Digital marketing, also referred to as online marketing or internet marketing, has been around since the 1990s and has attracted tremendous attention to the growth of the internet over the last decade or so.

And yet, even people who use it or have some knowledge of it don’t fully understand what it actually means. Even believe that people at the digital marketing agency are just posting Facebook and Google advertising, while some think it includes both organic online promotions and ads.

So you’ve got some marketing skills, and you’re wondering how to start a digital marketing agency. But there is only one question … How do you start a digital marketing agency with no experience?

There have never been more chances to move on your own in a digital marketing space than they do now. But how do you actually do it? Where are you going to start, and how do you scale?

Simply put, it includes intelligently selling organically and inorganically (i.e. by ads) products and services on the Internet. It includes organic promotion and web ads, social media channels and apps, content marketing and re marketing, influencer marketing, online reputation management, emails, landing pages, voice searches and more.

So, here’s how to start a digital marketing agency.

Starting your own agency can be confusing, can’t it?

There just aren’t any good resources out there to show you how to do it. You’re stuck between a the rock of outdated advice, and the hard place of short posts without any depth. And, it’s damn frustrating.

Find professional agency to do digital marketing for you or start your own digital marketing Agency.

This is the digital marketing business plan that helps you to start your business.

1. Set Your Business Goals 

You have to do some planning before you decide to do anything. What do you really want the business to look like? What’s the goal of the end? The vision, huh?

Starting your digital marketing agency with no course in mind is like trying to get to a new restaurant with no address and no directions. You end up confused, taking the wrong path, and possibly not having a lot of success.

What to Consider

• Do you want to serve local clients, or go outside of your local sphere?
• Are you focusing on a specific industry?
• Do you want to offer a specific digital marketing service, or a variety of services?
• Do your clients need to be within a certain budget?
• Are there services you don’t want to offer? Niches you don’t want to serve?

2. Define Your Target Audience 

The irony of all irony is that marketers are typically horrible at selling themselves, mostly because they don’t go through their steps.

If you’ve done some marketing before, you know that one of the first things you do when you develop your marketing strategy is to make it clear to your target audience. The same applies to the startup of your digital marketing agency.

Outline the goals, needs interests, dislikes, behaviour, and knowledge of someone you think will definitely be the perfect client for your agency. Outline what their marketing needs are, what their priorities are, and how you can help achieve those goals through the service you’ve decided to offer.

What To Consider

• Get that specific. It’s better to start a small and scale agency than to try to help everyone and get lost in the noise (i.e. being a general marketer who can do anything for any business)
• Remember that the initial business is not your total market. It’s just giving you the focus

3. Build Your Online Presence

Once you’ve got an idea of what type of agency you are, who you serve, and how you serve them, it’s time to think about how you’re going to present this information.

This means building up your online presence through your website and social channels.

You don’t need a full-blown website to have a digital marketing agency. But because you’re helping people get online, you’re expected to have some kind of online presence.

If you’re going super-lean, you can use a Facebook page, a Yelp profile, or a few “landing” pages. But going without a decent-looking website would put you behind the curve and place restrictions on what you can do with your brand & marketing.

What To Consider

• Detailed content will take your presence a long way. Think about the future functionality that you might want on your site so that you can choose a platform that supports it and don’t have to create something from scratch when you’re ready to implement it.
• Practice what you’re preaching. If you are a copywriting agency, ensure your copy is up to par. If you’re a design agency, make sure that your site looks like you can actually design something.
• You don’t have to be all over. Choose your starting channels and expand later, if necessary.

4. Get Visible

Once you’ve got a place to send people, it’s time to get some leads and clients.

Again, marketers themselves are notoriously bad at marketing. But the days of “build it and they’re coming” are long gone. You actually have to do something to get clients to start building your portfolio, especially if you’re starting a digital marketing agency with no experience.

Here are a few key steps you need to take to get the word out about your digital marketing agency.

Word of Mouth / Referrals

Above all other marketing techniques, companies thrive on word of mouth and referral. In reality, many of the top companies have gone beyond the point of direct response marketing. They grow on word of mouth only. We know how to appeal to certain audiences and what kind of success it takes to receive more referrals.

The focus of your landing pages will help a word of mouth as you build a simple, straightforward reputation.

Direct Outreach

Also referred to as hustlin. ‘ This is all the time-consuming and tough pitching you think you need to do … but don’t want to do it. Now, that doesn’t mean spamming. This means going directly to your audience and doing the appropriate outreach.

This means emailing and Facebook messaging people you know might be interested in your marketing services. And take them to your landing pages to learn more about your organization or to make a call with them to chat about how you can help them.

5. Organic Search (SEO) Traffic

Organic traffic (SEO) may still not be the best next medium to be used for paying traffic. There’s a big world of paying and organic traffic, and if you’re working on building a portfolio and just gaining some experience, it’s going to take a while.

What To Consider

• Your first goal when you’re starting an agency is to get clients. Billable hours drive everything.
• Some of your best leads can be in your own circle. Don’t discount the network you already have.
• No one will know about your business if you don’t tell anyone about your business. You do not need fancy business cards, a beautiful website, or even some elaborate marketing funnel. You DO need to tell people what you do.
• You do have to walk the walk, but you don’t have to rely on your own area to build your business. If you do SEO and you choose not to use SEO to generate leads, that is fine — but be prepared to speak to that with potential clients.

Starting a digital marketing agency with no experience does not have to be a challenging process full of questions, unknowns and hurdles. Managing your own company has a lot of ups and downs to it, and you’re going to have to be able to weather the storm to enjoy the benefits. It’s a dramatic life case, and you’ve got to handle it like that.

It does require you to understand clearly what you want from your agency, who you’re going to help, and how you’re going to help them.

If you’re trying to set up a digital marketing agency, follow the process and you’re all set up!

All the best for starting your Digital Marketing Agency!