That “industry expert” might send your website to the crypt
Key Takeaways:
- Beware “expert” agencies—some drive up costs by pitting clients against each other in keyword bidding wars.
- If an agency doesn’t give you ownership of your digital assets, run!
- Ghosting on calls? Hiding data? That’s a sign your agency is more interested in your money than your success.
Who doesn’t love a good slasher movie marathon during Halloween? Something about all that blood and gore is just fun to watch because it feels so unbelievable. However, some agencies can be a slasher to your website design and marketing budget, trapping you in the basement with insane contracts and torturing your wallet with outrageous costs. So today, we want to warn our current and potential clients about the horrors of the…
The Agency Chain Saw Massacre
Many of e9digital’s clients hire us initially to design a website, then continue working with us because they enjoy our quality services–thanks to some great clients who value our work, we have five stars on Google! However, our clients are sometimes lured in by Leatherface to switch to an agency that seems “cheaper” on the surface. We respect your decision to do so and leave our doors open should you ever want to work with our services again.
Recently, we’ve had one agency in particular (but no names here!) steal a couple of clients. They tout themselves as a “legal marketing expert,” meaning that they cater in particular to law firms and have a long list of legal clients. Now, this is how many companies choose to do business.
The problem with this strategy is that when designing the website, choosing SEO keywords, and creating PPC campaigns, their own clients are competing against each other. CPC (cost-per-click) increases when more competitors try to rank for a single keyword.
This “expert legal marketing agency” is running competitors against each other and bidding on the same keywords, driving up costs for their clients. They’re massacring their clients’ budgets for the agency’s gain, an incredibly predatory practice.
Many of our clients have come running back to us because the costs have reached horrifying levels, yet there are no benefits to show for it. Plus, they’re dealing with hidden costs, like a hidden auto-renewal of their services. In the words of Scooby Doo, “Ruh-roh!”
Fight like the final girl to escape these “industry expert” red flags
If you’re shopping for a marketing and website design agency, our team at e9digital wants to make sure that you don’t die at the beginning of the movie–or worse, get scammed! When shopping for agencies, run for your life at these red flags.
“Oh, no one owns their digital assets! Those belong to us.”
FALSE. Even if someone else designs your website, you should be the owner.
“You have to sign a contract for at least two years. If not, you have to pay a fee.”
Also incorrect. The contract should be for deliverables, not a time minimum.
“Oh, sorry, your project manager can’t answer the phone. They’re only available for questions at 2:30 pm PT on Wednesdays.”
If it’s hard to reach someone, they just want your money, not your best interest.
“Actually, keywords are proprietary to our company, so we can’t give you access to your Google Analytics. Sorry!”
You should be able to view accounts, ask questions about the keywords the company is targeting, and understand why they’re doing so. It’s YOUR money that’s being spent. You deserve to know.
Survive the night with a website from e9digital
At e9digital, we don’t silo ourselves into one industry. We have multiple designers and ensure that the same team isn’t working on two accounts that are competitors. No matter the industry, we have a tried and true method for website design that starts with research to understand your target audience and ends with a UX-designed, modern website to generate leads and increase conversions.
Don’t let yourself be scared by your digital agency–learn more about e9digital’s processes and contact our team today. We’d love to discuss your situation further to understand how to meet your target market’s needs.
