There are a lot of inbound partner agencies out there. While there are still far fewer inbound agencies than traditional ones, inbound agencies are multiplying every day. So how do you know which one is right for you? After all, it is a big decision. Here's a simple check list to help you pick the right one.

Sales has changed, as we know, thanks to the internet. Here in Dallas, Texas I'd say the attitude towards that tends to be middle of the road, just like our spot in the country. Many people prefer to keep some things what's now deemed a little more "old fashioned" by many, but many are also starting to be open to newer ways of doing things, like marketing automation and creating email templates for sales representatives. At DMD, I'd say we're believers in a mix in the old and the new as well. We believe in finding new and better ways to do things, as long as they don't hurt the number one most important thing: relationships. 

People always ask if we develop websites. We do, but for us, developing a beautiful website is more of a means to an end than the ultimate end goal. You have to have a website that makes sense for your business, looks great, and works before we can start driving traffic to it that eventually turns into sales. There are many tools out there that have made building a great looking website fast, cheap, and fairly easy. Mopro is a great resource for small business owners looking to modernize their look quickly, and they even have some added support. Plus, it only costs $199/mo. They can add stock images that move around the homepage or video for an added flare. Otherwise, yes, we can build you a custom website if it’s a good fit or refer you to a company that specializes in what you're after, depending on your needs.

Intriguing offers that are relevant to your personas' interests and pain points are a crucial second step in the inbound methodology: convert. On average, Hubspot customers following best practices convert 2% of website visitors into leads and 6% of those leads into customers. So for every 1,000 visits, you should be converting one new customer. Again, that's an average, so it can vary by industry and company, but overall I'd say it holds true. That being said, if your offers aren't performing well and your website is converting less than the average 2% of website visitors, you're probably not getting very many leads per month, even if your traffic is pretty solid. By adding a few more enticing offers to your website, you can solve that problem. Here are some ideas:

The original angle I had for this blog was about my 10 favorite barbecue recipes because well, it's summer in Texas and grilling outside is one of the best parts about it. Anything grilled or smoked with barbeque sauce is always amazing. Plus, I got a new cookbook a few months ago in the Texas Hill Country on a wine tour, and every recipe I've made from it has been better than the last. I also wanted to write about it because I'm a big believer in digital marketing being human and real, and not just for robots that don't have feelings or do things without computers. :) Believe it or not, all of us geeky marketers do actually still do many "normal" activities that don't involve computers like eating, cooking, and entertaining. Good food is something everyone can appreciate (although some of us do probably Google more recipes than others...or use apps like AllRecipes' dinner spinner to find ideas).

Search. This is something that has not only seemed like a vague, mysterious world for anyone outside of marketing but also to many marketers for many years. I know many who have, dare I say, pretty much abandoned search engine optimization (SEO) strategies because they don't really trust what anyone is saying out there about what really works. They believe they're just going to end up going into a rabbit hole and never getting that time back in their life.

They say the only constant in life is change. This couldn't feel more accurate than at this point in my life and is probably truthful for most people reading this post. I remember recently telling someone I'm so used to change that it actually doesn't even phase me anymore. When I log into different systems and it all looks different from the day before, it's more expected than a surprise. I just simply have to quickly figure the changes out and move on.