COVID-19 has been an unprecedented time. What’s the worst thing about unprecedented times? There aren’t well-established blueprints explaining how to navigate them successfully. That’s a worrying realization that people, businesses, and industries around the world are still contending with.
Among those trying to make sense of the pandemic are digital marketing agencies. In the process, some have successfully adapted their business models to not only survive – but to thrive.
How Has COVID-19 Impacted Digital Agencies?
Digital marketing agencies – as a whole – have suffered throughout the pandemic. A recent Uplers report found that 66% of digital marketing agencies have seen a loss of revenue since the start of the pandemic with an average revenue loss of around 22%. Those numbers represent a serious blow to the financial stability of countless digital marketing agencies around the world.
This lost revenue can partially be explained by COVID-19’s trickle-down consequences. Lockdowns, restrictions, and regulations have hit other industries hard. Retail, travel, manufacturing – all of these have seen their revenue streams destabilized or shut down completely. Digital marketing isn’t a priority when you’re staring bankruptcy in the face. This theory is supported by fact that marketing budgets fell by 11% in 2020 and have fallen an additional 6.4% in 2021 so far.
The result? Around 47% of digital marketing agencies have seen a decrease in lead generation since the start of the pandemic.
How Are Digital Marketing Agencies Adapting?
While Upler’s statistic that ‘66% of digital marketing agencies lost revenue’ seems dire, it’s not all bad news. Within the same report, Uplers found that 16% of agencies actually managed to increase their revenue throughout the pandemic. These successful few provide a great blueprint for digital marketing agencies hoping to adapt to the new normal. Here are a few of the things they’ve started doing differently:
Focusing On Winning Industries
As was mentioned above, many industries are suffering at the hands of the pandemic. Some aren’t, though. The digital marketing agencies that successfully navigated the pandemic typically report that they altered their business model to prioritize industries that were growing under pandemic conditions.
Health care providers and technology companies were two massive sources of leads as they scrambled to find new, digital marketing channels in response to a growing demand for their services and solutions.
Offering New Services
In response to fewer leads, many successful digital marketing agencies began offering their existing clients a wider ranger of services. In other words, they prioritized upselling. This allowed them to open new channels for revenue without worrying about struggling outreach and lead generation efforts. The list of new services that agencies found success with is long, but here are a few of the top performers:
- Video Content
- Email Marketing Campaigns
- Blog Content
- Web Design
- Webinars
- Online Product Launches
Changing Their Messaging
One final tactic that adaptable digital marketing agencies used to thrive during the pandemic was altering their messaging with clients and potential clients. They’ve begun to take on the role of advisor, making proactive recommendations about how clients should determine and spend their marketing budgets. This tactic is a direct response to the reaction of many companies at the onset of the pandemic to cut marketing budgets.
According to Forbes, digital marketing has been a lifeline for businesses during the pandemic. When digital marketing agencies change their messaging to emphasize the value of a client increasing their marketing budget, they’re creating a win-win scenario that generates stability for both parties.
Many digital marketing agencies have been hit hard by COVID-19. Many digital marketing agencies have thrived. As the owner of an agency hoping to navigate this difficult period, it’s important to look to the latter group for inspiration. Adaptability and a willingness to learn will see you through.
