2015. Already? That means it’s time to finalize budgets for this year. So where should you allocate your dollars, in order to improve marketing efforts? You may want to strongly consider inbound marketing.

What exactly is inbound marketing? By definition, it’s “a marketing strategy where businesses implement tactics to ‘get found’ by customers.” It’s a highly successful methodology that generates more leads for businesses. While outbound marketing tactics are falling to the wayside, they’re being replaced by customer-focused inbound. Why? Because today’s customers are more elusive than ever, and inbound marketing is proven to be not only successful, but also measurable.

 When looking to hire an inbound marketing agency to help you increase ROI, you must find the right fit. Below are the areas you need to consider – and the questions to ask – during the interview phase:

• Relationship – Is the culture fit there? Do you trust the people on the team? Do you all have the same goals and use the same metrics? Do they understand any concerns you may have about pulling the inbound trigger? Having an honest, goal-setting conversation is the best way to gather this information.

• Industry – While an exact industry match isn’t that important, you do want to make sure that any potential agency partner has experience with more than one vertical. They may be great at a certain niche industry, but lack experience in any other. Make sure they’ve worked with a variety of companies and know what’s effective.

• Commitment to Inbound – Is this agency committed to inbound marketing? What are their credentials? What marketing platform software (i.e. HubSpot) do they use? Will they help you learn inbound and continue to grow with you as your company grows? 

• Strategy – Will there be a clear strategy regarding how to get more leads into the funnel? After your start-up meeting, what kind of ongoing communication will there be? It’s important to have everything on the table, so you know what to expect. This way, you can both be held accountable for your assigned tasks.
   

CPV would love to help you with your Inbound Marketing efforts. Fill out our free, no-obligation inbound assessment form to schedule a 30-minute conversation with one of our Inbound Marketing Specialists, an analysis of your current website and marketing efforts, and suggestions for a solution.