Finding and Qualifying an eCommerce Marketing Agency

The amount of tools, resources and technology available to ecommerce businesses continues to increase year after year. The Shopify app store offers more than 2,400 apps with 800+ specific to marketing. Bigcommece has over 200 apps and integrations for marketing and Magento offers close to 800 marketing extensions. All of these things are designed to make life easier for ecommerce businesses however, knowing which solutions to use and integrate takes time and resources. 

Not only is the technology advancing but the digital landscape for every industry is changing rapidly as new competitors enter the market.  

Understanding how to make everything work together to get a leg up on the competition can be challenging. Ecommerce businesses are recognizing the absolute need to understand all of the diverse ways individuals are connecting with their brand. Consumers seek out information through multiple channels and relying solely on traditional marketing methods is no longer the most effective strategy. 

This makes marketing more crucial for your business’ long-term success. Internal marketing departments juggle quite a lot: marketing plan development, report building, content creation, paid social, advertising management, SEO optimizations and so much more. Amongst all of the many projects that must get done, it is easy for your internal marketing team to get overwhelmed trying to plan, execute, measure, report and adjust a digital marketing strategy. 

So what is the solution? 

Outsourcing your marketing efforts to an ecommerce marketing agency that specifically understands the unique needs and demands of reaching your customers. 

Businesses have long been outsourcing to marketing agencies for advertising campaigns, but now, more than ever, they are outsourcing all marketing operations to help improve quality and save money. 

According to a Bain & Co. study of 2,000 companies over 10 years, they found only one out of 10 companies were able to achieve long-term sustainable growth and of those that did they all shared one common characteristic: they were effective at capability sourcing. Companies that are innovative and most successful turn to effective outsourcing to diversify the way they are reaching their target audiences. 

The challenge with outsourcing is finding and qualifying a capable agency that can actually produce results for the business. This is an enormous challenge in the advertising space due to the massive amount of businesses competing for marketing budgets. 

According to a Statista study, there are approximately 21,387 advertising and marketing agencies in the United States. With the vast number of agencies, it can be difficult to find the right company to work with. If you are considering outsourcing your marketing, here are some tips for finding and qualifying a marketing agency.

Source: Statista

Outsourcing vs Hiring In House

Working with an ecommerce marketing agency allows your team to have access to a deep bench of marketing professionals, without the steep expense of hiring multiple people in-house. Marketing agencies are staffed with employees that eat, sleep and breathe marketing which helps them provide expertise and advice for how to move your marketing plan forward. 

Marketing is more than content writing, there are multiple facets of marketing and with each speciality there comes a subject matter expert. Your in-house staff may have expertise in one or two skills, but when you are looking to make a change in strategy or pursue a new channel, you will have to look to expand your team and take on a new employee who has the certain skill set you were looking for. This type of shifting and reprioritizing can be cost-heavy and time wasting. 

Managing Time and Resources

Organizations benefit from outsourcing to a digital marketing agency due to their immediate access to a suite of tools and technology that once seemed too expensive and time-committing to pursue. The outsourced marketing staff is fully-trained so there is no need for you to hire internally and use another resource to train your new hire. Instead your hired agency takes on the brute of your work and you get the most value out of the strategic partnership. 

According to a LinkedIn study in-house marketers experienced one of the highest turnover rates of nearly any job. Their findings suggested a turnover rate as high as 17%; this is more than 50% higher than the global average. Turnover leads to inefficiencies that can severely impact your bottom line. Hiring an employee that spearheaded the implementation of a specific tool or campaign can lead to vulnerabilities should they decide to part ways with your organization. 

Source: LinkedIn Talent Blog

Companies are shifting away from hiring in-house specialists because there are thousands of tools and different technology emerging daily, so this makes it difficult and expensive to hire by skill set. Instead they are turning to a marketing agency with the expectation that they can in turn keep up with the latest technology and provide innovative marketing strategies. Torrie Belknap, VP of Marketing at Tuft & Needle, describes it this way:

“One of the biggest benefits of working with an agency is their access to tools and platforms that many companies would otherwise have difficulty leveraging. Even if a business can afford to get access to a platform or ad network, oftentimes the spend they’re willing to invest to test its effectiveness doesn’t warrant a dedicated representative from the vendor to help teach the tool, or optimize spend. It’s almost like being set up for failure from the get-go. Going through an agency provides power in numbers. They have significantly more leverage to drive down prices and get direct help from the vendors that mean obtaining success faster – and that’s primarily because of the sheer volume of business they bring to the table.” 

If you are looking to review how efficiently you are running your ecommerce store, you can review the resource 20 tools to make your Shopify store run smoothly post.

Managing Costs

Before you decide if outsourcing your marketing efforts is the right thing for you to do financially, you must first assess what resources and skills are needed internally. 

If you decide you need an internal team of marketing professionals to support your organization, then let’s break down a basic cost analysis. 

The average annual salaries of a marketing team include: 

The average annual salaries of a marketing team include: 

• VP of Marketing: $146,236
• Content Marketing Manager: $65,539
• SEO Manager: $62,621
• Graphic Designer: $45,677
• Paid Search Manager: $50,060
• Social Media Manager: $50,473
• Email Marketing Manager: $65,539

Beyond the salaries of your team, you must also supply your marketing team with access to tools to help them be the most effective. 

Average annual cost of tools and ad spend for a medium-sized business:

• Email Marketing Platform: $400
• Designing Software: $790 
• SEO Research Tools: $1,200
• Stock Photography: $520
• Advertising Budget: $100,000

This is a high-level breakdown of an average annual budget that totals to $589,055.

On average, businesses spend around 10% of their revenue on marketing. This is pretty typical so if the business is doing $5 million in revenue, it would put $500K toward marketing. Cost of marketing so that will be used on tools, ad budgets and everything else. Average cost of an email platform for a business doing $5 million would be around $1,500- $2,000 a month for a tools like Klayivo for example.

Benefits of an agency versus in-house in terms of cost and effectiveness

1. Your marketing strategy can be agile

Working with a digital marketing agency deepens your bench allowing you to have a highly skilled team of marketing professionals at your disposal. You can reap the benefits of having a channel specialist without incurring the cost of hiring multiple specialists all in-house. 

Constant growth and innovation allows your business to remain relevant, but without a specialist that knows how to adjust and recreate in-house, you are looking at outsourcing projects or taking longer amounts of time to produce your new strategy. 

Employing a marketing agency enables your team to adjust strategy at a much quicker pace. This frees up budget constraints, and allows you to better adjust your spend to projects that are high producing. 

2. Access best in class solutions and marketing technologies

Working with a marketing agency allows you to gain access to the latest and greatest marketing tools without having to incur the steep expense of owning your own subscriptions. This also means you will have immediate access to new products as they are made available. 

A pain point for multiple businesses is training and implementation of new products. 

Why?

Typical organizations allocate one individual to master a new tool and is then in charge of training the rest of the staff. This leaves your business vulnerable should the trained team member leave your organization or become overwhelmed and unable to take on learning new tools. 

After all – when your internal resources have little bandwidth to work with, learning new tools may take second place to implementing projects that have a more immediate impact on sales. 

A marketing agency takes on the heavy time burden of training, and in return is able to seamlessly plug the new solution into your ever changing marketing plan.

Marketing agencies are also comprised of software experts who have the unique skills needed to take new technologies and utilize their capabilities to their fullest potential.

3. The Expense of Value-Based Work 

Agencies are not considered cheap by any means, but they are reasonably affordable when compared to hiring a highly-skilled internal staff of full-time employees. 

Striking the right balance for your business is crucial. 

The digital landscape changes in a blink of an eye; this makes keeping an internal staff educated on the latest technology advancements difficult and extremely expensive. 

For marketing agencies, it’s their job to become subject experts and focus solely on the services they provide. In-house employees, especially in small and medium sized organizations, often get pulled into other areas of the business and their time and attention shifts. It is hard for them to focus on keeping up on the skills they were hired to use. 

It is also important for organizations to remember hiring one in-house, full-time marketing employee costs more than just a salary. You must also provide benefits, sick days, paid time off and access to a set of tools to help them get their job done.

Introduce New Perspectives

When you work with the same set of individuals it is easy to get tunnel vision that severely limits the scope of progressive innovation your company is willing to pursue. 

It is important to seek out a marketing agency that acts as a true partner with your business. A partner is able to provide suggestions that are in tune with your long-term business goals, and you can trust that you are getting the most out of your relationship.

An additional perk of working with a marketing agency is that you can benefit if they have worked with clients in the same industry. This allows them to have a built guide of best practices to help guide the direction of effective marketing strategies. 

Marketing Agencies Can Open Your Network

Working within a specific industry means you can be limited to the amount of individuals you come in contact with. 

Marketing agencies work within a wide range of verticals which increases their exposure to businesses that are open to strategic partnerships. 

Your agency can open the door to increased networking opportunities that can lead to potential collaborative relationships. 

Agencies also have vested relationships with media influencers and brands — so businesses can take advantage of their network to help grow brand awareness and reputation.

When and what to consider before investing in in-house employees

Before you begin to build your marketing team, whether that includes an outsourced marketing agency or a complete in-house team, you must first take a step back and define what you want your team to look like and what you want to value.

Specific values you may be interested in cultivating include: camaraderie, collaboration, and face-to-face interactions, just to name a few.

If this is the case, it is best to strike a mix of in-house and agency members, so you can best achieve these goals. 

Your in-house staff can maintain the brand awareness and supply face-to-face interaction with your internal staff. While your marketing agency can step in and play a strategic role in innovating your marketing initiatives. 

Alex McArthur, CMO For Hire / former CMO of Purple, describes his process this way:

“Marketing really comes down to 2 things: picking the right strategies to invest in and building the right team to execute those strategies. Building the right team can mean a variety of things from completely internal hires, fully outsourced to agencies or a hybrid.

Here are a few things I consider when deciding whether or not to build up the internal marketing team:

• Can the internal team take our strategies and knock the execution out of the park? If the answer is 100% “YES”, then I go all in on internal. If not, I typically prefer to have the internal team lead the project, but hire agencies to bring in elite talent with world class talent at certain marketing skills. To me, the biggest mistake a marketer can make is mediocrity. Find the best or don’t do it.
• What talent is available? My plans and hiring forecast have been completely disrupted due to opportunities. If elite talent shows up at your door that aligns with one of your core marketing strategies, I tend to jump even if it goes against plan. When the talent isn’t available or enough to scale with, the right agencies become a great option.
• The timing and stage of your business clearly impacts hiring decisions. What can you afford? When is it time to go to bat to adjust your head count? Are we a butts-in-seat organization or can our talent pool increase with remote work? The answer to these questions comes down to experience and a history of making the right decision. 

In the end, my biggest successes have always taken a hybrid approach. Timing, access to the right talent and the stage of the business ultimately all have to be weighed when deciding between hiring, partnering or taking the hybrid approach.” 

Questions To Ask Yourself Before Investing In A Marketing Agency

Before you take the leap and engage a digital marketing agency, it is crucial you understand all aspects of your business. 

This means you stand by the product you sell, you understand how your production and operations work and you can clearly identify a timeline with goals set. 

If you are wondering if you are in a good place to engage a marketing agency ask yourself the following questions:

• Has the product been thoroughly tested and is ready to go to market?
• Have you analyzed your competitors and have a handle on how they grew their businesses and over what time frames?
• Do you have internal infrastructure in place to scale as sales grow?
• Do you have creative assets ready for marketing campaigns?

These questions may drill down to more specifics if you are looking to engage with an agency for a specific service. 

 For example, if you are looking to use the agency for Facebook advertising, then you must come prepared to talk about the history of your ad account, what has worked, what has not worked and what you are currently doing to best optimize your ads and website for conversions. 

Regardless of the service you are seeking out, you must come prepared so you can get the most out of your initial engagement.

John Doherty, CEO of Credo, explains it this way:

“In my time speaking with thousands of companies looking to hire over the years, I’ve learned the best way to approach a marketing firm:

• • With an open book and an open mind. If you withhold information, you’re much less likely to hire the right firm for the right project as there is a lack of knowledge from their end.
  • With experience. If you don’t have experience with marketing or working with a firm, then consider a shorter term engagement to establish your strategy and figure out if you work well with the firm.
  • Do you have an understanding of your business metrics? If you don’t understand your acquisition metrics like customer acquisition cost (CAC) or cost-per-conversion (CPC), then work with your firm to establish those first so that you can then apply proper budget to the project.
  • With a goal in mind. Knowing where your numbers need to be can help you apply the right budget against the right channels and properly prioritize efforts based on the return they are forecasted to bring.”

Working with an agency can drastically impact your current operations if you clearly understand what they are doing and how they are going to measure their impact on CAC, CPC or other critical business KPIs. This gives everyone clarity on what is expected  so both parties know what they are working toward. You’re giving a third party access to a significant amount of your marketing tools. So it’s crucial you make the best choice for your business. 

Vet several different agencies before you commit. Don’t be afraid to ask questions and to seek out case studies that prove their concepts.

Consider the following when you are vetting your next ecommerce marketing agency.

Annual Marketing Budget

Take a look at your annual marketing budget. Determine what you are willing to allocate to marketing, and specifically what you can allocate to a marketing agency. 

If possible, break down your marketing budget by channel segmentation and include ad spend to help you get a clear picture of total spend.

This breakdown will help both you and the agency you engage plan a marketing strategy that fits within budget and encompasses your channel goals. 

Companies should be aware, the amount of money you invest into marketing will have a direct correlation with the amount of support and monthly marketing production you will receive. 

Other factors that will directly impact the amount you spend with a marketing agency include extensive edits, rushed timelines, breach of contract, custom design work or additional projects outside of the agreed upon scope. 

Personality Fit

Your brand has its own culture and personality. So does each marketing agency. 

Make sure you research which agency is the best fit for you. Chemistry matters when it comes to long-term relationships.

You want to make sure your input is well received and your vision is the guiding factor of your marketing strategy. You need a partner that is willing to step in as an extension of your business and work towards the established shared goal. 

Make sure the agency you are courting takes the time to listen to what you have done in the past, what you are working towards now and what the end goal will be. 

You will first want to ensure the agency has the technical capabilities necessary to service your needs, but you will also want to feel out if the group has an energy that will jive well with your internal contact.

The relationship between the agency and your business is one of the key indicators of whether you will experience long-term success.

Inside tip – Take the time to get to know your agencies growth goals. Agencies that are looking to expand are likely more willing to invest in new technologies and marketing solutions. A benefit that is then passed on to you as a client.

To find the most success with an agency, its best to envision your two groups really teaming up.

An agency has to envision they are a literal extension of the in-house team. For any company looking to outsource parts for their marketing, it is critical the agency understands the brand’s voice and messaging. In order to demonstrate they clearly understand a brand’s voice, an agency should be able to create work that looks, breathes and feels as if it was produced in-house. 

Plug and play agencies just don’t fit the mold anymore. Agencies are working to be an extension of your company instead of making your company fit their mold. That includes an increased attention to how they create promotional strategies down to personality and communication. To find the most success, take the time to understand if there is a personal fit with the agency, the same way you would if hiring someone in-house.   

“As more services are being outsourced to agencies, it is important to find an agency that not only offers the service you need but fits your brand and messaging. Plug and play agencies just dont fit the mold anymore. Find an agency that will try and be an extension of your company instead of making your company fit their mold. That includes everything from promotional strategies down to personality and communication.” said Gabe Ray, VP of Operations at Evolved Commerce

Location

Agencies are located across the entire United States. 

Advances in technology makes it easy for you to connect with your agency from anywhere in the world with ease, so there is no need to limit which agency you are willing to connect and work with. 

If digital meet-ups are not your thing, you can look for an agency that is close enough for you to have in-person meetings. 

Do your research and find the best fit for you. 

Agency Portfolio

How did you find the agency you are vetting? 

The answer to this question can illuminate how the agency runs their business. 

If you ran a simple search for “ecommerce marketing agency” and they were the first to appear, then you know they understand how to rank in search engines. 

If you heard about them through a referral, then you can conclude they have a great track record in building meaningful relationships.

A great example of this is when your marketing agency recommends you cold email potential prospects, but they themselves run targeted PPC campaigns to generate their own prospects.

Practice what you preach. Make sure your agency utilizes the same marketing strategies they recommend to you, because if they are not using the same strategies it is likely because they produce little to no value. 

If you have a specialized product, make sure to research an agency’s track record within your vertical. You can review what success they have had working within the space and what challenges they have had to face. Consider working with an agency that has more experience within your industry, it is likely they will have a larger network for you to collaborate and connect with. 

Social Proof

Happy customers are not afraid to share their positive experiences. Look at reviews, case studies and testimonials to get a strong sense of how happy the clients are who work with the agency you are vetting. You can request for social proof directly from the agency.

Pro Tip – Don’t be afraid to ask why past clients had a negative experience working with the agency. This question can lead to a deeper look at the agency.

You are looking to engage a digital marketing agency to get results, to get revenue. The agency you pursue should be able to easily demonstrate their added value with statistics, case studies and specific strategies. An agency should also be willing to let you talk to their current customers to get their unfiltered view. 

For example, if you are looking to work with an agency because they have a significant history of working with clients in your same vertical, ask them to connect you with a current customer. Reach out and see what success and growth the client has found.

Take the time to read the agency’s reviews online. Look for common themes across reviews, and identify specific stories that illustrate an added value. 

Do not be surprised if you see a negative review here or there. Some may be accurate and others may be fake or from their competition. 

Your Expectations and Time Schedule

When do you expect to see results? 

When you begin working with an agency it is crucial both the in-house team and agency are aware of expectations and the timeline attached to those goals. 

What benchmark is considered a success? How quickly does the client expect to meet this goal? 

Be aware of expectations before you dive into projects. Make sure you have provided ample thought to all the potential hurdles and roadblocks that could hinder success. 

Be mindful that just because you engage with marketing professionals does not mean you will see immediate results the next day. Your marketing agency will help build a strong foundation for gradual success to take shape and to continue to grow. 

In-House Capabilities

How much work do you anticipate to distribute to your in-house staff and how much are you willing to outsource to your marketing agency? 

Creating clear and defined roles will help aid in building a well-oiled marketing machine. There will be no question who is working on what project, which will help reduce the number of balls dropped. 

Companies that elect a single point of contact see the most success working with an agency. Why? It creates one voice talking to the agency which reduces confusion and helps streamline your main message. 

Specialized Services

If you are looking to work with an agency that specializes in a specific channel, make sure to vet they are well-qualified and well-supported within that area of expertise. Beware of organizations that say they do it all. 

Marketing channels have specialized technologies that change rapidly. Google is constantly updating and tweaking their algorithm and ad platforms. You will need a specialist that is dedicated to this channel to take the time and learn the new rules, so they can best serve your organization.

Factors To Consider Before Hiring An Agency

Once you confirm you are going to hire a marketing agency, now you have to run each finalist through your complete vetting process. 

During the vetting process the agency will likely pepper you with questions regarding your products, your current campaigns, long-range growth goals, the works. Remember this process is similar to a job interview. You need to ask questions to determine that they are the right fit for you. 

Ask the following questions to your agency to gain a strong sense of whether or not they are a good fit for your business. 

Where and when did your agency start?

When you understand the origins of the business, you get a behind the scenes look at what sparked their drive to serve clients like you.

Was it started by SEO managers? Expect services focused on search engine optimization. 

Was it started by graphic designers? Expect services focused on design. 

Understanding a business’ heritage can also give you an idea on what industries they have the most experience working with. 

What areas do you specialize in?

If the agency has expertise in a certain type of ecommerce marketing, you can decide if they are the right fit for your organization. Aligning your organization with a team that specializes in the channel you are looking to develop, is never a bad idea. 

What is your strategy for growing partnerships and relationships?

Ask them to describe how they identify and nurture relationships with partners to sustain a common growth goal. 

If they partner with specific providers, have them breakdown how they have built a strategic relationship that promotes growth for both parties involved. 

Go beyond products and ask them about their longest client. Breakdown what growth patterns you have seen throughout the years. If the majority of their clients have been with the company for less than a year, you will need to dive deeper to understand why. 

What processes do you have in place to ensure planned work is getting done?

A business owner who signs a scope of work with an agency wants to know the processes set in place ensure the work planned is getting done efficiently and effectively. 

You shouldn’t have to pay for an agency to figure things out on your dime or to do work that you can easily handle in-house. That is why it is critical for you to ask your agency to be clear on what they are capable of doing and have them describe how they will stick to performing that work. 

If you seek something beyond the initial scope of work planned, your agency should be clear that they are not experts in the area you wish to add, so you don’t waste your time or theirs by having them perform research and figuring things out on the fly.

Where have you found success? Where have you failed?

Be transparent. The agency should be eager to share their success stories and humble enough to explain why some campaigns fail. This provides the agency an opportunity to layout how they learn from mistakes and shift strategy to find future success.

Are you well-qualified?

Digital marketing changes daily, so it is critical to ascertain whether an agency is actively keeping up with the constant change in technology.  

Ask them to share their credentials. Are they a Google Premier Partner?  What certifications do they have for Google Adwords? 

What do you guarantee?

Beware of agencies that say they guarantee success.  Instead look for an agency that is willing to break down steps to finding success; a breakdown that includes the good, the bad and the ugly. 

Agencies that take into account potential drawbacks and roadblocks will have a more in-depth strategy to get your company to long-term success. 

What does this look like in action? It starts with setting specific growth goals you would like to see, and then breaking down the necessary components that will make you successful. It should also include counteractive plans in case predicted roadblocks hinder initial progress. All parties must be on the same page of what role they play in the strategy, and all parties must be held accountable. 

Agencies may not be able to guarantee a specific outcome, but they can guarantee they will be a committed partner who is willing to develop a marketing plan that sustains long-term business success. 

Do you have processes set in place?

Have them breakdown what process you can expect for designing, approving and implementing campaigns. Detail who needs to approve and what stages, so you can have a clear plan laid in front of you. 

If possible, have them breakdown the return on investment they expect to see. How do they plan to help you see a return on your campaign, and how much revenue can you expect from these efforts?

Have them explain how they will communicate their plans. Specifically have them share their plan of communication when things are not going right and how they plan to adjust things. Syncing up on a change of strategy is critical; it ensures both you and the agency constantly have your thinking aligned. 

For example, does the agency let an ad budget run for a week before they make changes to it? Or, are they running things for a day maybe two and then shutting things off and adjusting before running them again?

Knowing the plan inside and out before you launch the campaign and during the launch will help both parties involved to be the most successful. 

How do you share results?

Ask to see a template of what type of reporting you can expect. Whether that is a weekly email recap, a phone call, in-person meeting or presentation, take a look and identify if your needs are met with the report. 

How do you prioritize client work?

Setting clear expectations as to what a client can expect is crucial. Client’s want to know what dedicated resources are working on their project. What tools will be used to complete the project, and when they can expect it to be complete. 

What does the agency expect from the client?

While most of the responsibility will fall on the agency’s shoulders, there are certain tasks that your internal staff must complete to assist with the overall projects success. 

When you discuss the project and layout to the process, it is important for both parties to clearly state who will be doing what and when they are expected to complete the task. 

Resources for finding and hiring help to support your ecommerce marketing needs:

When looking for a valuable resource to hire to help your ecommerce marketing needs, it is crucial to seek experts within each vertical. 

There is a difference between seeking out help from a general marketing resource and a specialized marketing resource. 

A general marketing resource will assist you from a high-level, but a specialized marketing resource will help you strategically develop channels of interest.

There are comprehensive marketing platforms and tools that are used by a large portion of ecommerce businesses. This allows you the opportunity to drill down and find a partner that has experience with a toolset that is what your business needs. 

Below we will break down some common marketing tools and platforms.

Shopify provides an ecommerce platform with all the point of sale features you need to run and grow your business. 

Going beyond their platform, Shopify has a large network of partners that can specifically help you with a wide range of projects. Stryde has years of experience working as a Shopify agency partner within the network.

You can visit the Shopify Experts website and browse by services, or you can create a job and receive bids and proposals from those with interest in your project. 

Ecommerce Marketing Services:

• Store Build or Redesign
• Logo & Visual Branding 
• Product & Collection Setup
• Custom Domain Setup
• Sales Channel Setup 
• Sales Strategy Guidance
• Google Analytics Setup
• Facebook Pixel Setup
• Development & Troubleshooting

BigCommerce, a leading ecommerce platform, allows you to build a unique commerce experience for your customers with the ease of flexibility you need. 

This platform also provides access to their BigCommerce Partner Directory, a large network of ecommerce certified experts. Stryde continues to have an active presence with BigCommerce as an ecommerce certified expert. 

You can define the service you are interested in and you can sift through the partners till you find the group you are interested in working with. 

Ecommerce Marketing Services:

• Product Development 
• Application Development 
• Graphic Design 
• UX & UI Development 
• Branding 
• Marketing Automation 
• Social Media
• Mobile Site Development 
• Training 
• Store Setup

Magento Commerce, an ecommerce platform owned by Adobe, is a platform built with the support of global merchants, partners and developers. Whether you are a small, medium or enterprise business, you can build an ecommerce experience with Magento. 

Magento’s partner network is filled with solution and technology partners that can help you bring your ecommerce store to life. They can help you engage with a developer that specializes in store development. 

Ecommerce Marketing Services:

• Content Management Systems (CMS) 
• ERP 
• Extension Builders 
• Inventory and Warehouse (WMS) 
• Order Management 
• Rich Media 
• Site Search and Navigation

Shopify sites can take advantage of services such as storetasker and heycarson as a means to accomplish one off projects. These sites offer standard projects and setups for things such as new customer email automations or web page theme customizations/ 

These tools will help you accomplish projects until you can hire someone in-house or from an agency to continue the ongoing testing and maintenance for your marketing initiatives. 

Executive Summary

Ecommerce businesses that are looking to increase their revenue, must evaluate their marketing efforts and make positive steps toward advancing their marketing techniques.

Working with an ecommerce marketing agency gives you access to a one-stop-shop for marketing expertise and channel specific specialists that know exactly what you need to help your business grow.

Working with a marketing agency is a viable option for businesses that are looking to outsource projects to those with more specialized knowledge. 

While there are inevitable pros and cons associated with working with a third party, you can help alleviate the tension through meticulous research and an in-depth vetting process. 

Ask several questions and don’t be afraid to ask agency owners about their failures. Take the time to get to know who they are, how they work and how they will fit within your organization.

Greg Shuey

Greg is the founder and CEO of Stryde and a seasoned digital marketer who has worked with thousands of businesses, large and small, to generate more revenue via online marketing strategy and execution. Greg has written hundreds of blog posts as well as spoken at many events about online marketing strategy. You can follow Greg on Twitter and connect with him on LinkedIn.