I was lucky enough to be in Rome a few years ago with my family after selling a house here in Adelaide. We’d pre-booked accommodation in the city – but didn’t know anyone, or how to get around.
As I’d done in other places on this trip, I went to a tourist centre and booked a local guide – because when you’re unfamiliar with a large city it can be very daunting.
There’s always lots to see and do, but how do you make the right decisions when you’re not familiar with the place – including and especially after reading all the tourist info ?
It was short notice, but Gino, a nice mature aged man, arrived at our hotel later that day to show us around Rome. But there was a potential problem….. he was almost blind !
There was nothing wrong with him being visually impaired, it was just a surprise, as I didn’t know how he was going to be capable of guiding us anywhere.
Of course as it turned out, he was a fantastic guide. Anyone can recite information about a given place, building, etc, and lead you about – but this man had passion, an in-depth knowledge, and genuine care factor.
He enabled us to have a very successful and enjoyable time in Rome, and we were very grateful.
With online marketing, it can also be overwhelming – websites, SEO, blogs, e-commerce, social media, Pay per Click advertising, etc. So how are you expected to know what to do, how to decipher all the information available on these subjects – and decide what’s relevant to your business objectives ?
What’s ideal is ‘cut through’ – finding a practitioner with business and online marketing experience, to review your requirements, and provide advice on the simplest, most appropriate plan and processes – to achieve the desired results.
So just as you do when looking for someone with relevant accounting or legal advice – it’s a matter of asking associates for a referral, finding candidates by searching online, or selecting from those who’ve promoted themselves via advertising or relationship marketing.
Make contact and ideally catch up personally for a chat about your needs. This normally filters out all the interstate and overseas service providers, most of whom are unlikely to provide the personal attention for such important work.
Some outsourcing to local or overseas freelancers can be utilised for specific internet marketing tasks, but just like dealing with your accountant or solicitor – you’ll normally receive better service by having some personal contact as needed.
Ask the online marketing consultant to respond with clear suggestions, without obligation – and you’ll be able to decide if you’ve found a relevant ‘guide’ for you.
