These are the questions Richmond owners most often ask before they hire a marketer, answered as plainly as we can. If yours isn't here, call, text or email and ask it directly.
Frequently asked questions
What does RichmondAgency.ca actually do?
We plan and run marketing for Richmond trades, home-service firms and local businesses: language planning, multilingual Google Ads, translated websites and local search. We also advise owners on where to grow. We are not a contractor and don't perform any installs, repairs or on-site service.
How much does it cost?
Month-to-month plans begin at $1,999, falling to $1,499 a month with annual billing, and BC clients add 5% GST. Ad spend goes directly to Google, and translator fees are quoted separately, so you see the full cost of each language.
Do I have to sign a long contract?
No. Plans are month to month with 30 days' notice. Annual billing is optional and simply lowers the price.
Who writes the Chinese, Tagalog or Punjabi copy?
Qualified professional translators, with a second fluent reader checking the result. We write the English brief and handle placement. We don't claim in-house fluency in those languages.
How do I find a qualified translator?
In BC, the Society of Translators and Interpreters of British Columbia (STIBC) runs a certification process and a public directory. You can also use a translator you already trust; we will brief them the same way.
Should I advertise in Cantonese or Mandarin, Traditional or Simplified?
It depends on who your customers are, and the answer can differ by service. A language plan sorts this out from your records and search data, and your translator confirms the script choice.
We tried an agency before and it didn't work. Why would this be different?
We can't promise it will be. What we can do is put the plan, the cost ceiling per enquiry and the measures in writing, report monthly per language and service, and let you leave on 30 days' notice if the work doesn't earn its keep.
Who owns the website and ad accounts?
You do. Accounts and profiles are set up in your business's name with us given access. If you leave, you keep the website, the data and the account history.
How long before we see results?
Ads can bring enquiries within the first month after launch. Local search and translated pages build over several months. We set a 90-day checkpoint for each language and service.
What will the monthly report show?
Spend, enquiries, cost per enquiry and booked customers, broken down by language and service, with a short note on what we will change next month and why.
Will you promise rankings or a number of leads?
No. Google says no one can pay for a better local ranking, and lead volumes depend on factors outside any agency's control. Be cautious of anyone who promises otherwise.
Do you only work with Richmond businesses?
This site focuses on Richmond, but we also cover nearby Vancouver, Burnaby, New Westminster and Delta when your customers are there. The wider group works with clients across Canada.
Cost and commitment
Most owners want two things settled first: what it will cost and how easily they can leave. The entry plan is $1,999 a month (or $1,499 a month if billed yearly) plus 5% GST, and any plan can be ended with 30 days' notice. The pricing page adds a worked example of what a second language costs once translation and extra ad spend are included.
The honest summary is that a second language is a business decision, not a marketing reflex. If the numbers don't support it yet, we will say so.
Languages and translation
Richmond's language mix is the reason this site exists, and it raises the most questions. The short version:
- Census figures tell you which languages are common in Richmond; your customer records tell you which matter to your business.
- "Chinese" is not one decision. Spoken language, written script and preferred platforms all vary.
- Customer-facing copy in a second language should come from a qualified translator, then be checked by a second fluent reader.
Our guides cover each point in depth: reading Richmond's census language data, choosing Traditional or Simplified Chinese and a translation review workflow.
Ownership, access and reporting
Everything we set up belongs to you. That includes the website, the Google Ads account, the Business Profile, tracking numbers where they are in your name, and all the data they produce. We work through access you grant, which you can remove at any time.
Reports arrive monthly and are written for owners rather than marketers. Each one shows what was spent, what came in, what it cost per enquiry in each language, and what we plan to change. If a number is bad, the report says so on the first page.
Timelines and what to expect in the first 90 days
Expect a slow-looking first month and a clearer picture by the end of the third. The first weeks go on fixing what already exists: your Google Business Profile, tracking, the English pages and any ads already running. Translation, if the plan calls for it, starts once the English source copy is clean.
A typical first quarter looks like this:
- Weeks 1–2: audit, tracking set-up and a written plan with costs per language.
- Weeks 3–6: profile repairs, English page fixes, translator briefs and the first ads.
- Weeks 7–12: translated pages and ads go live, budgets are adjusted weekly, and enquiries are labelled by language.
- Day 90: each language and service is kept, cut or changed, in writing.
If someone tells you a translated campaign will be "fully optimised" in two weeks, ask them how they will know which language the enquiries came in.
Who we are not a fit for
We are a poor match for some businesses, and it saves everyone time to say so. If you need someone to do the physical work, we can't help, because we are a marketing and advisory service and not a contractor. If you want a translation agency to translate documents, contracts or menus, a professional translator is the right call. And if your average sale is very small and nobody can answer enquiries in a second language, the honest advice is usually to strengthen English local search first.
If an agency has let you down before
Many Richmond owners come to us after a poor experience: an English-only campaign that never reached their real customers, a machine-translated site that embarrassed them, or reports full of impressions and no enquiries. We don't ask you to trust us on promises. We ask you to judge us on the written plan, the cost ceiling and the monthly report, and we make leaving simple.
Our about page explains who we are and how we work, and the services hub shows where most businesses should start.