IQ-Magazine-Issue-14

IQ advice
choosing
an agency
Businesses in Cambridge are faced with a bewildering
choice when it comes to digital agencies.
Here are some tips to help you make the right choice.
• Talk to friends/colleagues and use
Google to make a list of potential
agencies
• Look at the agency websites to see if
they do the sort of work you need
• Make a shortlist and keep it to
five or less
Now pick up the phone and make a call. I know we
all use email, but the first impression is important and
David Donnan
from Igentics shares
advice on choosing the
right digital agency for
your business
a telephone is best. Remember that we agency folks
are supposed to be responsive, so don’t worry about
catching us unprepared.
Explain what you want and see what reaction you get.
Ideally you want to be in a position to send over a brief,
with budget if possible. Then go and meet the agency
to discuss how you could take it forward.
It is important to go and see the agency as you want to
make sure they are real (some are not) and also because
you will be working with these people. When you meet
with them you need to find out the following:
Commercially do they fit?
Are they the right size for the project, do you like their
design style and have they got the right expertise and
team to deliver what you need?
Do they have the support/insurance/industry partners
needed to provide an ongoing service?
Can they back all this up with case studies?
Are they local?
Does that matter?
What about the people? You might be working with
this team for years (we have several clients who have
been with us for more than 10 years). It is important
that you can form a solid working relationship, based
on trust and common goals.
Hopefully at this point you have narrowed your
selection to one or two agencies, after which your
choice will come down to the specific ability to meet
the needs of your project against budgets.
More Information
For more information visit www.igentics.com