Fake Marketing Companies US
American enterprises operate at a scale and speed like no other amidst the daunting challenges of the digital marketplace which is transforming legacy business models. Yet one of the greatest challenges faced by American companies is a lack of transparency and integrity from marketing companies in the country. As a result, local enterprises have lost considerable resources and time being misled by marketing agencies that may seem legitimate at first glance. Marketing is a crucial way to reach and engage your target customers. Though there are challenges with finding the right provider, the right marketing agency, however, can be a strategic partner in future and predictable growth. Consult with the team at Profitworks today. Utilize the lessons learned below to avoid marketing scams faced by American businesses.
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Executive Summary
- Beware of unsolicited marketing proposals as they are often bulk sent and are relying on misinformed business owners to purchase
- Industry experience is sometimes a bad quality to have when working with a marketing agency to create competitive advantage
- Influencer marketing is growing in investment but the industry is struggling with credibility as fake followers and accounts grow
- Proprietary software, if it's being sold, probably doesn't work because the originators should be using it to generate revenue for themselves
Unsolicited marketing offers by agencies or individuals
If your inbox is anything like ours you will often receive emails from anonymous or unfamiliar sources. These emails will range from promises of thousands of followers or ensuring the lowest price possible for SEO services. Here is an example of one such email:
These emails are typically mass produced and sent to thousands and thousands of recipients in the hope that one will respond. But there are some pretty glaring dilemmas that become clear upon examination.
The dilemma here is that marketing agencies who do great work are also choosy about who they work with. This is exemplified by interview questionnaires on organizational fit and shared tenants of marketing being a key driver of growth. Be cautious when marketing agencies aren't asking you or your team tough questions. These can often signal transactional marketing services that may provide accessory results like increased traffic but may not actually improve sales to your business.
Lessons Learned: Do not utilize unsolicited and easy to sign-up marketing services as there is a high risk of losing money and time to these services.
Marketers offer misleading qualifications to woo clients
The key difference between a traditional service provider and a marketing provider is the ironic inverse relationship between experience and quality. For most, having experience is an advantage as they have established processes and rigor to service clients in your industry. Unfortunately, many corporations have gone with experienced providers due to this perspective. The main reason a company should consult a marketing company is the fact that they are looking to do something different and effective compared to other market players.
This creates an inverse relationship between experience and quality of work for marketing agencies. Agencies that are effectively serving customers in your industry are likely to be kept on retainer because they have proven results. Other agencies are transactional and do a simple tune-up project with little accountability and measurable outcome. They are often looking for new clients in industries they have experience in. As a result, marketing agencies who have experience in your industry and are currently in the market for a new client may provide less value than an agency that has a proven track record in multiple other industries.
One agency recently approached a long-time client of ours to contract on content marketing work. As part of their pitch deck, they provided experience in multiple clients in pest control industries, sometimes in overlapping geographies. This was a concern and we advised our client of the potential challenges.
Lessons Learned: Be wary of marketing agencies with experience in your industry and inquire closely about the outcomes provided. Finally, when a company doesn't list their name in a pitch deck, that is a red flag.
Influencer marketing agency creates fake accounts
Influencer marketing was reported by MediaKix to top $1B in spending with brands and corporations pouring cash into getting respected and sought-after people to represent their products and services. One agency created a number of fake influencer accounts to see how quickly they could get followers and net influencer marketing deals from companies. Within a few weeks, brands offered these fake influencer Instagram accounts $500 worth of money and free merchandise.
Lessons Learned: Buying impressions and followers makes it difficult for your social media investments to pay off because it artificially inflates your social media value. Instead, seek to create content marketing that truly captivates and engages your target audience.
Agency luring companies with ineffective proprietary software
As part of our time in the industry, we've seen different types of approaches to enticing and drawing in prospects. Another common approach is the patented or proprietary software that provides that little magic sauce that makes marketing and sales leap in growth. One of the main challenges is that very few people have a proprietary software that works, in that aside from getting impressions or visitors, these applications often fall short in helping to generate hard sales.
Another ironic part of this equation is that if a proprietary software were to exist and perform as intended to generate sales, then the business should be using that software to generate their own revenues, not reaching out to unfamiliar prospects.
Lessons Learned: If proprietary software works to generate revenue, you wouldn't be getting an offer to purchase it.
Not sure if you are being duped?
Here are some great resources to determine whether the company you are being contacted by is legitimate or otherwise:
- www.ripoffreport.com - a single source of rip-offs and scams.
- Better Business Bureau is another great website to check on the company that is soliciting or offering you something that sounds too good to be true
- Trusted Marketing Advisor - work with an established marketing advisor to help you debunk a marketing hoax or scam.
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We've helped companies across Canada and the US succeed with marketing because we believe in the beauty and meaning of every article written, email sent, and social media post made. Our team endeavours to create unique and competitive marketing advantages for all of our customers and would be thrilled to learn more about your mission and plans for your team. Profitworks provides marketing strategy, content marketing, branding, and social media management for great companies with a stellar product or service.
