Can you and your in-house marketing team manage your growing company’s marketing needs, or are you struggling to keep your heads above water? All companies, whether small businesses or large corporations, need the right marketing approach to grow their brand, reach potential customers and increase revenue. While not all companies need to partner with a third party to assist with their marketing plan, outsourcing marketing experts can help companies with nominal marketing experience to take their brand to the next level with strategic marketing campaigns. With the number of marketing resources and channels, such as social media, email marketing, content marketing, and the more traditional marketing approaches, it’s easy for even the most experienced internal marketing team to become overwhelmed.
Whether you outsource or hire an in-house team, keep in mind that this decision will impact your business in the future. The size of your company should not be a determining factor in your decision-making process. Instead, knowing what is right for your business and your financial situation should be at the forefront of your analysis. By understanding the subtle nuances between marketing agencies and outsourced marketing, you can make an informed decision that aligns with the goals you have set for your business. Let’s dive deeper and explore the differences between these two resources.
Outsourced marketing
Pros
- Outsourced marketing connects you with professionals who specialize in staying on top of new technologies, trends, and the latest marketing strategies. They are leaders in their field, offering you access to a team that specializes in paid advertising, social media, email, SEO, web design, copywriting, and much more.
- Outsourcing is straightforward. It saves you time, allows you to concentrate on other business responsibilities, and keeps you focused on what you do best.
- An ally who will help find your target audience and the best ways to engage with them actively.
- You have more control over who manages your companies marketing services and how they work on them.
- Practical marketing approach with an outside perspective on your business and bringing fresh ideas to the table.
- A partner who is not just data-driven but also invested in your results with a more human approach.
Cons
- It can be expensive to outsource marketing services, but it may be similar to hiring a full-time in-house marketing manager or team. Think of this as an investment into your business rather than just another expense.
- Initially may need to be more familiar with your brand or brand goals.
- It takes time to share your vision and develop a relationship based on trust and mutual respect.
Agency Marketing
Pros
- Expertise – Marketing agencies are comprised of a group of individuals who operate under one brand but work independently of one another. Each “agent” may have a focused area of expertise, with the agency offering a broad range of services.
- Software and Tools – As with outsourced marketing, agencies have the benefit of having all of the latest tools and marketing resources at their disposal, alleviating the need for business owners to invest in added office space, devices, and programs.
- Diverse Specialties – A marketing agency is a viable option for small businesses to help implement consolidated marketing strategies using a combination of social media marketing, SEO, advertising, and PR to see that all business goals are met.
Cons
- Multiple Clients – You may feel like you are not a top priority.
- Location, location, location – You’ve decided to outsource to an outside agency only to find that they are located in a different time zone, making communication and schedule alignment challenging.
- You can do it yourself. If you’re creative, have the time, and love content creation, you may choose to keep your marketing efforts in your own hands or the hands of your internal team.
Agency vs. Outsourced marketing: Which is better?
Outsourcing Content Marketing
When your outsourced marketing team develops your company’s content marketing campaign, the primary goal is to position you and your business or service as a leader within your industry by creating, publishing, and distributing informative content to your targeted customer base. This is typically achieved by social media posts, blogs, and videos to be shared online. By doing this, they effectively increase the number of experiences that potential customers have with your particular product or service. When done well, this should increase the awareness of your brand, your client base will remain informed, and you will expand your reach to a broader audience.
Outsourcing Marketing Strategy
Developing and maintaining a successful and long-lasting marketing strategy takes time and financial resources. As the marketplace becomes increasingly more competitive and the public tires of traditional digital advertising, it’s become more advantageous for smaller companies to enlist talented freelancers to partner with them. Before you consider hiring any marketing professional, it’s critical to be clear on your goals to express them effectively. This will ensure that you find the right partner who shares your vision and meets your needs and expectations.
Outsourcing Marketing Analytics
A few months after the launch of your marketing campaign, you will want to shift focus and research how well the masses have received your new marketing strategy. The numbers won’t lie. Analyzing the data will help you measure your success and determine what’s working and not. Many companies find that they need more resources to accurately interpret the information that could be spun into marketing gold, as well as if they were to outsource to a specialist. Working with an external agency can help weed through the data and organize it into a concise plan that can meet your needs and budget.
Outsourcing Email Marketing
Email has become a daily part of life for many people and has been a consistent means of communication worldwide for many years. So, with that said, it should come as no surprise that email marketing is proven to have the highest return on investment. To begin an email marketing campaign, you must gather a list of followers. Your outsourced marketing partner can do this through client data, website forms, and social media posts. Once you have a list, you can quickly share newsletters, promotions, coupons, and business information.
Outsourcing Social Media Strategy
Social media marketing is a great way to increase the awareness of your brand and an easy way to collect leads and build your email list. Hiring a full-time social media strategist sounds easy enough to keep your social media in-house. But if you’re a smaller company and you have limited resources, hiring an in-house team may not be a possibility. An alternative, if you want to keep some marketing in-house, would be to outsource only a select portion of your social media content and assign the remainder to your marketing department. Maintaining social media presence on all popular platforms can take significant time, so it may be more realistic to have your in-house marketing team focus on one platform while you outsource the rest.
There are a few different avenues one can take when considering outsourcing marketing. Whether you outsource your marketing in full, keep all of your marketing in-house, or use a combination of outsourced and in-house marketing, it will be up to you to decide what is best for your business. Your current team’s financial situation, experience, capacity, and skill sets should influence the course of action you take.