To help you with your Digital Agency choice, use a tested guide.
Your new business idea is probably great and you’re full of excitement to get started! We have seen many clients with the same frame of mind and honestly, we love it!
I’m sure you have many questions and wonder what to do next, this guide will get you off to a great start and help you create a plan for a killer execution of your killer idea.
A comprehensive guide to finding the right Digital Agency for your Business.
1. Define your Goals
When it comes to your online business or an idea that you are looking to expand on, a key element is to know and understand your goals. By understanding your goals, you can truly convey these to an agency so they can understand the true purpose of your project.
Once you can convey your goals to the best digital agency in Dublin, you can ensure they will be in the same mindset as you and will work with you to accomplish those goals.
Here is a way to keep track of points 1-10: Use this free Trello board to take notes as you shortlist agencies.
2. Draft a Potential Scope/Requirements Document
This project is going to define the next few years of your business, and with that, you need to ensure you have the general idea of what you are looking for.
You are not expected to come into a discovery meeting with a fully fleshed out scope of work, however, a draft document with requirements can really help you and your agency define the services that will be needed to get the project over the line.
This can be a short 5 item list or a 5-page document, what is key is that you are showing us have a good idea of what you are looking for and your agency will be able to take it from there.
3. Research Your Competition
If you’re in business you will know who you’re up against and that is the best place to start if you are looking to redevelop your digital presence. Take a look at what your competitors are doing on their websites and their social channels.
This can help you define what the standard is within your industry and will push you to do it better.
4. Define a Timeline
The timeline can mean everything to the project. You may be initiating the project to align with a big event in your business calendar, it could be marking a milestone within the business like the 10th or 20th anniversary in business or it might just be time to get it done.
So how to define a timeline? You need to start somewhere, what you need to do is set expectations for yourself and a great benchmark for a project, for example, a website redesign would be between 10-12 weeks. With a healthy timeline like this, a lot can be achieved and the correct approach to your needs can be planned.
If you don’t have this time for your project you should look at phasing out the requirements into lots. This can get you the initial elements of the project and then have the more time-intensive elements delivered as they are ready. This phased approach is excellent if you are attending a business event at short notice.
5. Think About Budget
No one likes to show their hand at a card game but when it comes to digital projects it is very important to know what you feel would be a comfortable spend for your business. Knowing this will help you define what agencies you can work with.
All agencies have different ways of approaching budget but there is one thing in common and that is we want you to have what you need to create a successful project. To do this well we need to know where we can go in terms of budget to achieve these goals.
6. Review Previous Work
Reviewing any agency’s previous work will give you an excellent insight into what they can do for you. You can note the design and function that the agency has successfully delivered for their clients.
Be sure to look at all the projects on the portfolio and if you need more examples that could be similar to your business or industry just reach out and ask. We know here at Webbiz we love to show you what we can do.
7. Agency Size and Relationship
There are many agencies in Dublin and they range in size from 2 person operations to large 50 person teams. When it comes to your project you need to decide what matters to you more.
You may like to get to know the people on your project from the agency owner through to the project managers, designer and developer if that you then look for a Digital Agency with smaller teams. The relationship created when you have a chance to meet the key drivers in your project will ensure everyone is in the same mindset as you.
If the above is not a key driver for you then look into some of the bigger agencies out there and always be mindful of capacity when starting the process.
8. Additional Services
Once your project is completed there may be a need for additional services that will assist you in achieving your initial goals, it is always good to know if your future needs can be met within the Digital Agency agency or do additional teams need to be brought into the project.
If you feel there could be a possibility for things like Google Adwords, Social Media Marketing or regular content publishing see how each agency handles those requirements upfront.
9. Location
Location is one of the biggest factors for a lot of business when it comes to buying goods but when it comes to finding agencies you have the world’s agencies to choose from. That being said sometimes that best place to start is at home or close to home.
Begin with your immediate area and see if there is a suitable agency to work with and go outward from there.
Another key factor may be where your projects target market will be and having a local Digital Agency on the ground in that location could bring more success to your business.
10. Value
Value is a huge factor in deciding what agency to work with but the value is not always about the bottom line.
You really need to look at what each agency is bringing to the table. This value can be seen in the solutions to the problems you are having , it can be in the experience gained over past projects that is being leveraged to ensure the success of your project or it can be in the , the main point on value is that it is not always a monetary amount.
#webbiz #digitalagency #connectingresearch #connectingbusiness