We've all been duped into relying too heavily on reviews, digital networking, and other intangible, untraceable "proof" methods in hopes of finding that perfect Unicorn of the Best Marketing Agency around.
As long as we have worked at marketing agencies, one thing remains undeniably true. They will pay as much as $15,000 per quarter to be labeled as #1 for "The Best" or "Award Winning" marketing agency on websites that gain tons of user traffic.
Marketing Agencies - What You Should Know
While there's nothing wrong with this in practice, many of these agencies are understaffed and overwhelmed. Constantly battling for trying to find talent at the lowest price, facing perpetuating turnover issues, and consistently unable to deliver results to clients in a timely manner. These agencies expect one person to wear 15 hats, and though they have great reviews and are listed as #1, here's what's truly going on behind the scenes:
They don't have the time to train their employees to where they need to be
They have spent so much money on advertising they don't have the capital to outsource additional help
Employees work 11-12 hour days on 30+ clients and often burn out within the first 3 to 4 months
Communication is sporadic, quick, disorganized, and chaotic
Aspects of your projects get lost, and the timeline gets pushed another 1-2 weeks at a time
Red Flags to Look out For
Here are some red flags you need to watch out for when hiring a Marketing Agency
1. They Only Know 1 or 2 CMSs (Website Builders) At Most
If you are starting your website, this isn't necessarily an issue. Truth be told, we only know 4 CMS platforms at best, and there are dozens out there. This really becomes a problem when the agency has 1 or 2 developers, and they have no idea how to work around your CMS for updates, improving site speed, etc.
Some medical practice owners may have their websites built on Drupal, Joomla, or even other CMSs like Squarespace or Wix. If your medical marketing agency claims they can work inside your CMS and improve it, and then months go by, and you see little to no improvements - RUN.
Ensure you have a clause in your contract stating a refund if the agency cannot fulfill its promise in the CMS you own. This is important because an agency that cannot complete these tasks will try to sell you on a $10,000-$35,000+ content rebuild and transfer to another CMS platform.
Though we don't recommend website builders like Joomla or Drupal, it would be hard on your budget if you had just built a new website within the last 3-5 years.
2. Your Project Manager Takes Too Long To Respond
Excluding weekends, something is wrong if you don't hear back from your project manager in more than 24 hours. Many marketing agencies are about how much money they can funnel in and fast, and sometimes that means onboarding 5 new clients a week for 1 single project manager to handle while juggling signed-on and long-term clients.
Essentially, marketing agencies are so desperate to please high-profile clients (70k + per year) - that the smaller clients get left behind. If that's not your budget, then you can be guaranteed that your projects will fall behind, the communication will be sparse, and your satisfaction will be low.
3. Content Over Clients
We all need to create content to obtain clients - but some agency owners produce excess content to obtain those clients. Creating content is a timely process, and many different types of content can be created. Here's a breakdown of content production expectations.
Type of Content | Average Length (IF APP) | Average Editing Time |
Video | 90 Seconds | 20 Minutes to 2 Hours |
Podcast | 20 Minutes | 1 Hour |
Graphic Design | - | 30 Minutes to 2 Hours |
Service Pages | 1,000 Words | 1 to 3 Hours (even with AI) |
Blogs | 1,250 | 1.5 to 3 Hours (even with AI) |
Though this isn't a daily thing, creating content is a weekly endeavor for some agency owners. This is on top of sales, managing other clients, managing a team, and outside factors like friends, family, and the unexpected. Anywhere between 4-10 hours per week can be spent creating content that doesn't involve helping your business grow - often by the #1 expert that is supposed to be a leader.
4. They Have a Fairly Small or Not-Quickly Growing Team
If they keep bringing on new clients and they aren't making new hires while retaining existing employees twice per year - that's cause for concern. With every person that leaves and is replaced, this means:
More time they get behind on your project
More burning through your budget
Fewer patients in your doors
An adequate number of employees for a reputable medical marketing agency would start at 15, with a senior level employee and specialist level in every sector. Ideally, you're looking at:
1 CEO
1 COO
2 Directors
4 Marketing Specialists (SEO, Paid, Social, Print)
4 Developers (Backend, Frontend, Specialist, UX/UI)
1 IT Department
1 in Sales
Even Then, You Still Need To Consider Your Budget
Small or new medical practice owners still need to take their budget into consideration. With the average starting 6-month cost being about $31,000 solely for content marketing in most situations - we wanted to provide an easy, agency-free way to get the quality SEO content strategy you need at a fraction of the cost.
We do need your help! We would love to have you reach out to us if there are any services or conditions missing from your website - we can create a content strategy for those topics that'll help you rank locally within 3 months' time.
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