How to Get Digital Marketing Clients: 18 Effective Strategies

How to Get Digital Marketing Clients

Ironically, finding clients is probably the most common challenge faced by digital marketing agencies and freelancers. The marketing landscape has become so saturated, the only way to survive is by standing out.

This article will go over 18 effective strategies to help you find new clients. But before jumping right in, first take some time to work on your buyer persona, if you haven’t already done so.

A buyer persona is simply an accurate description of your most ideal clients. Ask yourself who they are, where they live, what industries they work in, how much they earn. Note down every little detail about them that is likely to influence their decisions.

When you have such a clear understanding of your target audience, then it becomes easier to find them online. You’ll also be able to create plans which appeal specifically to them.

Read on to the end of this post to learn how you can get over $1,000 to run your PPC campaigns on Facebook, Google and many other platforms.

Interesting Digital Marketing Stats:

Phone calls are 10 -15 times more likely to convert to revenue than online leads. (Source)
58% of marketers have a challenge targeting or segmenting their audience. (Source)
80% of marketers have reported that their lead generation efforts are not very effective.
Only 22% of companies are satisfied with their conversion rates. (Source)
Digital marketing spend will make up 46% of the total ad spend globally. (Source)
More than 90% of marketers plan on increasing their budget on video and mobile ads. (Source)

How to Find Digital Marketing Clients

1. Have a strategy for collecting reviews

Most people spend a lot of time researching services that they need online, and reviews play a huge role in their decision making process. They first want to see other people testifying that something works as advertised before being sold.

Having lots of positive ratings and reviews is the best way to show credibility and social for your digital marketing agency. The more of them you have, the easier it will be to convert leads into new clients.

Come up with a strategy on how to accumulate reviews for your digital marketing agency. You can get started by simply reaching out to previous clients who you have a great relationship with.

Make sure you have an abundance of reviews published on every platform you’re on, including your website, social media pages, and even directory listings.

2. Get an optimized website

This one is a no brainer, however so many digital marketing agencies and freelancers still don’t have websites. A website is the foundation of your online presence. It’s where people can find information about your services and contact you with ease. It’s absolutely crucial if you want to become a successful digital marketing expert.

An optimized website is one that’s designed with user experience in mind. It should be well organized and structured, easy to navigate, mobile responsive, and load lightning fast. A well designed website will increase your credibility and give visitors confidence in your professionalism.

Search engines like Google and Bing always reward websites that have an outstanding user experience with a higher ranking in the search results pages.

If you’re not an expert in web development, you can use smart tools such as Wix to build a website that automatically has a positive user experience. Alternatively, you can use services such as FreeWebDesign to get professional developers to build your entire site for free.

3. Set up PPC ads

PPC ads are one of the most effective ways to start generating leads almost immediately. Yes they can be quite expensive, especially for a competitive niche such as digital marketing, but you can overcome that by running laser-focused campaigns with very specific targeting.

For example, if your buyer persona is a dentist, you can create a Google Ads campaign specifically targeting people who search the phrase “digital marketing services for dentists”. Granted, the traffic is going to be very low for such long tail keywords, but the few clicks you’ll end up paying for will be from your most ideal clients.

If your landing page is optimized to appeal to them, then you will have a good conversion rate and return on investment. Google Ads is the best platform for running such laser focused campaigns.

4. Set up retargeting ads

Retargeting is an advertising model where ads get shown to people who previously visited a site. Studies show that people who have been retargeted have a 70% higher conversion rate than people seeing ads for the first time. You can create such campaigns on either Google or Facebook Ads.

It’s a great marketing strategy when implemented simultaneously with PPC ads. Your retargeting campaign can specifically target people who visited your website, however did not take your call to action, whether that’s to contact you, or to fill out a registration form.

Retargeting ads are in most cases very cost effective and have an excellent return on investment. Since all the people you’ll be targeting will already have some familiarity with your name, you can get them to take action by offering a discount or even a free trial.

5. Offer free trials

Offering free trials is an effective way of getting people to try out your services by eliminating the risks on their part. If your services are as good as you believe them to be, then they will naturally convert into paying customers.

It’s a strategy that takes away all the risks from your potential clients and forces you to shoulder them, however it can be very rewarding. Of course not every client is going to convert, but that’s just part of the marketing cost.

6. Publish blog posts

A blog gives you the opportunity to dominate the Google search results with content originating from your site, and thereby establish yourself an authority.

Hubspot is the perfect case study for this approach. Although the company primarily deals with marketing software, majority of their site traffic comes from their blog. Whenever you Google anything marketing related, you’re likely to come across a Hubspot article covering the subject in detail.

The more times people come across your name while researching things online, the more familiarized they get with it. You can publish posts covering various topics related to digital marketing. SEMrush is a great tool you can use to find low-competition, high-traffic keywords to write about.

If you don’t have the time or expertise to write your own posts, you can outsource the work to freelancers and then act as the chief editor.

Once your blog starts getting traffic, you can easily upsell your services to your readers. You can even monetize it using Adsense to create an additional income stream for your business.

7. Get active on social media

Social media is one area which is surprisingly underutilized by digital marketers, despite it being one of the recommendations they give to their clients.

You can create pages on the mainstream platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, and keep them active by simply posting relevant content daily.

Social media pages that are active often get a high ranking in the search engines. Therefore whenever people search for marketing agencies on Google, they are likely to come across your social pages in the results, sometimes even ahead of your own website.

Make sure to enable reviews and star ratings to help your pages stand out more. A page that has 5 stars next to it can more easily catch the eye of people searching.

8. Get a GMB page

Google My Business, or GMB, is a free tool that enables businesses create and manage their online profiles. GMB pages often get priority ranking in the search results pages, as well as a placement on Google Maps (for businesses that have a physical location).

They are like mini versions of a website. They enable people to get a quick overview of a business and easily grab its contacts.

Another advantage of having a GMB page is that it can help collect reviews effortlessly. Whenever somebody interacts with your business, Google automatically sends them a request to submit a rating and review.

9. Find projects on freelancing sites

Freelancing platforms like Upwork, Guru and Freelancer are great places to find new clients. You can create a profile for your marketing services and apply for relevant projects that get posted.

Although such platforms are often saturated with service providers, your ratings and reviews can help you stand out. The best way to accumulate ratings and reviews on freelancing sites is by temporarily offering your services for below average prices, just to get more people to hire you.

Every project you complete will be an opportunity to earn a rating and review. Once you collect enough of them, to a point where your profile stands out from competitors, then you can readjust your prices. There are several ways to easily get clients as a freelancer.

10. Target decision makers LinkedIn

LinkedIn is one of the most effective platforms for finding business leads online. You can search for people based on attributes such as their location, job title and even companies they work for.

For example, if your buyer persona is a dentist based in New York, you can search for users who have the job title “dentist”, and then filter the results by the location “New York”.

Send a connection request to all the people who closely resemble your buyer persona, accompanied by a short message introducing yourself. Be careful not to start selling right away, nothing puts people off faster than that.

Look to first build some rapport by asking friendly questions about the accomplishments listed on their profile. Only after developing some level of familiarity is when you should pitch your services. And in case they’re not interested, don’t hesitate to ask for a referral.

11. Get featured on other publications

There’s no greater honor on the internet than having other people publish content about you. It gives you instant credibility and authority, and also the opportunity to reach a new audience.

You can reach out to blogs that publish top 10 lists and ask to get featured in their “top 10 best digital marketing agencies” list. Alternatively, you can write the article yourself and then submit it as a guest post.

Another great way to get featured on other publications is by finding interview opportunities on platforms like Help a Reporter Out. By doing interviews, you can become the voice of the digital marketing industry and give your thoughts and opinions on various trends.

12. Email marketing

Email marketing is another area which is often neglected by many marketers. Emails have an average open rate of 21.3%, and a much higher conversion rate than most other digital marketing strategies. A lot of people spend as much time browsing their emails as they do on social media sites.

You can start collecting emails by integrating an opt-in form on your website asking users to enter their email to get a discount, free trial, or sign up for your monthly newsletters.

Publishing newsletters can help you increase your brand awareness by occasionally making an appearance on your subscribers’ inboxes. Your newsletter can focus on the latest industry news and trends, marketing tips, etc. You can even restructure some of your blog posts for the newsletter.

13. Join social media groups

Social media groups are great places to find gatherings of people who have interest in a particular topic. In this case, you can join groups where your potential clients (or your buyer persona) is likely to be found.

For example, if your buyer persona is a small business owner, then you can search for “small business owners” on Facebook or LinkedIn, and then filter the results by groups.

After joining a relevant group, make sure to be an active member by frequently contributing to the discussions and answering questions where you can provide value. Every time you answer question related to marketing, you will be subtly promoting yourself by giving a sample of your knowledge and expertise.

Eventually the group members may even start coming directly to you whenever they need some digital marketing advice. That gives you the opportunity to pitch your services. You can also follow up with people who you interact with in the group by sending private messages.

14. Attend business events

By attending events, you’ll be able to make a better impression of yourself than you could have been able to over the internet. It’s also a fantastic opportunity to meet new people and expand your network.

If you live in a large city then there is likely to be a number of networking or business events every month. If not, then it might be worth taking a trip to a hosting city. You can easily find them by doing a Google search.

Since events are often crowded and hectic, make sure to have your elevator pitch ready, such that you can make an impression in just a few seconds. Remember that the goal is not necessarily to get clients right away, but to introduce yourself and create a window to follow up later without being a stranger.

After the event is done, send an email to all the people who you met just to say what a pleasure it was to meet them. It’s a simple gesture that makes you more memorable.

15. Always ask for referrals

Develop the habit of always asking for referrals from people you interact with. Most people are not going to be in a position to hire you, however they may know someone else who is.

You can ask for referrals from your friends and family, social media followers, people you meet during events, previous clients, etc. What are some of the benefits of always asking for referrals?

You can build your network easily, which means you’ll have more opportunities to find work. Even if none of these people end up hiring you, they may be able to refer you to their co-workers or friends who are looking for someone with your skillset.
People who are happy with the work you did for them will naturally want to share their experience with others. This gives you positive marketing, without having to do anything other than asking for referrals whenever your client is satisfied.
Asking for referrals can be an easy way to get both testimonials and recommendations from clients

16. Cross promotion

Cross promotion is one of the most underutilized strategies for easily getting digital marketing clients. You can partner with other service providers who are in a different niche, but target a similar audience as you, and simply refer clients to each other.

For example, you can partner with web developers and get them to refer to you clients who need digital marketing for their new websites. In return, you will refer to them clients who need websites. It’s a win-win strategy that takes minimal effort and involves no money.

17. Create directory listings

A lot of people still use directories to find services and business contacts online. You can create a listing on the mainstream platforms such as Yellow Pages and Yelp, as well as on marketing directories such as Relevance and Digital Agency Network.

Creating directory listings is also a great way to get back links for your website, which can help increase your SEO score. It only takes a few minutes to create a listing, and you won’t ever need to actively manage it once it’s published.

18. Host free webinars

Hosting webinars will enable you to bring together people who are likely to be interested in digital marketing, and educate them on why it’s important for their businesses.

For example, if you’re target market consists of business owners, your webinar can be on “how to increase revenue by up to 50% using social media”. Make sure to start promoting the event on social media weeks in advance. The goal will be to get as many attendants as possible.

Once the webinar is done, you can break down the video and use it as content for your website and social media pages. You can even create a YouTube page just to publish the broken down videos.

Your value will rise tremendously to people who come across your videos in such an authoritative position hosting a webinar. Webinars have been shown to be one of the most effective ways of generating leads.

Conclusion

We have covered some great tips on how to find more clients for your digital marketing agency (or freelancing gig).

It really does take a lot of work, but if you are committed then it will definitely be worth all the time and effort that has been put in. If you have any other questions about finding agency clients, feel free to reach out. We’re more than happy to help!

Resources

Use the links below to get free advertising credit to run your online marketing campaigns:

$100 on LinkedIn – https://bit.ly/linkedinadscredit
$150 for Google Ads (US) – https://bit.ly/creditgoogleads
$100 for YouTube Ads – https://bit.ly/youtubeadscredit
$100 for Facebook Remarketing – https://bit.ly/perfectaudiencecredit
$50 for Amazon Ads – https://bit.ly/amazonadscredit
$300 for Yelp Ads – https://bit.ly/yelpadscredit
$375 on Snapchat Ads – https://bit.ly/snapchatadscredit

Some useful tools:

Build your professional website using Wix – http://bit.ly/2vA9doX
Do keyword research for your blog and PPC campaigns using SEMrush – https://bit.ly/2OtnIYg
Automate your sales & marketing using Hubspot – Hubspot get started