Online marketing is the fastest growing form of advertising and marketing in recent years. With online marketing being extremely cost effective and capable of reaching your target market more efficiently it is no wonder why companies are moving their budget from offline print and TV ads to Google AdWords, Facebook, banner ads, ect…
The problem companies are running into in this transition is there are several online marketing agencies and firms out there that claim they are the best and the cheapest. With such a low barrier to entry agencies and firms are springing up all over trying to chip away at this very large and fast growing market.
So how does your company make a decision on which online marketing company to go with?
The answer to this question is a simple one and can really pay off. Since there are so many competitors trying to get your company’s business, some are actually building vertical programs for specific industries. A vertical program is where a marketing firm is knowledgeable and familiar with a specific industry and decides to provide their unique and custom services utilizing their knowledge for that industry alone. You can call it niche marketing.
There are 5 key benefits to going with a firm that is specific to your industry:
1) The firm already knows the ins and outs of your industry and understand the language used amongst yourselves, your customers, and your competitors.
2) They often have solid grasp on who your customers are and the best way to get your company name and services/products in front of them.
3) They usually have everything already standardized, meaning that setup time and costs are minimal compared to general firms that need more time and money to research your company, customers, and industry before they can launch your campaigns.
4) Because a majority of the research and setup is already done, your campaign can get underway almost instantaneously after your first payment.
5) The most important benefit occurs when you are able to free up your internal marketing resources and have everything outsourced for much less with enhanced results.
How do you find a company with a vertical program?
Google it! If you are looking for an online marketing company, odds are they are running marketing campaigns themselves.
All you have to do is search or ask around. Try entering this into Google “Marketing [insert your industry or service or product here]” If you own an artificial turf company trying searching for “Marketing Artificial Turf” if you are the marketing director at an office furniture company try searching with “Marketing Office Furniture” I am sure if there is a program out there it will most likely pop up if you us that key phrase.
Going with a company that already knows your industry, product, and service is going to relieve you of one giant headache. So do yourself a favor and don’t make your life more difficult than it already is, stop listening to general and random cold calls from other agencies and go out and actively seek a company that already knows your industry.
Jason Kirby is an Internet Marketing Consultant with eBoost Consulting located in San Diego, Ca. Jason specializes in online marketing for the artificial turf industry, office furniture industry, car dealerships, and many more as the Director of Vertical Operations at eBoost. You can learn more about how Jason Kirby can help you and your internet marketing needs by visiting: