Any decent company for social media optimization should have an up-to-date and modern website. If they use good SEO practices, by looking for their key services and geographic area, you must be able to find them easily on Google. Their website should be up-to-date and engaging with all the key aspects of an efficient inbound marketing strategy: an active blog, functional design, spontaneous navigation, active conversion strategy, etc.
Multi-talented professionals and experts:
A great social media optimization agency consists of a multi-talented team of experts. Lookup for their team, are you able to see them online? A brilliant organization is surely proud of the team and brings them to the forefront and center. They should be a multidisciplinary team with distinctive experts in their fields — social media, brand development, etc.
How familiar they are with the tools?
They are set up with tools and the experience to know how to use them. Ask what they are using for project management and what their team is using to measure website performance and SEO (Google Analytics, Moz, Hubspot), inbound marketing (Hubspot, Marketo), social media analytics (Sprout Social, Hubspot), etc. They should also know when they can and should ignore them. Many tools use analytics to judge content or data based on averages, but experienced marketers will know that thinking outside the tools can put you at the cutting edge and yield much higher results.
Check their team performance:
Look at their messages and how they’re talking about themselves— do they speak your language? Are they addressing your needs? Check their portfolio for the customer experience of your size (would they think you’re too small or too big a customer?), and even within your industry (would they be familiar with and experienced in solving your challenges?). When you meet them, is their presentation tailored to your needs – has their homework been done?
The culture of the SMO Company:
For a long time, if everything goes well, your social media optimization agency will work closely with you and your team. So it’s important for yours to jib their culture. This is far more open to interpretation and it is difficult to evaluate, but it is important nonetheless. Do they seem to have fun when you meet them personally? Chances are, if they’re having fun together, they’ll work together well— and work together for you better. It may seem daunting to choose a social media marketing agency, but also can be a fun process. Do your homework, ask, and find the one that proves to be the best for you and your business.
Strong analytical skills:
Social media optimization organizations should be passionate about analytics, use metrics to determine whether campaigns work, and relay that analytical information to the client in a concise manner. Such companies are tied to analytics and it has become increasingly important in the social media marketing world, to be able to document what has happened in a campaign.
Research culture:
One must be addicted to the research process if one is going to perform social media optimization. SMO professionals spend a tremendous amount of time researching industries to create successful social media campaigns. They are well aware of what people are looking for and how to be reachable to them. All campaigns begin and end with good research and this is understood by the best social media optimization companies.