Orange SEO works with clients in all major cities. We have clients from Chicago, New York, LA, San Francisco, and now Miami. We have had such a surge of clients in Miami it made me wonder why we are getting more clients from Miami compared to other cities. After working down in Miami and doing some research I found that there are multiple reasons. Some of them might surprise you.
1. Not Enough Digital Marketing Experts or Qualified Agencies in Miami
When I first start working with a client, I ask why the choose us over their competition. Most clients will say it because they like our personal touch, expertise, or prices. However, all my clients in Miami say they can’t find a marketing agency that knows what they are doing, or they trust. When I ask them to elaborate, they explain that they have worked with other marketing agencies in the area and they promise everything from ranking #1 for any keyword to bringing thousands of quality website users to their website each month. After a month or 2 of their service, they realize they are paying thousands of dollars and nothing has changed. Their traffic has not increased, and their rankings have not increased either. After they switch to another company, they promise them the same things except they are more expensive, and they receive the same results.
I hear this issue from clients, and it is a two-way road. Yes, the agency is in the wrong because they promised things that are out of their control or they can’t deliver but it is also the client’s fault because when I ask them what that agency did for them, they don’t know. They just say “they did some digital marketing services” or “they did SEO to my website.” When I ask them to get more specific, they can’t.
Therefore, when we first start to work with a client, they know exactly what digital marketing or website packages/services we are doing for them and what services in those packages are, so they fully understand what they are getting. If the client still does not understand it is the agency’s job to clarify more until the client understands. It is also important to set realistic timelines of when they will start to see results. This is important with SEO because depending on the difficulty of a keyword or industry and the budget of a client it could take 6 months to a year to rank for the keyword you want.
2. Miami’s Population is Growing at a High Rate
Miami, unlike cities like Chicago and New York, is growing in population. World Population Review states Miami-Dade county population is estimated at 2,744,878 with a growth rate of .82% in 2017. Because of the growth of the population in such a short period of time businesses are having a hard time finding qualified and skilled employees. Now you might think if the population is growing so is the skilled labor but this is not happening in Miami and it is becoming a major issue. Actually, It is the number one issue with business owners in Miami for 2019. According to the Greater Miami Chamber of Commerce and CPA firm MBAF's 2018 Executive Survey, 47 percent of members listed "finding qualified professional employees" as their top concern in the coming year.
Now as an employee this is great because when there is a high demand for a job and a low supply of skilled people you can make a larger salary. It is simple economics. For a small business, this is not ideal because you can only spend so much money for a qualified employee. So, what happens is the larger companies will take the low amount of quality employees because they can afford to pay them more.
However, depending on which side you fall on this can be a good thing or a bad thing. For digital marketing experts, this is a great dilemma to have because not only can you find a job quickly, but you can get paid above the average salary for that position.
3. Not Enough Universities With Robust Digital Marketing Programs
When businesses look for quality and talented people, one of the first resources for them is colleges. Companies like Tesla and Microsoft have scouts in top colleges to get the best talent to work for them. Don’t get me wrong, Miami does have a few great colleges like University of Miami, Florida International University, and Nova Southeastern University. However, when it comes to programs revolving around tech and digital marketing, they are thin in those areas. This might be because there is less interest from their students for those programs and that is why those programs are not as robust. Either way, this is one of the reasons why businesses are having a difficult time hiring people in the digital marketing space. You need a steady flow of young and eager students into those areas to keep up with the growing demands in those cities.
Conclusion
Even though digital marketing and tech people are hard to find in Miami right now it will not stay that way. The more people hear and see that there is a demand for those jobs in Miami the more people will come down here. All that needs to happen is making people in different states more aware of how much businesses are willing to pay for quality skilled labor in digital marketing and they will come down like the gold rush in 1848. Digital marketing is only growing because more and more people are searching online for their goods and services. This will only increase in the future and that is why we need more people going to school and gaining experience in these areas. Orange SEO is doing its part by helping small businesses gain exposure online and we also hire college students to inter with us.
A lot of people think that Miami businesses all revolve around tourism and entertainment but what they don’t know is that all those tourist attractions and events need digital marketing to gain interest and technology for them to run. All most every industry relies on some type of marketing and tech for them to become streamline and successful.