Transitioning out of the pandemic will be hard, and as a small business owner I can completely understand the struggles a lot of people are going through right now. Many are considering how to streamline their businesses and how to keep their overheads as low as possible as we ride out Lockdown 2.0.
Outsourcing and working with consultancies like Closer Consultancy may just be the most viable choice for companies hoping to get through this period and pivot their strategies to remain competitive and profitable in our new working environment.
Now that employees have tasted the flexibility of not having to commute, there’s no going back to the “35 hours – stuck in a chair in the corner” lifestyle for most professionals in competitive fields, if you decide you require them to all return to your office daily, and one of your competitors continued to allow remote working, you would simply lose your top talent. Who wouldn’t take that second option!
We will now start to see that this is an expectation or requirement and there’s a market-force applied. Individual companies are not going to be able to opt out and say their employees have to come into the office.
I envision employees using the company’s offices for collaboration and meetings, then staying home on days that are made up of solo work. There is a lot of planning to do to make sure employees can be their most productive in our new reality.
Outsourcing your marketing makes sense
Whether you’re a large enterprise, a startup or a small business, having an established and effective marketing process is pivotal to your growth and success – now more than ever. For this reason, many organisations look to outsource their marketing to external agencies such as Closer Consultancy.
Outsourced marketing is exactly as it sounds: it is the process of handing your marketing activity over to a third-party. Outsourced marketing can be used in conjunction with your in-house marketing efforts, or it can completely replace the need for an in-house marketing team.
Depending on the services provided by the company that you outsource to, you can elect to outsource some or all your marketing activity. This may include:
- Content strategy
- Marketing strategy
- Social media marketing
- Website design and development
- Content creation
- Email marketing
- Search Engine Optimisation
- Graphic design and branding
- Google Ads and Pay Per Click
A good marketing agency will generally compile a strategy before they start any marketing activity on your behalf. They will work to understand your business goals and assess your current marketing activity, before creating a strategy that will help you meet your goals.
Outsourced marketing agencies will then implement the planned activity and measure and report on the results – adapting the strategy as and when needed.
Who is outsourced marketing for?
Outsourced marketing is useful for any business that needs help in shaping and/or executing strategic marketing tactics that help them connect with their target audience in a meaningful way. This process takes time, skill and experience – which may well be lacking in your company, particularly if you’re new. In this case, outsourcing to marketing experts could be exactly what your business needs.
Outsourcing could also be beneficial for your business if:
- You’re planning for growth
Outsourced marketing is super useful for any businesses looking to grow, because it offers more flexibility and scalability than is sometimes possible with an internal marketing team.
- You’re lacking the marketing expertise
Many companies don’t have the data-driven expertise in-house that is needed for effective marketing. If your business doesn’t have internal staff with the time or experience to manage your marketing efforts, then outsourcing could be a cost-effective alternative to recruiting.
- You want measurable ROI
When marketing is run on an ad-hoc basis, it can be hard to keep track of spend and return on investment (ROI). Outsourcing makes it much easier to manage costs and the return on your marketing investment.
- You need help with specific aspects of marketing
Outsourcing doesn’t need to be all or nothing. You may already have some internal resources but believe that there are other elements – such as design – that it would be more effective to outsource.
- You’re not getting the results
Perhaps you’re not getting the results you want from your current marketing campaigns? With a marketing agency, you’ll get a full team of marketing professionals at your disposal – which means you’ll have access to a broader skillset. Not only will this give you a fresh perspective, it’ll also provide you with a clear strategy that should get the desired results. If you’re already losing ground with your current marketing efforts, you have nothing to lose and everything to gain by trying out an agency.
Four key benefits of outsourcing your marketing
Alongside addressing the various pain points listed above, outsourced marketing brings a multitude of additional business benefits.
Let’s look at some of them now:
- Save time and resources
When deadlines are tight or workloads are full, it can be tempting to neglect or rush your marketing efforts. And, if you’re falling behind on deadlines, you won’t have time to stay ahead of the curve – which is vital because marketing is always changing, and the most successful marketing campaigns are those that stay ahead of major trends.
What’s more, if you’re launching a brand new marketing strategy, it can take a long time for your entire team to be comfortable and familiar with processes and expectations. Time spent training staff could lead to missed opportunities in securing sales or leads.
Through outsourcing your marketing, your business can re-allocate internal resources where they are most needed and effective, whilst leaving your agency to take care of your marketing needs. A marketing agency will do all the leg work and ensure that you are up-to-date with the best strategies of the moment.
- Gain a fresh perspective
If the same team of people have been doing the same things the same way for some time, it can be hard to make a change. Whilst new hires regularly bring fresh perspectives with them, it can be all too easy for them to adopt the habits or mindsets of the existing team.
By outsourcing your marketing, you will avoid these issues entirely. Your marketing agency will be unaffected by stagnant methods, office politics or bad habits. Your marketing agency will see things differently, so that your company can do things differently.
- Access latest technology
A common issue amongst marketing departments is a lack of resources – particularly with the latest technology. Alternatively, your marketing team may be working with a combination of incompatible marketing technology tools – which comes with its own set of problems.
Not only is it expensive to invest in new technology for your employees, it’s also a minefield. With so many options to choose from, it’s difficult to know which would be the most effective for your specific needs. Having a specialised marketing partner means you can automatically benefit from their tools and guidance.
- Guaranteed return on investment
Whatever marketing strategy you go with, the ROI needs to be worthwhile and measurable. Even the most competent internal team can lead to an ROI that doesn’t quite justify the hours spent.
In hiring a marketing agency, however, you can rest-assured that you’re investing your funds properly. Marketing agencies tend to define success with ROI and are often held to very high standards when it comes to proving that they are delivering. As the cost of outsourced marketing is largely linked to results, projects won‘t go unfinished if an employee is absent.
Outsourcing your digital marketing to Closer Consultancy will also provide your business with measurable results that can be tracked through ongoing campaigns. This level of insight is vital in continuing to improve your marketing efforts.