When running a business, it’s easy to fall into the trap of wearing multiple hats or adding workload to your admin team – because they can do everything, right? If you’re asking yourself the question “is it time to outsource my marketing?”, then we have the perfect solution for your business.
With new technologies consistently raising the bar when it comes to standing out from your competitors. Need we mention Facebook and Google’s continuous algorithm and advertising changes? Managing your marketing workload internally when you don’t have an expert can feel more unmanageable than ever.
Not ready to invest in your own marketing professional or need to scale up your internal marketing team? Thinking of the overheads and resources that come with hiring (particularly for one-off projects)? Outsourcing to a specialised marketing firm is a smart and cost-efficient solution.
Obviously, we think it’s a great idea to outsource your marketing – but we’ve got skin in the game!
We’ve broken down the top seven reasons our clients have found outsourcing marketing beneficial to them, and why other organisations can too.
1. Access a wide range of marketing expertise
Let’s put this into perspective – you probably don’t have a doctor on your staff. And if you did, it’s likely they wouldn’t have the specialist experience in all your dental, overall health and nutrition needs. You probably delegate those requirements to a health professional who specialises in your area of ill-health. One individual cannot possibly encompass all of the complex knowledge and expertise.
With the digital explosion and the tools now available to businesses, marketing is no different. No matter how amazing your one marketing person may be, they can’t compete with the expertise of a team who each specialises in different marketing sectors.
When you work with a marketing agency, you get access to the expertise of many, for just one price.
2. Constantly evolving marketing tools can leave overloaded staff paddling furiously underwater.
The channels through which you can advertise your business today can feel virtually endless. And, to make matters more challenging, platforms are continuously evolving and offering new, more informed ways for businesses to make an impact.
Working with an agency that focuses solely on marketing, its channels, innovations and potentials ensures your business can leverage the best, most cost-effective marketing channels for you. Plus, you’ll know that you’re putting every dollar to work by using the channels right.
3. Access external insights and ideas for your business.
As an internal marketer or even business owner, it can be easy to become stuck in the day-to-day, which leaves you little time or ability to be creative and see the bigger picture.
Your external marketing team will provide an objective and fresh mindset. This can lead to opportunities that you hadn’t yet considered for the business and your brand.
4. You won’t lose your way chasing shiny marketing tools.
This is a huge benefit to businesses, big and small – an external marketing team keeps you focused on your strategy. Many businesses we speak to believe they are ‘marketing’ their business but aren’t getting results. More often than not, it’s because they are either marketing ad hoc or continuously chasing the next shiny marketing tool that they think they need. This can be a costly and ineffective approach to your marketing.
An external marketing team is keenly focused on steering your marking strategies. The focus lines up with the overall goals of the organisation – we call it your integrated marketing strategy. Our favourite catchphrase is ‘one piece of content, many ways’. This means we leverage every marketing activity across as many channels as possible to make the most of your investment.
We also have a finger on the pulse for new technologies and marketing tools. We’re consistently testing and challenging new concepts so we can provide informed advice on the areas your business should focus on.
5. Productivity is key.
When you decide to say ‘outsource my marketing’, 100% of your investment goes towards marketing deliverables. Hiring internally will mean part of your marketing budget will fund holidays (annual leave), benefits, equipment (design programs and technologies can be costly) and education.
The processes we follow at The Marketing GP means we produce high-quality work that will meet your budget and deadlines. Plus, having staff specialising in specific areas means we can be more efficient with marketing deliverables. Our commitment is always to under promise and over deliver.
6. Pay for the services you need and that fit your business. Scalability!
One of the most significant benefits to SME businesses is the ability to scale down and up your marketing efforts in line with your business’ performance. Marketing should be an ongoing commitment, however, working with an external agency allows you to adjust that commitment as your business evolves. Knowing that you have fixed costs for your marketing makes budgeting much easier.
When you have a need arise for more marketing resourcing, an agency can scale quickly with no pain for you.
7. Rather than use your marketing budget for holidays and sick leave, use it where it counts!
Let’s talk about the real cost of recruiting a marketing person internally. First, you have their wage with a 9.5% minimum superannuation payment on top. You then need to factor in the cost of four weeks annual leave, 10 sick days, 13 public holidays and potential carers leave or leave without pay. That’s at least 43 days (more than two months of the year) that you won’t get any productivity from your marketing investment. Add to that the average cost of recruiting – around $5,000 including recruitment costs, down time and training – and you can see why working with an external marketing team has its benefits.
The staffing of your external marketing team is not your problem, so you don’t need to plan for the impact of leave on your productivity. Plus, you don’t need to worry about turnover or internal training, because your agency takes care of that for you.
Our biggest caveat to outsourcing your marketing is to understand that it is a partnership, and that you will need to be involved for the best results.
But this simply means you get to be a part of the fun stuff! Like seeing your ideas come to life, checking content crafted for your unique audiences and experiencing your brand and business mature and grow.
To be honest, that’s the biggest bonus our clients see when they go ‘it’s time to outsource my marketing’. The stuff they have wanted to do for years, actually gets done!
