Marketing Services: Go “Local” and “Full Service” to Save Time, Streamline Processes
1/5/2016
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Google the phrase “marketing services” or “advertising agency” and it’s likely you’ll be surprised at how many choices appear … and how distant from you some options may be.
Then, too, there’s the question of a single resource or multiple choices. For example, that same Google search might reveal those providers who specialize only in website marketing, trade show displays or mailing services.
You’ll want to evaluate your potential marketing partners carefully, perhaps by interviewing several. But, before making your choice, consider the many advantages of working with a local, full-capability marketing services provider, among them:
Local knowledge and insider expertise
Your nearby resource is much more likely to know the ins and outs of marketing your business, organization or nonprofit locally than some faraway alternative.
When does your city’s school year start and end – and when are breaks observed in between? Of 10 or a dozen billboard options around town, which are best positioned to reach afternoon drive-time commuters who’d be most likely to stop and purchase a pizza before returning home? And, will a proposed October promotion complement – or compete against – the locality’s annual harvest fair?
Another good reason to go local? The in-town marketing services provider probably knows other local businesses such as newspapers and radio stations … and may be better able to negotiate rates that are advantageous to you.
Single-source convenience
Think hard before electing to rely on multiple marketing services suppliers. If you do, you’ll multiply the necessity of separate project briefings, creative reviews and campaign invoices. In doing so you’ll sacrifice that one commodity that most owners and managers of small and mid-size businesses are in precious short supply of – time.
You’ll probably miss out, too, on any potential cost savings that might accrue from relying on a single resource.
Cohesive designs, consistent communications
Choosing event displays from one supplier, website services from another and a direct mail campaign from a third is one way to meet your needs … but no way to gain the design cohesion, brand voice and project coordination that distinguish the best marketing efforts. You can achieve all three goals much more readily if you rely on a single, full-capability resource.
Efficient, face-to-face communications
In the world of communications where much is subtle and subjective, there’s no better way to see eye-to-eye than with the face-to-face meetings facilitated by a local marketing services provider. While recognizing that much can be accomplished over the phone, via email and even through video conferencing, there’s usually no substitute for client/provider meetings during which ideas and opinions are more readily exchanged.
Experts cite the importance of body language, greater engagement, higher levels of participation and improved clarity of thought and opinion as advantages of face-to-face meetings. They also can streamline your efforts. In face-to-face situations, there’s a greater pressure to get to the point.
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