# Has anyone used professional marketing agency?



## designerscounty (Oct 25, 2011)

Has anyone worked with a professional marketing company and if yes how did it go and if no why not?
There are so many out there, some cheap, some very expensive. I am not sure if that is the best way to spend our marketing dollars.

Thanks


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## binki (Jul 16, 2006)

We don't use them because 99.9% of our business is local. We show up at the top of the search engines for free with not money spent. We also only spend money on targeted advertising and very rarely at that. 

If all you have is a website to sell through then that is a different story but a B/M storefront does not need this type of marketing unless you are doing millions per year in sales.


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## TRMMarketing (Nov 22, 2011)

designerscounty said:


> Has anyone worked with a professional marketing company and if yes how did it go and if no why not?
> There are so many out there, some cheap, some very expensive. I am not sure if that is the best way to spend our marketing dollars.
> 
> Thanks


Before you go around to any marketing firms, it is a good idea to establish a list of what you want the firm to accomplish. As Binki says there are some free methods available and if you are not in a competitive market then a no marketing approach might work. Lack of options for the customer as it were.

However even brick and mortar businesses profit from effective online marketing campaigns when implemented into a strong multi channel approach.


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## kimura-mma (Jul 26, 2008)

Eirik hit the nail on the head... "establish a list of what you want the firm to accomplish"

It has been my experience that marketing agencies are good at:
1) bringing a new product to an existing market
2) bring an existing product to a new market
3) increasing the exposure of an existing product in an existing market

In most cases, bringing new products to new markets is the most difficult for an agency to help with. There usually needs to be something existing for the marketing agency to really be of benefit.

If you need help with one of the above, then using an agency may work. But if you are just looking to increase sales, then you may be better off looking for a sales rep.


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## designerscounty (Oct 25, 2011)

binki said:


> We don't use them because 99.9% of our business is local. We show up at the top of the search engines for free with not money spent. We also only spend money on targeted advertising and very rarely at that.
> 
> If all you have is a website to sell through then that is a different story but a B/M storefront does not need this type of marketing unless you are doing millions per year in sales.


Thanks Binki
We are an online only shop and i am sure you know search engines are a lifeline for businesses like us.
How do you show up at the top in search results, and how long did it take for you to get there.

Thanks again for the insight.


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## designerscounty (Oct 25, 2011)

TRMMarketing said:


> Before you go around to any marketing firms, it is a good idea to establish a list of what you want the firm to accomplish. As Binki says there are some free methods available and if you are not in a competitive market then a no marketing approach might work. Lack of options for the customer as it were.
> 
> However even brick and mortar businesses profit from effective online marketing campaigns when implemented into a strong multi channel approach.


That is a good suggestion Eirik, rather than going to a marketing firm and asking them to perform miracles it would be a great idea to make a list of things that we would like them to help us with.
What we have done so far has been free marketing, mostly getting our name out with social media tools and contacting blog authors. I would assume that a seasoned marketing team would have certain best practices and tried and tested tools that they could use.

Thanks for the reply


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## designerscounty (Oct 25, 2011)

kimura-mma said:


> Eirik hit the nail on the head... "establish a list of what you want the firm to accomplish"
> 
> It has been my experience that marketing agencies are good at:
> 1) bringing a new product to an existing market
> ...


That is very well put Tim
I would assume starting a t-shirt company is liking bringing an existing product to an existing market but with new choices. 
Th reason we are getting information about this possibility is that we think we could benefit from experience and exposure a marketing agency would have as this is their full time job. We can do, and are doing things that are possible without a marketing agency.

Thanks for for taking time out to write this post, very helpful.


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## kimura-mma (Jul 26, 2008)

designerscounty said:


> I would assume starting a t-shirt company is liking bringing an existing product to an existing market but with new choices.


If you are a startup clothing brand, then you are bringing a new product to a new market.

It is a new product because the average consumer has never heard of your brand. It's a new market because you have not yet established market share against your competitors.

In addition to marketing, you should also think about establishing more distribution channels. Perhaps this post could help: http://www.t-shirtforums.com/general-t-shirt-selling-discussion/t139525.html


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## LegendsGraphics (Mar 15, 2010)

Market or die

As a professional marketing company, who's services do include production, I have found having a marketing consultant is more the way to go for smaller companies. What I do is come in and assess your goals, revenues, market etc. I tailor the plan to your budget. My plans include a lot of things that you will do yourself.


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