our insight: digital agency myth buster

The intricacies of a digital agency will vary from place to place but the inner workings will largely be the same – multiple teams of specialists working together to produce quality work, with a Deliveroo lunch thrown in here and there (because there’s no better reward for a month of class work than gyros). The real reason that we’re able to produce such cracking results though, is due to our well-oiled team of maestros that aren’t afraid to get stuck into some good old-fashioned graft.

But, if you’ve never had the experience of working in an agency, you may have some misconceptions about what it’s really like and the importance of the work we do. Some may think digital agencies can only benefit larger businesses whilst others may think that if you’ve got an in-house marketing team that there’s just no point in working with an agency at all. 

Both are myths. 

Digital agencies have more to offer than you may think and can provide a lot more than just a bucket load of work delivered to your inbox at the end of the month (don’t worry, we do that too!). 

Digital agencies should (if they’re anything like us) go above and beyond for their clients, making sure that calls or emails are never left unanswered. This includes helping clients gain a better understanding of digital marketing, giving them a wealth of knowledge that they can treasure forever. 

So, what’s not to love, you’re probably asking? Well, some myths can lead people away from digital agencies which could mean that they miss out on collaborating with an expert (and super fun – if we do say so ourselves) team. 

Biggest Agency Myths Debunked

Okay, so let’s get down to it. We’re debunking some common myths that lead people to avoid marketing agencies or that limit the fruitfulness of the working relationship between agencies and their clients. 

Changing the plan is all part of the fun

Everybody loves it when a plan comes together – especially a marketing agency. It means that everyone knows where they stand, what’s expected of them and what they need to do to get the job done. This is why pre-project planning is key, ‘cause if it’s not done correctly, that’s when goalposts start absolutely flying.

Of course, different factors can influence a project and certain parts of the plan may need to be tweaked, but if the original plan was done with passion and precision, these will only be small changes. What can happen from time to time, though, is that a client will agree to a set plan and the agency will lay out a clear pathway with big neon arrows pointing everyone in the right direction but then, the client wants to do a U-turn, or change paths completely.

If this does happen and the new direction is supported by a solid plan that ensures that you as the client can still benefit, then make no mistake, agencies will strap up their boots and put in the hard work to make it happen. Again, this only emphasises the importance of a well-thought-out, effective planning stage, ensuring that the work being put in is achieving the right outcome.

If you’re working with an agency and you wish to change the plan you’ve agreed to, don’t be surprised if they want to dig a little deeper into your plans and investigate whether a change in direction is in your brand’s best interests – they’re only doing it to benefit you! Digital agency experts should never agree to a plan that has no chance of working, so buckle up, sit tight and trust the process.

Digital agencies will go after any work

It would be naive to suggest that there aren’t any instances of this happening, but any agency serious about their craft won’t just go after any work. For those who are passionate about their craft (like us fine folks here at Flaunt), a new project isn’t just a payday, it’s a chance to use their talents to create some truly top-notch work, something that both the creator and the client can be proud of. Finding this match is key, so therefore we’d only work with brands that would allow us to be the best versions of ourselves.

Synergy.

If a potential client is looking for skills and expertise that fall within our specialities, that’s when we get excited – when we know we can take on a project and produce cracking work smeared in  Flaunt pzazz. 

If an agency can’t talk you through their process and communicate their enthusiasm for the project to you, they’re not the ones for the job.

Agencies fiddle their monthly reports

This leads us perfectly to the misconception that agencies like to operate as a separate entity, without the client peering over their shoulder. This should never be the case and an agency should never be carrying out work that they don’t want the client to see. This doesn’t mean that the client has to be completely involved at every step of the process, but each step – and results – should be visible. 

There may be some agencies who choose to operate with a more secretive approach but this can drain all of the magic out of a proper collaboration and can unnecessarily create a divide between the agency and the client, which ultimately affects the work. This is especially relevant when it comes to reports, as some agencies like to sweep any bad results under the carpet and only showcase positive results, no matter how irreflective it is of overall performance. 

At Flaunt, we take the opposite approach and give our clients access to live reporting dashboards so that they can see the good, the bad and the ugly – but it’s the truth. By not shying away from the reality that negative results do happen, we’re able to counteract them by identifying and targeteting key areas to encourage improvement.

In-house marketing teams don’t need a digital agency

“We’ve got a marketing department, what do we need to work with an agency for?”

“An agency will just clash with our marketing plan!”

“If we work with an agency the project will take longer…”

These are just a few thoughts businesses with internal marketing departments might have when it comes to the prospect of collaborating with a separate agency. More often than not, they all simply stem from misconceptions of how marketing agencies work.

Agencies aren’t precious about taking over a project and we’re not about taking credit away from someone’s hard work – we’re always the first to shout about our clients’ successes -, agencies just want to work with like-minded people with the same end-goals. Marketing departments and agencies can work together in perfect tandem, and if the work is distributed effectively, it could significantly improve the results of your brand’s marketing efforts.

No matter how good an in-house marketing department is, they won’t know it all. There’s always someone who can offer a different perspective, fresh ideas and solve issues you may not have faced before – that’s what you get when you work with an agency. That’s without even mentioning the bespoke tools which us agencies have access to, such as Flaunt’s Goose NLP tool (before you ask, it has nothing to do with Top Gun) which allows us to optimise content and perfectly cater it to Google’s algorithm. 

An agency can produce results overnight

This is a misconception that stems from a lack of understanding of the process. Often it’s most relevant to SEO and PPC, with some under the impression that ‘marketing’ is a switch that can simply be turned on and instantly propel their website to rank number one. In reality, it’s a much longer process which requires patience, expertise and continuous work to achieve impressive results.

If an agency tells you that they can get you to position one overnight or guarantees they can bring you a certain number of conversions – they’re lying. In marketing, there are no guarantees, especially with something as fickle as SEO (you’ve got Google’s regular algorithm updates to thank for that). SEO, PPC and other forms of marketing are processes that require continuous, dedicated expert input and the longer you work at it, the better your results are likely to be.

If you’ve set aside a budget for SEO and aren’t seeing results immediately, don’t jump ship to an agency promising you the world (they’re lying). Your best bet is to stick with your current strategy and work with your current agency to find new techniques and tools to improve your online presence, otherwise, you’ve thrown away your budget in search of an instant solution which was never going to happen anyway.

Agencies don’t listen

People who work at agencies aren’t robots of the industry. Although we can pull off incredible digital marketing-based tasks with Terminator-like precision, we’re not robots in the traditional sense. By this we mean we don’t just take orders and bring you our best interpretation of your request. That would be boring.

Instead, we take your initial ideas as a starting point and use them as a basis for a creative discussion where we look at the best ways to achieve your end goal. Taking this collaborative approach allows us to offer our input and use our expertise to help shape a comprehensive plan. 

And that’s what you get when you choose to work with a digital agency. Not just the work you requested but advice from experts and the opportunity to benefit from our passion to craft top-notch work.

If this sounds like your jam, what are you waiting for?

Give us a bell

Now that we’ve busted all of the myths and misconceptions surrounding digital agencies and put its name back in your good books… let’s work together! To find out which services we offer and whether you think you’ll be able to benefit from them, have a gander around our website or get in touch.

If you’re digging the myth-busting (and love the Yorkshire accent), we’ve actually got an episode on our podcast (Life In The Fast Lane) where we delve deeper into the assumptions people make about digital agencies. Give it a listen.