How Total Marketing Grew From a Local Guide Into a Marketing Agency

Total Marketing has grown from the team behind Total Guide to into a wider marketing agency supporting businesses with PR, social media, SEO, content and AI search. Founder Liz Hutchings shares the lessons behind the company's development and changing approach to marketing.

What began as an effort to help local businesses gain visibility through Total Guide to has developed into a wider marketing agency supporting businesses across a range of sectors.

Total Marketing was created after businesses working with Total Guide to began asking for additional support with areas including social media, PR, advertising, SEO and content creation.

Rather than simply referring clients to different suppliers, the growing demand highlighted an opportunity to create a more complete marketing service. Total Marketing was established with the aim of becoming a trusted partner for businesses rather than simply another supplier.

The agency now works with organisations across areas including hospitality, retail, charities, visitor attractions, professional services and B2B businesses. Its approach is based around creating strategies that are tailored to the individual needs and objectives of each organisation.

One of the biggest lessons from the agency's growth has been the speed at which the marketing industry changes. Platforms and techniques that were considered cutting edge several years ago can quickly be replaced by new approaches.

Today, businesses are navigating AI search, ChatGPT recommendations, Generative Engine Optimisation, short-form video, changing Google algorithms and increasingly sophisticated customer journeys.

For marketing agencies, keeping pace with those developments means continually testing new ideas and understanding which approaches deliver genuine results rather than simply following every new trend.

Relationships have remained another important part of the business. Long-term partnerships allow marketers to understand a client's customers, challenges and ambitions, helping strategies evolve as the business itself changes.

Growing an agency also comes with challenges that are not always visible from the outside. Running a business involves difficult decisions, financial pressures and periods of uncertainty alongside the milestones and successes.

For Total Marketing, the focus remains on helping businesses become more visible while adapting to changes in the way customers discover and interact with brands.

As marketing continues to evolve, technology will undoubtedly create new opportunities. However, the importance of trust, relationships, useful content and understanding customers is unlikely to disappear. 

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