It was only 10 years ago or so that most websites were developed by on-staff graphics artists and/or the IT staff, with little regard to profiting off the site. Then came things like Pay Per Click (PPC services) and Search Engine Optimization, and all of a sudden, employers were asking, “What can we do to draw more web traffic and maximize our profits?”

If you’re looking to get more out of your online marketing efforts and are looking to outsource the work to online marketing agencies or a consultant, here are two tips for finding the right service:

1) Ask Plenty Of Questions!

When interviewing possible candidates, ask them about their typical online marketing strategies.  Effective strategies are usually spread around multiple social media platforms and have customized messages so that you’re not just repeating yourself across Facebook, Twitter, etc. This prevents customers from receiving multiple, identical communications (they’ll start ignoring those messages, otherwise). A company that talks about how they’re going to use and integrate platforms and tools like blogs, social media sites and search engine optimization with your company’s Web site has likely had success with this before.

2) Ask For References – And Check Those References

Ask the respective online marketing agencies how long they’ve been in business, then ask for references and past examples of their work. It’s not enough to ask for references; ask the marketer if you can verify those references, then follow through on it. How easy was this company to work with? What kind of improvements were made? Was the bottom line impacted? Did you actually see an uptick in both web traffic and sales, and if so, how much of that can be attributed to the online marketer? Beware of testimonials found on a company’s website, however. You never know who’s actually writing those testimonials, and you’re only hearing the good stuff. Social media reviews and ratings actually hold more weight because you can verify the source of the reviewer.