Are you struggling to find a quality marketing agency for your plumbing business? Don’t worry, you’re not alone. There are thousands of marketing companies and it’s difficult to determine which agencies are trustworthy and reliable, and get results. It’s tough to differentiate one agency from another, so here’s a list of the biggest red flags to watch for when considering a new marketing partner.
1. Over-promising results: Run away if you hear “10x return guaranteed”
The phrase “death and taxes are the only certainties in life” comes to mind. As much as we love marketing, there is no possible way to promise specific results. Agencies may share testimonials, case studies, and metrics from existing clients as a baseline of their success. They might be able to share averages across their plumbing clients combined. But there are so many other variables that contribute to a plumbing company’s success. From reviews to CSRs to technicians, it would be impossible to make a guarantee. If you hear ROI promises, be wary.
2. Lack of transparency: No reporting, call tracking, or access to systems
As a business owner, it’s important for you to understand how you see the work of your marketing vendor. Do they provide a monthly report or a real-time reporting portal? Do they have call tracking? Most important, are you able to access your own systems? It’s a red flag if you’re not given easy access to your own website, Google ads accounts, or call tracking. Even if you are unfamiliar with these systems, having access gives you the opportunity for oversight.
3. Generalist marketing agencies: Not focused on plumbing or home services
All marketing agencies promise the same thing. More leads, more phone calls, and more revenue. So how do you know if it’s true? A good place to start is making sure they have worked with plumbing companies before and understand the plumbing business.
If your marketing agency lists dozens of very different industries like home services, legal, medical, nonprofits, real estate and e-commerce, then it might be worth asking a few more questions. To be fair, there are very large marketing agencies who are successful across many industries. However, those are the exception. If your potential agency doesn’t focus on plumbing or home services, then it might not be the best fit for your plumbing company.
Bonus points to make sure you match your company size with the right-sized agency. If you are a two-truck operation spending $3,000 per month on marketing, then you might not fit well at a large national agency. With a smaller budget, you’ll likely have minimal contact and much more of a self-service experience. Similarly, if you are a 10-truck operation and work with an individual freelancer, they may not have the resources and systems setup to support your $25,000 per month ad spend.
4. Not specialized in specific marketing campaign types
There are many channels of marketing, from billboards, print and emails, to pay-per-click (PPC), SEO, websites, social media, and more. As a plumbing business owner, it’s important for you to understand your marketing needs. At the very least, have some general goals in mind. Then find an agency specifically offering those services. If you are looking for traditional or print marketing such as mailers and brochures, then it probably doesn’t make sense to find a digital marketing agency. Similarly, your SEO, PPC and website experts might not be the best fit for your new billboard campaign.
Find companies that offer expertise or work in the marketing fields that you need for your business. If you aren’t sure, then it might make sense to find a consultant or fractional CMO to build a marketing strategy.
5. Impressions and clicks instead of booked job revenue
Marketing people tend to geek out on marketing metrics, which is great! You want a partner who loves their marketing job. However, you also want an agency who knows that revenue is the true scoreboard. All the other metrics help with fine tuning and troubleshooting, but you don’t want to celebrate only impressions and click-through rates. Your agency should care about inbound leads and booked job revenue for your plumbing business. Ideally, they integrate with your CRM or at least want access to ensure they can measure revenue generated from their marketing spend.
6. Big commitments with no proof
Business owners usually don’t discover a bad contract until something goes wrong, or they try to end the relationship. Then the red flags show up everywhere. Here are a few important things to watch out for when reviewing a marketing agency’s contract:
- Ownership - You need to own everything from your website to the creative to your campaigns. You pay for them to be built and created, and then they belong to you.
- Contract length - If this is a new agency partner, start small and build your relationship before committing to long term contracts with no “out” clauses.
- Unclear pricing - Vague pricing or management fees that don’t add up are a problem. Be wary of large packages and “bundles” without clear line items.
- Clear scope of work - Like pricing, you want to specifically understand the work the agency is doing to generate more leads. While long itemized contracts might seem overwhelming or feel like you’re being nickel-and-dimed, it’s a good sign of transparency.
- Clear termination clauses - The contract should provide clear and simple instructions for cancellation with limited to no penalties and reasonable notice.
None of these red flags on their own is a deal breaker for selecting your marketing agency. Sometimes good marketing companies fall into a few of these categories because of specific policies or procedures. For plumbing business owners, it’s important to ask questions when you notice red flags. Make sure you understand the reasoning and how it could impact your partnership.
Want to see if we have any red flags? Schedule a free marketing audit with VIIRL Marketing.
