How to Start a Marketing Business in 4 Simple Steps [2023 Update]

Do you love being on social media, meeting new people, and building relationships with a target market?

Are you wishing that you can start a small business off of it? A digital marketing business may be what you’re looking for!

As a marketing business owner, you can earn huge profits with a little effort. All you need is the right game plan.

Today, we’ll show you how to start a marketing business in a few simple steps.

Just follow our guide and you’ll find that your dream business is within reach!

How Profitable Is Owning a Marketing Business?

As of 2021, the median pay for those who manage marketing and advertising businesses is $133,380 per year.

Yet, you don’t have to manage a huge business to earn a decent amount of cash.

People with a freelance marketing career can expect to make $50 to $200 per hour by themselves.

Freelance marketers are in demand because they help businesses expand their reach. They can do this through a marketing campaign.

As a marketer, a small business will approach you to increase its social media following.

Some marketers can gain commission per client they get.

This contributes to the large profit you can get from a potential client.

What You’ll Need to Start a Marketing Business [& Associated Costs]

There’s quite a bit of cost associated with starting a marketing business.

Here are the main things you’ll spend on.

Note that you can choose to work from home to save up on some costs.

• Equipment: Digital marketing is the way to go nowadays. To be in the industry, you’ll need a strong computer that can run marketing software! The average price of a PC in the US is $733. You should consider getting a higher quality one, if possible.
• Softwares: SEO tools, sales funnels, Google Analytics, Photoshop, and video editors are examples of what you’ll need to make a marketing plan. All these can cost you more than $2,000 per month.
• Licenses and Taxes: Income tax, sales tax, corporate tax, and business licenses all vary depending on your state. In general, these will cost you about $5,000 per year as a small business owner.
• Employees: If you’re not good at artwork and creatives, you might want to hire an employee who can do these for you. Expect to pay them a decent salary of at least $50,000 per month.
• Office Space: In case you don’t want to work from home, you can rent an office space nearby. The price depends on your state. Office space could cost $16,000 per employee per year in New York, for example.

Do I Need a License or Certificates to Start a Marketing Business?

Yes! You’ll need a license if you work in a specific industry.

If you’ll post ads on TV or the radio, you should get a permit from the Federal Communications Commission. There’s a license to advertise that you have to look at.

It’s also necessary to get a business license if you’ll get office space and hire employees.

You may register with your state’s office.

You might not need a license as a freelancer handling the social media of a client.

Why You Should Consider Starting a Marketing Business as a Side Hustle

Owning a marketing business is one of the most lucrative jobs you could have today.

Here’s why you should consider starting this small business.

• Enjoy a Work-From-Home Setup: Remote marketing jobs are becoming popular because of their convenience. You can earn a decent salary without experiencing the toils of a commute.
• Build Connections: As an owner, you can only find a client for your digital marketing agency if you talk to people. You get to expand your network, build a target market, and meet fresh faces.
• Get Paid to Go on Social Media: If you love being on social media, then you’ll enjoy doing content marketing. You get to earn a living through your passion.
• Earn a Passive Income: You can automate your work using some software. It’s easy to post Google ads and Facebook ads with these and earn a passive income.

How to Start a Marketing Business in 4 Simple Steps

What business plan should you follow to start a digital marketing agency? Here are the steps to take to achieve success.

Step 1: Decide on a Type of Marketing

The first thing you need to do is decide on what type of digital marketing you’ll focus on.

For example, you could do SEO, email marketing, content marketing, site design, or social media management.

Others can even specialize in ad management of social media platforms or do inbound marketing.

Whatever marketing strategy you pick, you’ll be sure to earn a good salary.

That’s why you should pick the one you’re best at!

Step 2: Find Your Niche

After choosing a type of marketing, it’s time to decide on a niche.

Will you do content marketing for vet clinics? Are you going to do social media marketing for transportation businesses?

At first, it may seem like picking a specific target market is a horrible business plan. In reality, you may end up monopolizing the market for your niche.

It’s more likely that a client will choose your digital marketing agency because of your specialty.

Of course, there’s a limit to this type of marketing plan.

You might not have good business if all you do is manage the social media account of dentists in Rhode Island.

In short, don’t choose a niche that’s too specific that you’ll have a small target audience.

Step 3: Talk to People

How will you find a client for your digital marketing agency? You talk to people, of course! For example, you could message your target audience on their social media channel.

If you notice a business that isn’t so active online, you may offer it your service.

The owner might take you up on your offer.

You may also visit conferences in search of your next new client, or use sites like Upwork.

Know who your prospects are and target them.

Step 4: Optimize Your Work

It should be one of your marketing objectives to conduct regular optimization of your work. These will help you lure your target customer in.

Optimizing means measuring the results you generated and refining them for future sales efforts. It involves keeping a record of your marketing activities.

With your data, you could tell a potential customer that you’ll get him a guaranteed number of customers. You can use this market research to increase your prices.

A normal marketing service, like posting for the client on his social media, can get you about $200 a month.

Yet, with data that guarantees he’ll get a certain amount of sales, you may charge 10 times that amount.

Things to Consider When Building a Marketing Business

What are some things that should concern you about building a marketing business? Here are a few.

Can You Run a Marketing Business by Yourself?

According to the Bureau of Labor and Statistics, 16% of people in the digital marketing service industry are self-employed.

The number tells us that it’s possible to start a digital agency on your own.

You may also work alone to search for your prospective clients.

This type of freelance work will continue to rise in the US.

How Can You Attract More Customers?

It’s best if you build a marketing portfolio and design a business card that you can send to your target audience.

These will show them that you’re professional and give them an idea of the work you do.

Having these visual materials will let people take your marketing plan more seriously.

Is it Important to Use a Marketing Tool for Your Business?

Lessen your marketing efforts but increase outputs with the best marketing tools available.

They’ll make your life easier, so you should know which ones will work for you.

For example, if you’re dealing with site design, software like ClickFunnels may be your best bet.

Another is HubSpot, for those focused on email marketing.

INSPIRATION: Marketing Business Ideas

Now that you’ve read everything, you may want to set up a specialized digital marketing agency.

Here are some ideas for you!

• Become a Social Media Agency: This type of digital marketing agency can help raise brand awareness through influencer marketing. You may pair it with email marketing to build your client’s customer base.
• Specialize in Content Marketing: Content marketing means that you’ll help your client write a blog post with an affiliate program. Your client can earn money when readers click on an affiliate link.
• Dabble in Follower Service: Through this type of marketing service, you can offer to increase the number of your client’s followers. Your client will pay you according to how much you’ve grown his fan base.
• Video Editing Service: If you’re good at editing films, you can specialize in video marketing. It means that you’ll focus on making marketing videos and commercials for your client.

Frequently Asked Questions

Similar Businesses to Consider Starting

Unsure if a marketing business is right for you? There are other businesses related to internet marketing.

Here are some articles to use as references.

• How to Start a Consulting Business: Capitalize on a skill that you specialize in with a consultation business.
• How to Start a Social Media Marketing Business: Target the needs of influencers and local businesses with a social media marketing agency
• How to Start a Web Design Business: Do you have a penchant for web design? You can start a business as a web designer!

Wrapping Up

Digital marketing is one of the most in-demand jobs today.

The good news is that you can start doing it as long as you have the knowledge.

We hope that our article inspired you and taught you how to start a marketing business.

Please consider sharing our article, and leave us a comment if you enjoyed it!