Market specialization is becoming a more prevalent business strategy for marketing agencies. With this strategy, the marketing agency makes a conscious decision to only support the unique marketing requirements of a particular industry or niche. From the client's perspective, they hope they can leverage the experience and key learnings of other similar companies. They feel like they won’t have to be a guinea pig or recreate the wheel. From the agency perspective, it is typically a marketing and branding play. It allows them to fine-tune their positioning as a subject matter expert and thought leader.  

I recently had a call with a prospect who is thinking about working with our team at LeadG2 for their B2B inbound marketing development. They are talking to a few different inbound marketing agencies, and had some really thoughtful and insightful questions to ask us. Personally, I appreciate someone who wants to ask the tough questions and get a better feel for how an agency works and what makes them stand apart from their competition.

Choosing the right inbound marketing agency (or any agency for that matter) isn’t something an organization should take lightly, as there are a lot of really great options out there (especially when it comes to HubSpot partners). However, not all agencies are created equal—and even ones who are equally effective might not be the right fit for your business.

So, I’m going to assume you’ve narrowed it down to some of the top inbound marketing agencies around. Then, how do you decide between Awesome Inbound Agency A and Awesome Inbound Agency B, and so on? When they all have successful and happy clients, a positive track record, a strong portfolio, and passionate employees? What sets them apart?

Whether you’re looking to hire someone inside or outside of your company to run your inbound marketing, there are some specific traits, talents, and skills I’ve found over the years that can better set your company up for success if the candidate has them.

This is certainly not an exhaustive list, but it can help you identify the right partner or hire when making this important decision. It can also help you determine if hiring internally or finding a partner might be better for your needs.