Pierpont Communications, Inc.

We admit it! We got a facelift a few months ago. More important than our slightly spiffier look however, are the updates and additions we made to facilitate Search Engine Optimization.

SEO (really, any digital media tool) is a hot topic these days. Companies are coming out of the woodwork to peddle their SEO wares, but in reality, it is a trial and error process -- you have to figure out what resonates with your audience and what works for your company and your company’s needs.

Here is what we did with our own website:

- Created processes to get new content implemented within the site on a regular basis. We are updating our blog more frequently and are adding case studies and videos to make the site more content-rich and interesting for our audiences.

- Updated our meta tags. Experts agree that meta keywords are less important now, and that page titles are where SEO managers should dedicate time. Make sure they strike a balance between being keyword rich and relevant to the content on the page. Start with the keywords first, and the actual page content last, in case any of your title gets cut off.

- Added a section we call the "knowledge center": Once scattered throughout the site, our case studies, project results, articles and more are now all cross-referenced by industry, topic and Pierpont author in an easy to use, database-like program.

- Updated our copy to focus on keywords, and better link our organic copy to our AdWords, for improved page relevancy (which is important for Google page rankings.)

We're using data from Google Analytics and AdWords to constantly adjust our approach to SEO, and the content on our site. We'd welcome the opportunity to talk with you about improving your site's searchability.

When it comes to enlisting marketing and communications support, you probably have a lot of questions. What type of external partner should be engaged – a small, medium or large agency? Should I choose an agency down the street, or one that is across the country but has a core expertise in my industry? Am I hiring the agency brand or the individuals working on my account? If I pay more, do I really get more? And is it better to do the work internally rather than outsource my marketing?

Answering these questions can help you identify the partner that is, in Goldilocks’ words, “just right” for your current and long term needs.

Size

Much hype is made about an agency’s size. Is it better to engage a global, regional or a small boutique firm? Having come from a large global firm myself, there are a few upsides – global reach, depth of knowledge on the team and “seasoned” PR pros. But there also are some grave downsides – bureaucracy with a lot of red tape, billing rates that can be as high as the most well-paid trial lawyers and the silos of different practices that can seem like a bait and switch ploy.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, there are boutique firms. Some boutique firms do great work; I once owned a boutique firm and was able to do brilliant work for my clients. As a plus, when working with a boutique firm, you could be its largest client and own a significant portion of its mindshare and talent. As a negative, the bench strength of your team is limited to that of the boutique owner. If you are going after new markets, trends or influence pools, the boutique agency may be limited in expertise and experience.

Midsized agencies give you the best of both worlds – a nimble, dedicated team that gives you the attention you need with seasoned veterans who have large global firm experience. Most revered midsized agencies also are wise enough to know their limitations, and seek out partnerships that can help them scale nationally or globally when the need arises.

The people or the agency?

If marketing were an objective, inanimate product – a widget, screw or dry erase marker – then the people who actually make the product wouldn’t be a unique factor. They would be replaceable. But marketing and communications aren’t inanimate. In our field, our inventory goes home at night and has 2.2 children. Our people make us unique and provide value to our services. When you hire an external agency partner, you hire the collective experience of the team. With that, you get the wealth of knowledge and the lessons from the great successes and failures of the individuals who will be your team. So while you want to make sure the agency has a long history of securing credible results, the individual team members you are assigned are equally important.

Larger agencies tend to be so big that they overweigh the value of being a household name firm and devalue the contributions of the individuals. Small boutique firms put too much emphasis on the individuals, but may not have the scalable resources to expand quickly to meet a client’s need. Look for a firm that puts equal weight on the individual team as well as the agency’s reputation and background. In the end, you want a team with which you share a great chemistry and one that believes in your mission as much or more than you do.

How much $$ is too much or too little?

The old adage applies here – if you want something good, fast or cheap, pick two and realize you’re going to sacrifice the third. To put a budget scope on a project, consider the cost of doing something entirely on your own. Do you have the skills or bandwidth necessary to accomplish your goal? What would it cost you to bring on that skill set? Could you sustain it? How much of your time, in a quantifiable amount, will it take to personally manage the work internally? That amount will provide you with an idea of what would be a fair project or retainer cost. The figure may be a bit higher than you normally would be able to stomach, but this is a business. The cost/benefit analysis of bringing on hired guns that will do the job will have much greater ROI for you in the long term because they aren’t also costing you the time to find, train and manage them.

While these three criteria aren’t the only ones that factor into the selection process for an external marketing and communications partner, they are the big three that seem to set the stage for a successful relationship. Whether it’s an agency partner or a bowl of porridge, the bottom line is that you want to make sure it’s a choice that fits you just right!