Thousands of companies offer search engine marketing services. From small one‐man shops to mega
corporations, search engine marketing – both paid and natural – is the “service du jour” being sold by
advertising agencies, PR firms and marketing consultancies.
Many agencies faced with the prospect of offering search engine marketing services quickly realize that
the barrier of entry to create an effective practice is more difficult than it first appears.
Some agencies hire one or two “search guys” to create an in‐house team. This usually results in a lackluster department with little to no support from the larger agency. This option can also be disastrous if the in‐house team is not skilled in client relations or does not know how to sell search engine
marketing services.
Other agencies opt to partner with existing search
specialty shops. This often results in a difficult situation
where each agency is competing for the client’s attention. Frequently there are communication issues in this scenario and expectations are rarely met.
In the worst scenarios, the client opts to work directly with the partner search agency and cuts its
existing agency out completely.
When done correctly, there’s nothing more potent than a great search engine marketing program.
When implemented incorrectly, search engine marketing can be a nightmare for both the client and the agency performing the service. So much so that many agencies that have decided to “hire a search guy” or partner with a specialized search agency have damaged their reputation with existing clients to the point of no return.
WrightIMC is a consultancy dedicated to helping advertising agencies, PR firms, interactive shops and corporate in‐house teams build successful and profitable search engine marketing teams.
With more than 10‐years of experience building profitable search practices, WrightIMC tailors a unique solution for
each client to insure that their search practices and processes are fundamentally sound, but also perpetually profitable. Our proprietary “market orienteering” process helps agency personnel understand where search fits into the marketing mix. It also helps agency principals know when to hire,
when to outsource and when to use existing resources.
Building a search team is a significant investment, but when done right an investment that almost always provides a substantial return. WrightIMC can help your agency or in‐house team realize the goal of implementing and maintaining a profitable search marketing practice.
