As someone that has been in the internet marketing industry now since 2001, I have seen and spoke to many different business owners.  As the industry has developed, it has been clear that there are really 3 main types of business owners that look for internet marketing services;

1. The Internet Marketing Newbie

2. The Internet Marketing Know It All

3. The Internet Marketing Hater

Keep in mind I am writing this article a little bit in jest, but I do think it will be quite informative to anyone that is looking to engage an internet marketing company.  So let’s examine our 3 types of marketing inquirers.

The ‘Internet Marketing Newbie’

As someone completely new to internet marketing, you have likely never heard of a Google Slap,  Page Rank, Link Baiting, CSS, Frames, DMOZ, or why people seem to name Google Updates after American States.  Seem like you?  Good – then let me answer a few questions that I hear most?

How do I know that an internet marketing company is legitimate?

This is one of the toughest questions to answer and is one that I elaborate on more with business owner #3.  Here are some very important things to consider when evaluating:

1. What is the company’s process?  Do they have one? 

2. How long have they been in business?  After they answer that, verify it by going to http://www.archive.org, type in their domain name and see the different iterations of it to see how far they have come.  (never thought of that one huh?)

3. What affiliations or credentials do they have with Google?  If you are looking for PPC, do they have the have Google Qualified status?  Don’t just trust them, ask for the link off of Google.  Here is the TechWyse badge – https://adwords.google.com/select/ProfessionalStatus?id=FLRbRte3WL_O0HkcSkLK_A&hl=en_US

4. If you are looking for a internet marketing plan, ask for examples of what they have done.  Let them show you what they have done for clients.

5. After they have shown you, ask them if you can call them and speak with them.  Think about it, if you hired a person to come and work for you, would you check their references?  It is no different!

Now doing the above can be time consuming.  So after you have called a few get a feeling first of 1 or 2 people you like and have a strong connection with.  In many cases it is about your comfort level.  If you have a good one then explore the questions listed above.

For more information I suggest having a read of the following links:

How Google Suggests You Choose Your SEO Company

How To Build An Effective Internet Marketing Strategy

Watch A Video on the TechWyse Internet Marketing Approach  (Yes that is ME talking!)

The ‘Internet Marketing Know It All’

It is very hard to work with an ‘Internet Marketing Know It All’.  There is so much involved in this industry that when someone gets some knowledge on any portion of the industry, in many cases, they feel as if they know more than anyone. 

A wise man once said, “He who knows everything, does not know anything at all.”

My process for dealing with the wise people that know everything is simple;  I tell them about our entire process, how we help our existing clients and then ask if the process sounds of interest to them.  At that point,  I will have taught the ‘Know It All’ something and gain his respect to explore further discussion or the person will grow aggravated that they need to go back and learn more in order to catch up on things they have not learned.

Beware;  sometimes the ‘Know It All’ may want to learn more and they will hire you just so they can sponge more information.  Some are more interested in the knowledge then the actual result and will eventually drop out of the program. 

In our own city based in Toronto, Canada, I have seen both types of ‘Know It All’s’ and you it is hard to tell which one genuinely wants to be your client and which just wants their ego fed. 

Moving along…

The ‘Internet Marketing Hater’

To understand the true origins of the “Internet Marketing Hater” you need to understand how the industry developed going back 10+ years.

Going way back pre 2000 there were few people actually doing marketing online – but there were web designers.  Then what happened was companies transitioned from having cute, placeholder sites developed by graphic artists to understanding that they could generate business from an effective site.  Internet marketing companies began to sprout specializing in things such as Search Engine Optimization (SEO), and later Pay Per Click (PPC).  When companies went to a web designer and got a site done they would naturally ask upon site launch, “now how can I get my site ranked high on search engines?”  (as if a web designer / graphic artist would obviously know!)  In some cases these designers would then say one of 3 things.  “I can do it!”, “I can’t do it, but I can refer you to a marketing company that can”, or “I can’t do it.”

Now which one do you think is most tempting for a web designer?  

I am not saying that all web designers don’t know what they are doing.   Many of them may have learned the ‘on page’ tricks to SEO.  But do web designers have the resources to implement a full scale internet marketing plan?  Do they understand the off page strategies of an effective SEO plan?  In most cases – no.   And that is why we end up fielding so many calls from frustrated business owners that have lost faith in the internet marketing industry.

For people that are “Internet Marketing Haters” and want to try to becoming a lover again, please see the “Internet Marketing Newbie” section again.  Chances are that you got yourself into the ‘Hater’ category because you were not a good ‘Newbie’.

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