Should your business choose an Inbound Marketing Agency in Manchester?

So your business is based around Manchester and you’re looking for a local inbound marketing agency to work with - but how do you choose the one that’s right for you? And why is it important that you choose one based in Manchester? In this blog, we take a look at what you need to consider when hiring a local inbound marketing agency. 

Manchester is a fantastic place for a growing inbound marketing agency such as ourselves at Axon Garside. Being a central hub in the North of England, Manchester is a great location for travel and a popular city for young professionals. This means we have access to the best and brightest marketing professionals in the North, with a range of disciplines. 

Though we’ve gone through a few offices now (and are currently working at home, given the current circumstances) Axon Garside has been based in the heart of Manchester for years, so we’re very used to the local culture (and, of course, we know all the best pubs). We’re also always keeping in touch with local businesses and looking to support the local industry in any way we can. 

How important is your Inbound Marketing agency location?

Before you start looking for an agency, you need to understand the value of locality and how that affects your decision. There are a number of important advantages to choosing an inbound marketing agency that’s local to you, such as;

Easier to meet up in person

Of course, the main advantage of working with an inbound agency that is local to you is how much easier it is to meet in person. As the world gets more and more used to online meetings, many people are realising just how valuable face-to-face meetings are. We know we’re beginning to miss sitting down with our clients for a cup of tea and a catch-up!

But under normal circumstances, and hopefully, in the near future, face-to-face meetings will be feasible again, which is great because, like many others, we feel meeting in person is simply so much more effective and engaging than countless video meetings.  

Allows for a closer relationship with your marketing agency

At Axon Garside, we believe that for inbound relationships to truly reach their potential, there needs to be a close relationship between all parties. Essentially, to achieve the best result, agencies need to function as an extension of your internal team. That’s why we love to really get to know our clients and build strong relationships. We want our partnership to be friendly, familiar, and trusting - and part of this involves having as much face-to-face contact with our clients as possible. 

Local knowledge

Working with a marketing agency that is local to your area can also be very beneficial when it comes to requiring local knowledge for effective operations. This is especially true for businesses who operate heavily in one specific area, or whose business model requires a deep understanding of the local economy or environment. As an example, businesses whose operations are based heavily in Manchester might find that our in-depth knowledge of the Manchester area makes understanding each others’ priorities and direction much more simple.

However, the location of your inbound agency isn’t the be-all and end-all. After all, most of the work we conduct is done online and, especially during the current times, we’re all used to conducting video meetings over the net, meaning not being in immediate travel distance isn’t a massive issue, even if it’s less convenient.

Need a hand choosing the right inbound marketing agency for you? Click the button below:

Key features of a local inbound agency

When looking to work with a local inbound marketing agency, you need to make sure that they’re the right agency for your business. This means not only looking for the highest-quality agencies but ones whose capabilities and values align with your business goals. After all, every agency has different sets of capabilities and resources. 

Here are some key considerations to keep in mind;

What areas are they skilled in?

Consider what key areas the inbound agency excels in. For example, are they heavily SEO focused? Maybe their skills lie in conversion? Do you need design and video? Think about what your business needs and make sure you choose an agency that can deliver that. It’s best to choose an agency that has the skills in house to meet all your requirements. 

For example, at Axon Garside, we have dedicated experts and specialists in every key digital discipline, including strategy, SEO, CRO, content, web design and video. 

Understand your business, with experience in your sector

In addition to having the right skills and experience, it’s equally important that you work with a marketing agency that really understands your business. It’s simply not possible for an agency to achieve the best results without having a deep understanding of their client, that’s why it’s essential that the agency you choose is willing to spend the time to really get to know not only your industry but your specific business and the mindset of your customers and clients. 

It’s always a good idea to check out any case studies that each agency has on their website, to get an idea of projects they’ve worked on that demonstrate their capabilities and past success with businesses like yours, as well as in other industries. It’s also always worth asking agencies about their experience and success with your type of business directly - not every project and achievement will be listed on an agency’s website, after all. You might also want to check the agency's social media accounts, as agencies will often post about their projects on LinkedIn, Twitter, etc.

What resources do they have? 

You should also ensure your chosen agency has the resources available to carry out the work you need. For example, if you’re looking for a large project including a website redesign and full inbound campaign, that will require a lot of dedicated designers and marketers, so you would need to choose an agency with the resources and the right people to allocate to your project.  

Our inbound methodology is based on the pillar that we will always dedicate the right experts to each project, and we simply won’t agree to work on a project that we aren’t fully confident we have the resources for.

Proven ROI

Of course, you always want to check for proof of return on investment with any marketing agency you’re interested in. 

Any inbound agency worth their salt will be proud to display evidence of ROI on their website, both in specific case studies as well as through general stats on their pages, so make sure you explore the agency’s site as much as possible and take note of their achievements. 

Don’t just base on location/locality

At the end of the day, whatever kind of inbound agency you’re looking for, don’t base your decision solely on location. 

Even though locality can be an important factor in your choice of inbound agency, it should serve as one of many factors in your decision. 

Axon Garside

If you’re looking for an inbound marketing agency based in the Greater Manchester area, we’d love to hear from you here at Axon Garside. We’re a rapidly-growing inbound agency with a strong history, based in the heart of the Northern Quarter. We also hold the title of HubSpot Diamond Partner agency.

Our team of experts spans all key digital disciplines, and we aim to show passion and integrity in every piece of work, challenging you when necessary and always willing to stand by our knowledge and expertise. We don’t just look for meaningless numbers and targets - we pride ourselves on tangible results based on our clients’ specific goals - success for us means making a real impact on our clients’ business.

Looking to see how we’ve helped businesses like yours excel? Look no further than our case studies page.

If you’d like to hear some of our specialists talk about what their day-to-day role looks like working at Axon Garside, and how they go about achieving the best possible results for our clients, check out our Day in the Life video series.