While a content marketing business focuses on content creation, the type and purpose of that material might vary from client to client. Some businesses want to expand their customers largely via conventional advertising, but others want content that connects with their sales funnel and helps the lead generation process. Other customers may seek assistance in constructing their own brand and establishing a social media presence via which their target audience may interact with that brand.
Follow these ten steps to launch a content marketing agency:
Make a plan for your Content Marketing Agency.
Create a legal entity for your content marketing agency.
Taxes must be registered for your Content Marketing Agency.
Create a Business Bank Account and a Credit Card
Create an accounting system for your Content Marketing Agency.
Obtain the Required Permits and Licenses for Your Content Marketing Agency
Purchase Content Marketing Agency Insurance.
Create a brand for your Content Marketing Agency.
Create a website for your Content Marketing Agency.
Configure your Business Phone System
Starting a company entails more than just registering it with the state. This straightforward guide to launching your content marketing firm has been put together by us. These stages will guarantee that your new company is well-planned, correctly registered, and legally compliant.
STEP 1: Make a business plan.
A well-thought-out strategy is vital for entrepreneur success. It will assist you in mapping out the intricacies of your organisation and uncovering some unknowns. Consider the following crucial topics:
What are the initial and continuing expenses?
Who is your intended audience?
How much money may you charge your customers?
Fortunately, we have done a lot of the legwork for you.
What are the expenses of starting a content marketing agency?
If you are ready and able to wear many various hats in your firm, the price of starting a content marketing agency might be reasonably low. For example, if you can create material, film video, and publish and maintain social media accounts, you may serve as a one-stop shop for customers and eventually work from home. If you opt to lease an office space, you may spend between $1000 and $6000 per month, depending on the size and location of the company. It may cost between $10,000 and $20,000 to acquire furniture, arrange your office space, and purchase any equipment (such as computers, phones, modern projection equipment, and at least one professional video camera). It may be worthwhile to spend $1000 to $2000 on traditional advertising for your company (for example, newspaper and radio adverts), but you should also take the time to develop a web page with content samples and a social media presence. In the end, the latter two will attract more customers than conventional advertising.
What are the recurring costs of a content marketing firm?
Your recurring costs will differ depending on whether you work from home or from a separate office location. If you work from home, your utilities and office space are already included in your monthly costs. If this is the case, your monthly expenditures for items like site hosting, software procurement, and conventional advertising should be less than $500. If you rent an office space, you will spend between $1000-$6000 per month (depending on the size and location of the business) and less than $1000 per month for utilities, phone, and internet. You will also be responsible for paying the salary of your team members.
Who is the intended audience?
Working with a diverse range of customers, from individuals with little projects to large organisations, is an important aspect of running a content marketing firm. The fundamental attribute of your finest customers is that they communicate with you in an open, frequent, and honest manner. As a content provider, you must give what the customer wants, thus clients that are receptive to feedback and criticism will make things simpler for you.
What is the revenue model of a content marketing agency?
A content marketing firm earns money by assisting a client in the facilitation and delivery of content. This is often some form of predetermined price for various tasks, albeit the nature of the payment will vary depending on the nature of the job. For example, for bigger projects, you may just get paid by the project. You may get paid a specific sum each month in exchange for producing a particular quantity of material. You might also get compensated as a consultant for things like corporate blogs, websites, and social media presence.
How much money may you charge your customers?
Because you have a wide range of possible services to offer customers, the fees you may charge them will vary substantially. For example, you may charge $100 per hour or more to handle a client’s social media profiles. Similarly, you may charge $75 to $200 to assist a customer improve existing material. Your bread and butter, on the other hand, will be specific content initiatives at the client’s request, and it will be up to you to choose what is fair. For example, such projects normally cost $500-$3,000, but it may be lot quicker (and hence less costly to the customer) for you to write a fast article or develop a tiny infographic than it is for you to build full interactive content, research and write our case studies, and so on.
How much money can a content marketing firm make?
Once your agency is founded, your objective should be to have a profit margin of 20% or greater. With this in mind, there is no upper limit to your earning potential as long as you are prepared to extend your company with new consumers as required. Profit is also determined by the quantity of customers you have and the kind of your contract. Clients pay a monthly retainer charge to the bulk of content marketing services, which ranges between $1000 and $5000 per client. This may be a six-figure career depending on how many customers you can properly take on.
How can you increase the profitability of your company?
Competitive pricing is one approach to increase the profitability of your company. You want to strike a balance between not pushing customers to your competitors and undervaluing your skills and effort. You may also concentrate on what customers want more of: for example, new articles are still the most often requested item by clients, so by delivering more of them (and employing additional writers as required), you can increase your profit. Some platforms, like Hubspot, provide affiliate or partner programmes for new businesses. This enables the partner or affiliate to generate more retainer fees by providing more services. Finally, utilise client priorities to guide your own. Clients want you to increase the amount of leads you create; concentrating on doing this better than anyone else assures repeat business and ongoing profit.
STEP 2: Establish a legal entity
Sole proprietorship, partnership, limited liability company (LLC), and corporation are the most frequent business structure forms.
Creating a formal corporate organisation, such as an LLC or corporation, shields you from personal liability if your content marketing service is sued.
STEP 3: File your taxes
Before you can begin for business, you must register for a number of state and federal taxes.
To register for taxes, you will need to get an EIN. It’s really simple and completely free!
Taxes on Small Businesses
Depending on the business form you choose, you may have multiple choices for how your company is taxed. Some LLCs, for example, may benefit from being taxed as a S company (S corp).
These guides will teach you more about small company taxes:
Taxes on LLCs
LLC vs. sole proprietorship
Corporation vs. LLC
S Corp vs. LLC
How to Form a S Corporation
S Corporation vs. C Corporation
There may be state taxes that apply to your company. In our state sales tax guides, you may learn more about state sales taxes and franchise taxes.
STEP 4: Establish a company bank account and credit card
Personal asset protection requires the use of distinct business banking and credit accounts.
When you combine your personal and business accounts, your personal assets (your house, vehicle, and other possessions) are at danger if your company is sued. This is known as penetrating your company veil in business law.
Furthermore, understanding how to develop corporate credit may help you get credit cards and other financing in your company’s name (rather than your own), lower interest rates, larger lines of credit, and other benefits.
Establish a business bank account.
Opening a business bank account is not only required when asking for business financing, but it also:
Separates your personal assets from the assets of your firm, which is required for personal asset protection.
It simplifies bookkeeping and tax reporting.
Create a net 30 account.
Net 30 accounts are used to develop and grow company credit while also increasing cash flow. Businesses use a net 30 account to purchase items and refund the whole debt within a 30-day period.
Many net 30 credit suppliers submit information to the main business credit agencies (Dun & Bradstreet, Experian Business, and Equifax Business Credit). This is how firms establish business credit in order to get approved for credit cards and other lines of credit.
Apply for a business credit card.
Obtaining a business credit card benefits you in the following ways:
Put all of your company’s costs in one location to separate personal and business spending.
Build your company’s credit history, which will be important for raising funds in the future.
STEP 5: Establish business accounting
Recording your numerous costs and sources of revenue is crucial to assessing your company’s financial status. Keeping precise and thorough accounting also makes yearly tax filing much easier.
STEP 6: Obtain all required permissions and licences
Failure to get appropriate permissions and licences may result in significant penalties or possibly the closure of your firm.
Requirements for State and Local Business Licensing
To run a content marketing firm, several state permissions and licences may be required. Visit the SBA’s reference to state licences and permits to learn more about licencing requirements in your state.
Most states, in particular, require retail companies to get a seller’s permit. A seller’s permit allows states to record and collect taxes on sales of products (and occasionally services).
Furthermore, local licencing or regulatory restrictions may apply. For additional information on local licences and permissions, please visit:
For information on local permits and licences, contact the clerk’s office in your town, city, or county.
Contact one of the local organisations mentioned in the US Small Business Associations database of local business resources for help.
Contract for Services
Before beginning a new project, content marketing businesses should ask customers to sign a services agreement. By defining payment terms and conditions, service level expectations, and intellectual property ownership, this agreement should clarify client expectations and reduce the likelihood of legal problems. One such service agreement is provided as an example on the website Content Fresh.
Recommended: When you join up for Rocket Lawyer’s premium membership, you can easily write a professional service agreement for your content marketing firm. Members have access to hundreds of legal agreements and on-call lawyers for free legal assistance for $39.95 each month.
STEP 7: Obtain commercial insurance.
Insurance, like licences and permits, is required for your company to operate safely and legally. In the case of a covered loss, business insurance protects your company’s financial well-being.
There are several sorts of insurance plans designed for various types of companies with varying risks. If you are unaware about the hazards that your company may encounter, start with General Liability Insurance. This is the most popular coverage required by small companies, so it’s a good place to start for yours.
Workers’ Compensation Insurance is another important insurance product that many companies need. If your company will have workers, your state may require you to purchase Workers’ Compensation insurance.
STEP 8: Establish your brand
Your company’s brand is what it stands for, as well as how the public perceives it. A strong brand will help your company stand out from the crowd.
How to Market and Promote a Content Marketing Agency
As previously said, conventional marketing methods such as newspaper and radio are beneficial, especially if you want to gain the business of elderly executives and businesses in your region. However, since content marketing is now more of a worldwide company than ever before, your primary means of promotion should be a professional-looking website, an online portfolio, and a social media presence where you can connect past, current, and potential consumers. Given that your function with customers may entail maintaining their own social media and assisting with content distribution, doing an excellent job with your own social media might serve to comfort them.
How to Keep Customers Returning
Finding your speciality or niche and focusing on it is a good strategy to acquire customers. Some marketing organisations are naturally stronger at developing content for specific platforms, and your personal experience and abilities may lay in creating a specific sort of content. Concentrating on that helps you position yourself as an expert for individuals who want your services. Another smart idea is to make some valuable information available via your website and social media platforms. For example, you might provide your own newsletter or white papers in return for individuals joining up for your mailing list. This establishes your authority, has a good communal influence, and aids in the formation of a network of connections for you.
STEP 9: Create your company’s website.
After you’ve defined your brand and designed your logo, the next step is to build a website for your company.
While developing a website is an important step, some may be concerned that it is out of their grasp due to a lack of website-building skills. While this was a fair concern in 2015, online technology has made significant advances in recent years, making the lives of small company owners considerably easier.
The following are the primary reasons why you should not put off developing your website:
Every genuine company has a website, period. When it comes to bringing your company online, it doesn’t matter what size or sector it is.
Social media accounts, such as Facebook pages or LinkedIn company profiles, are not a substitute for your own business website.
STEP 10: Install your company phone system.
Getting a phone for your company is one of the finest methods to keep your personal and professional lives distinct and private. That isn’t the only advantage; it also helps you automate your company, provides it legitimacy, and makes it simpler for prospective clients to identify and contact you.