Choosing Your Web Marketing Consultant
Before we start laying down rules for choosing your web marketing consultant it might be useful to discuss why you need one in the first place. Web marketing is an area that is changing very fast as new technologies and new applications of those technologies are being discovered. The art of selling online is still in its early days when compared to other marketing that has been around for many decades if not over a century.
So it makes sense that you need a guide in this area. Even the most diligent student who spends all day in the web marketing world has a difficult time keeping up with everything. I should know as I'm one of those people.
However you have to be very careful when selecting a web marketing consultant.
The Problem With Consultants
Consultants get a bit of a bad rap and in my mind most of them deserve it. It's easy to walk into a company and tell them theoretically what they should be doing and point out all the mistakes. It's another thing to take that information, apply it to the company and achieve significant results. But that's what consultants should be able to do.
I don't even like to think of myself as a consultant... I much prefer the term resultant. Because my job - and the job of any consultant - is to get you results. It's not about creating useless reports to be filled away... it's about increasing your sales and profits.
The Danger With Web Marketing Consultants
Choosing a web marketing consultant is a dangerous game. There are so many people who claim to know what they're talking about on the internet who are really just spouting information from other sources. It's easy to sound knowledgeable on the internet when you don't know much about the subject at all.
So you end up with some consultant with no real world experience messing around with your business' web marketing. They try their fancy tricks and techniques but nothing works. And then they wonder if the fancy trick or technique they pulled off some other website for free really gave them the full story.
Some Questions To Ask Your Web Marketing Consultant
Basically you want to work out what kind of experience they have. Useful questions might include:
- How many websites have you worked with?
- How do you measure your results?
- What have been the results with your past and current clients?
- How long will it take to see results for my website?
- What guarantee do you offer?
- What strategy would you recommend for my particular situation and why?
These questions should get to the heart of the matter and let the web marketer know that you're very results focused. It also lets them know you'll be measuring results and holding them accountable... this can be a very scary thought for many consultants.
The Final Word
When selecting a web marketing consultant you need to be prepared to enter into a long term relationship. This is for two reasons:
- If they're doing a good job you'll want them to continue as long as your results improve
- Web marketing can take time to establish
I started working with one of my clients almost 2 years ago now and while they did see some fast results a lot have built up over time. Now we're really starting to see their website take off but it's taken a while to get that initial traction. However patience is a virtue and now sales are increasing organically with very little effort on our part.
Want More?
If you're interested in what I offer you can check out my article on website marketing services or subscribe to get more free information. I encourage you to take your time with this decision as it really can mean the difference between success and failure online. But just remember that sales don't improve until you take action on what you're learning.