especially ones with particular expert niches that usually take a big budget to afford, this include SEO, video production, etc. With the number of experts going out on their own, there are many rooms to hire freelancers and SMEs on a contract-by-contract basis. So, consider to hire supporting freelancers or SMEs for client contracts, like an SEO audit or a media strategy by using resources such as CloudPeeps, Upwork or Torchlite. These marketplaces focus on bringing the right talent to businesses to make the most of the opportunity and work.
Alternatively, you could get your first few clients by pitching opportunities for other creatives. Through these creatives, you could bring existing clients to your agency. This will provide your agency with opportunity and the creative for an additional opportunity with a bigger team.
Creating your agency website
First impressions always matter. You have a creative digital agency. Meaning you need a brand and a website that will wow your visitors and prospects and show them your capabilities and talents. However, never put yourself in tight corner, simply because you are trying too hard to be clever. So, consider working with a UX expert, this will ensure you don’t end up with confusing navigation and no clear site hierarchy. Your site should appear professional and unique, but equally have really clear information for any visitor that navigates and wants to hire you.
Also, don’t forget that your website is meant to generate leads. Make sure you have a clear call to action and the visitor will be to understand who you are, what you do and why you care.
Content Strategy
Content marketing is very important for lead generation, as well as brand awareness and trust.
Content helps fuel your online marketing channels. Start with writing excellent blogs that will attract clients to your business. Imagine the problems your prospects are trying so hard to solve, and how you can help. Then, dig into creative problems you’ve solved for past brands and clients. The content on your blog can be extended onto
Keywords are equally critical to include in your content strategy. Keywords will aid you drive more qualified traffic to your specific web pages, which leads to better conversions. Keywords can equally help you get your content in front of the right people at the right time.
Owning a creative digital agency may not be for the faint of heart, but it’s worth the energy and work to build a business of your own. During the period, you’re burning the midnight oil, it’ll be for your own success and your own revenue. Make sure to take the time to plan out what type of company you are. Focus on the kind of clients you want, how to make them happy and satisfied and create a team culture that you will be proud of.
Lastly, never you forget to have fun!
How do you run a successful creative agency?
Successful creative digital agencies need to follow the best techniques in order to survive in the hyper-competitive marketplace.
Let’s look at the tips on to successfully run a creative digital agency:
Emphasize personal relationships with clients
Creative digital agencies built trusts and partnerships with businesses to creatively create ads, marketing strategies, and how the public would see a product or service. Such brainstorming involves a big amount of time and interaction between the creative digital agencies and the business – client they worked for.
Today, despite the new technology, interpersonal relationships are still needed in a business relationship. Every client wil have a go to person at the agency that they can talk to about the direction of a campaign.
Explain what you do easily
As a creative digital agency fill that void that many businesses and clients have with their marketing. But, this does not mean that the agency will exist as an esoteric enterprise.
Have a consistent track record of matching audience
It is important to always showcase your best work to clients. But, the question is how does one measure your best work? Well, In this day and age, its not just for the campigns to reach the people, but how consistently will you match the product to the right customers.
Solve the key problem for the client
Creative digital agencies need to help a client with how the client approaches technology, social media, and selling its product. We need to know how to innovate the client’s brand. This may seem hard to accomplish, especially when the client reasons that your agency is trying to tell them how to do things too much.
Ask for referrals
Once there is an established and successful partnerships are made, you must always ask the businesses you interact with for referrals. These businesses might likely have good connections and associates they know – the more referrals, the better and bigger the opportunities to start new business relationships.
Embrace social media
Twitter and Facebook are great social media tools used to communicate directly with customers, clients or businesses. Blogging is equally a great social media tool, a method of sharing information while gathering a following based upon what you offer. However, using social media will help to build awareness about yourself and your business.
Attractive website and using SEO
One way to stand out from the crowd is by ensuring you have a bold, simple and attractive website. You will want the user to have one of the best memorable experience, one in which they instantly remember. User-friendly and simplicity are the two words in designing a great website.
Ways to manage an agency
Make teamwork the priority.
Rather than to use feedback to put certain creatives on pedestals and knock others down, try to build a space that’s purely focused on the value of teamwork. Sure, some creatives will be stronger than others. And to give negative feedback sucks. But these factors are part of the creative digital agency game.
Praise each creative differently
There are times when you should speak to each creative individually. And they will be total different in how they respond to praise, you need to know what you say depending on who you’re speaking to.
Scope out each creative’s unique skills
Bear in mind to always check in to see what unique skills your creatives have? Is any of them harboring a secret talent that you aren’t using. However, the best way to scope out these skills is simple: simply ask your creatives what their hidden talents are.
Manage your creatives’ expectations
So frustrating that when you’re managing a project and your content writer or digital marketer just isn’t stepping up to the plate. Just take a step back and ask yourself, what are they expecting from the project? Will the project really proving to be what was pitched to them when you hired them?
Allow your team to create whenever they are inspired to
A creative’s mind is like a hamster on a wheel… and it needs to be constantly on the move. And when it’s on the move, it’s happier.
Research by Gallup tells us what we already knew indirectly… Happier employees are more creative and productive.
What makes a great creative digital agency?
Strategic partnership
In marketing, the fewer agencies you use the better. Not only is it much easier to manage a smaller cadre of agencies. But it will dramatically make your marketing more strategic and more effective.
However, to engage agencies as strategic partners, instead as vendors or suppliers, will improve your brand consistency, quality standards and purchasing leverage. Rather than engaging them in one-off deliverables, creative digital agency partners are most effective when they understand how all the deliverables tie together.
Integration
The task of integrating all the parts of the marketing mix together into a consistent voice and story rests on the shoulders of the marketing leader. This won’t be delegated to an outside firm. You have reduced the set of agency partners and that’s good news. So, it is far easier to make integrated marketing a reality.
Be sure each of your agency partners are involved when making a key discussion or change. Never make the mistake of keeping them as silent suppliers behind the scenes. Having them hear input and feedback from important internal stakeholders makes your job much easier.
It’s important to introduce your agency principles to one another and create an avenue for them to work together to solve your most pressing marketing challenges.
Commitment
Commitment works both ways – businesses need to demonstrate commitment to their agency partners as highlighted above, and agencies need to show the same commitment to their clients.
Do your creative digital agencies have a consistent team of A-players in place to support your account? Is the head of the agency actively engaged in key meetings and providing timely strategic counsel? Most importantly, is your creative digital agency “walking the talk” when it comes to believing in your brand and your products?
How do creative digital agencies make money?
Pricing models
Every business needs a pricing model in order to charge for their services, and creative digital agencies are no exception. Pricing models are determined solely by the creative digital agency and should always reflect the value of the services offered, in line with industry standards.
Some pricing models are more beneficial to agencies than others — it differs from business to business. Maybe your pricing model may be based on one you’ve seen from a different agency, but it may not quite work for your business goals.
To implement this model, you must have work through a few steps. First, you must understand the clients’ goals and make sure they’re measurable. In this case, let’s just say that the client wants to boost their conversion rates with an ad campaign.
After you must identified the client’s goals, estimate a price, and remind the client that it’s subject to change upon completion. Failure to meet the goals might negate a lower price, while when you exceed them would have the opposite effect.
Advertising
A creative digital agency often offer advertising services to help the client broadcast the campaign they’ve helped the client create. Basically, agencies will take a percentage of the ROI from those ads, and this is one way to make extra revenue.
In the same vein, creative digital agencies may also run ads for their own company. In this case, all revenue from ads would go back to the organization directly.
Projects
Here, “projects” actually mean how you offer your services as a creative digital agency. While pricing models will determine how much you’ll charge, this focuses on what you’ll provide. Creative digital agencies tackle projects in a couple of ways, and some are unique to their own very rules.