As written in The Marketing Agency Blueprint, “Model agencies are expanding their capabilities to meet growing demand for inbound marketing services, as well as using inbound marketing strategies to build their brands.”
Through integrated campaigns that combine search, social, content and PR, these organizations are driving leads and loyalty for their clients, and their agencies. They understand that today’s consumers are in the drivers’ seats, shutting out interruption-based communications, and dictating when and how they interact with brands.
As a result, they’ve seen tremendous client success and strong business growth. Need proof?
HubSpot’s Shannon Johnson (@shannopop) recently released a storybook, Transforming into an Inbound Marketing Agency: Stories and Advice from 6 Execs that details six companies that transitioned to inbound marketing, including the results they’ve seen. Below are excerpts from that report, reprinted with permission.
The Inbound Marketing Impact on Agency Performance
“Within the first seven months of becoming an inbound marketing agency (in the fall of 2011), our revenue more than doubled. Within the first year, I was able to restructure my staff to better scale for growth, so I grew from seven employees to 18. We had to move offices in mid-2012 to make room for everyone.” — Bob Ruffolo (@BobRuffolo), founder and CEO, IMPACT Branding & Design
“Now, 80% of our client work is on retainer, which in 2012 was enough to cover all of my employee compensation, benefits and rent. On top of that, our client renewal rates increased from 37% in 2011 to a whopping 83% in 2012, and our average client spend increased 91% in that same time. We also had plans to grow 100% in 2012 by doubling our revenue, and we accomplished that goal. We plan to double revenue again in 2013, and are on track to do so.” — Tiffany Sauder (@tiffanysauder), president, Element Three
“In 2012, we were named the Fastest Growing Private Company in Central Indiana, largely due to our revenue growth rate of 3,596.8% over the past three years. We get invited to participate in RFPs we otherwise wouldn’t have been invited to, and we generate nearly all of our new business as a result of our own inbound marketing efforts.” — Aaron Aders (@aaronaders), co-founder and market research director, Digital Relevance (formerly Slingshot SEO)
“Our business development feels like it’s on steroids, and for the first time ever we’re actually filtering leads based on their fit with our business model.” — Greg Linnemanstons (@greglinn), president, Weidert Group
“All of our growth has been a result of inbound marketing. All our business comes from referrals or people finding us online. We’ve never gone looking for new business and we don’t participate in RFPs, yet we’ve been able to work with midsize and larger enterprises. Over time, we’ve grown monthly retainers from around $500 a month to upwards of $10,000 a month.” — Paul Roetzer (@paulroetzer), founder and CEO, PR 20/20
“Over the past three years we have evolved our agency from a traditional print and web services firm to a nearly 100% digital marketing agency, allowing us to grow dramatically, expand internationally, and find our way to profitability. We’ve doubled our revenue and our staff in tough economic times, which we’re very proud of. Now we are moving upmarket and down-funnel with our emphasis on advanced lead generation, nurturing and marketing automation.” — John McTigue (@jmctigue), executive VP and co-owner, Kuno Creative
Do You Offer Inbound Marketing Services?
Have you seen success from inbound marketing, or are you considering making the transition? If so, share your stories below.
Image Credit: Horia Varlan
