If you’re looking for Denver marketing expertise, you’re in the right place. You could stand at Union Station and pretty much throw a football to dozens of different marketing shops. That’s how many Denver marketing firms you have at your disposal—and that’s just in downtown Denver!
The best part about Denver for marketing-hungry companies is that, within the city’s treasure trove of marketing agencies, you have shops with all different tactical specialties, client and vertical sweet spots and technical skillsets. Here’s a helpful guide to selecting a Denver marketing company, based on criteria often used to vet potential partners:
Denver B2C Marketing Agencies
If you’re a business-to-consumer (B2C) organization, your marketing needs are going to be highly specific to your business (duh!). But nevertheless, you’re going to want to find a B2C company that understands your business, audiences and marketing goals, is up-to-date on the latest digital trends and has the requisite tools, skillsets and strategic vision to guide your B2C marketing programs.
But wait! Before you even start vetting your B2C Denver marketing agency’s skills and aptitudes, you should answer one critical question: Do they have proven B2C experience? Many shops say they do (they may even name drop some big-name former clients…) but do your homework. Get a full picture of their B2C track record. The B2C space is unique and ever-changing, and if you get an inkling that a potential partner lacks the experience to handle your B2C needs, be skeptical.
Denver B2B Marketing Agencies
There are exceptions, but business-to-business (B2B) marketing doesn’t necessarily translate to “a more sophisticated version of B2C marketing.” The fundamentals are still the same—understand the business need, target audience and end goals— but there are… differences. For example, as opposed to connecting to audiences that have the power to make a purchase decision in seconds, you’re most likely dealing with longer sales cycles, maze-like decision trees and boatloads of different stakeholders. For this reason, you want to make sure that your B2B Denver marketing partner understands—and has experience navigating—the nuances of the B2B space.
Pro tip: Vet an agency’s experience working in different verticals – not necessarily yours – and gauge their understanding of (or ability to get up to speed on) industry-specific subject matter, especially if you’re in a highly specialized or technical space.
Denver Marketing Design Agencies
Every “creative” shop should be able to design. But the difference between a good design firm and a great design firm is your partner’s ability to apply marketing insight, perspective and critical thinking to their work. In the Denver marketing world, there are plenty of quality design partners for you to choose from, but the one that has the right combination of top-notch design chops and marketing expertise is, likely, the one you want. To gauge a design firm’s aptitudes in this regard, try to get a full picture of their client engagements—What types of design projects do they take on? Are they just “pushing the pixels,” (i.e. form) or are they also guiding design strategy and decision making (i.e. function)? Do they specialize in a specific format, or are they adept across a variety of print and digital channels?
Denver Marketing Content Agencies
Critical thinking. Efficiency. Detail. Professionalism. These are just a few characteristics you want in a reliable content shop, and the Denver marketing arena is full of firms that have these traits. The challenge is finding them in the sense that virtually every marketing company says they “do” content. But what does that mean? Do they churn out blog fluff to meet SEO requirements? Do they just splash copy on InDesign and WordPress templates? Do they develop persona guides and messaging roadmaps to inform brand direction and amplification? Make sure you do your homework based on your needs. Not all content agencies are created equal.
Denver Marketing SEO Agencies
Denver’s full of search engine optimization (SEO) shops. But what you’re probably most interested in isn’t whether an SEO firm can get you on page one of Google (okay, you probably are…) but whether the firm is providing the right return on your investment. The trickiest thing about SEO is that it’s hard to attribute results to specific efforts. For this reason, pay close attention to how transparent, forthright and authentic a potential SEO partner is with their clients. Do this by reaching out to current and former clients to understand the good, bad and ugly of how the shop operates.
Want Help Vetting Denver Marketing Agencies?
Finding the right marketing partner can be difficult in any environment, especially in one as packed with talent as the Denver marketing scene. Hopefully this blog post was a good starting point for your agency search, but if you’d like a few more tips and strategies for choosing the right partner, download our white paper, How to Gauge a Marketing Company’s Legitimacy.
