How to Start a Digital Marketing Agency?

Discover how to start a digital marketing agency, even if you do not have any experience, how to get clients and how to make it a successful digital marketing agency.

How to Start a Digital Marketing Agency from Scratch?

Starting a digital marketing agency from the beginning with no experience is difficult but not impossible. There is a long process to follow to go from nothing to having an established digital marketing business with clients and employees.

It’s not easy but there is nothing stopping you from making it a reality and entering the exciting world of digital marketing as a service provider.

I started my digital marketing company in 2012, after ten years of working as a part-time SEO freelancer. The transition from being a part-time freelancer to a full-time business owner created a lot of challenges but also opportunities.

During the process, I made a lot of mistakes, but I’ve also learned some valuable lessons that helped me improve my processes and offerings and get to a point of having a healthy and successful online marketing business.

I wrote this guide to help you start your own digital marketing agency from scratch and possibly avoid the mistakes I’ve made, minimize your risks, and maximize your chances of getting it right the first time.

Is Digital Marketing a Good Business to Start?

Before we get into the specifics, let me briefly explain why a digital marketing agency is a good business to start.

There is a high demand for digital marketing services – The number of businesses that move their operations online is increasing day by day and so does the competition. More competition means more demand for digital marketing services.

You can operate a digital marketing agency from home using remote teams – One of the advantages of starting a digital marketing agency is that you don’t need to have a physical business presence.

All operations can be performed remotely using email and Skype. As a business owner, you can also minimize your costs by working from home and hiring remote teams to assist you.

You don’t need to have prior experience – Although having prior experience with SEO and digital marketing is definitely an advantage, you can gradually build your digital marketing skills using an online course and practice on your own websites before offering services to clients.

Be your own boss – If you want to escape the 9:00 to 17:00 and start your own business becoming a digital marketing manager is a great choice.

It’s a scalable business – You can start your business by providing the services yourself and then as you get more clients you can hire more people and grow your business.

It’s a low-cost business to start – You don’t have to make a big investment from the beginning. All you need is an Internet connection, subscriptions to a couple of tools, and a website. Anything else (office space, employees, etc) can come later as the business grows.

13 Key Steps to Start a Digital Marketing Agency

These are the 13 key steps to follow when starting your own digital marketing agency:

1) Build your digital marketing skills and self-confidence.

2) Decide what kind of services to offer.

3) Decide how you plan to operate your business.

4) Register your business.

5) Establish your web presence.

6) Showcase your experience and expertise.

7) Choose the right tools.

8) Define your business model.

9) Get your first client.

10) Start a digital marketing blog.

11) Build your portfolio.

12) Create your processes.

13) Build your digital marketing team.

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