Outsourced Marketing: 7 Signs It’s Time To Call an Agency

Why hand off marketing responsibilities to an agency when those who know your company best are in-house? Why can’t your team just learn new skills? When is outsourced marketing a good idea?

Well, when you take into consideration the number of marketing channels available to you and the effort, time, and costs it takes to use each one well, one thing becomes clear: You’re going to need a marketing dream team.

Imagine the All-Star game of any major American sport; let’s take basketball, for example. To build an All-Star team, you’ll want players who are experts in a specific skill set. A great defender doesn’t get bogged down in trying to perfect the details of an offensive play. A shooting guard, usually on the smaller side, has to worry about shooting mid to long-range jump shots and not defending the tallest person on the opposing team. You choose experts to do what they were made for.

Outsourced marketing is similar in some senses. You have someone who oversees your marketing strategy, but it may not be realistic for them to be experts on every single marketing channel out there. It would be difficult for your awesome graphic designer, for example, to excel at SEO techniques. You might not need an additional full-time employee to run your social media, just someone who understands the platforms and their algorithms.

So, what are some situations that you will want to consider hiring an outsourced marketing agency?

Perfect for Launching a New Product, Service, or Website

One-time projects are one of the top reasons to outsource your marketing.

A perfect example is hiring an outsourced marketing agency that is explicitly skilled in web design and development. Doing so will allow your in-house team to continue focusing on daily operations without the extra stress of a new website. The same goes for new products or services that sometimes need a specialized marketing campaign to get off the ground.

Hiring outsourced marketing help doesn’t mean that your team won’t be involved in the product launch. Instead, your team will be responsible for giving the agency creative direction, approving designs, and meeting deadlines.

The agency’s sole focus will be delivering a stellar project that follows your specific brand guidelines.

Developing an SEO Strategy

Search Engine Optimization is often called a moving target. This is because search engines are updating their algorithms all the time. Google is known to implement updates and changes more than 500 times each year!

What does this mean for you? SEO basics are changing all the time as well. It takes a dedicated team or individual within your organization to stay updated and master the changes as they come.

Having a dedicated, outsourced marketing agency that specializes in search engine optimization (organic), search engine marketing (paid), and PPC (pay-per-click) comes with the benefit of having laser-focused experts navigating the digital landscape for you.

Furthermore, there are extra considerations for local businesses. Users are more likely to visit your storefront if they’re able to find you online. Having a local SEO expert on your side will give you a competitive edge.

It’s Time for a Rebrand

There are multiple reasons a business would completely rebrand itself.

Here are just a few examples:

• You need a new logo that better represents your company’s values.
• Your business is expanding, and the new brand needs to encompass your new value proposition.
• You want to update your brand story to further set you apart from your competitors.

There are different options to go about this. You can use the knowledge and expertise of your marketing team to take on the rebranding in-house. You can hire a consultant to do some audience research and take it from there. You can outsource marketing and hire branding experts to own the project’s entire scope.

The rebranding also includes new assets from business cards, websites, and whatever other marketing materials your company uses to get your name out. Perhaps your team owns the rebranding itself, but you outsource the design of these items to a design agency.

You Need a Fresh Perspective

One of the most significant benefits of outsourced marketing is getting a fresh perspective.

If you have a seasoned team that’s been doing their job for years, it doesn’t hurt to get a new set of eyes on the marketing strategy. While new hires can provide this, they may not always have the expertise you are looking for. More commonly, they adapt to what the team is already doing.

We get it! Change is hard sometimes, especially in a complex business setting.

Enter a marketing agency. Agencies can bring both experience and fresh eyes to the table. As a bonus, they come unbiased regarding your current marketing team’s culture and politics. This will potentially help to get through challenges more efficiently. Since an agency has worked with different clients, they will have already made the mistakes and learned from them, so you don’t have to. Your success means their success.

Access to New Tools, Technology, and Expertise

Purchasing new software and licenses can be costly. It involves proper installation, training for your team, and successful execution. But they are crucial for implementing and tracking essential components of your marketing plan. These components range from design to keyword research and much more – it all starts to add up!

Luckily, agencies come with toolboxes and experts who’ve already put their tools to the test because they use them daily. Additionally, most are keen on attending conferences and other industry events to get the latest marketing techniques. Some even have exclusive partnerships with the world’s biggest tech giants.

An example of this is the Google Partners program. Agencies with the Google Partner badge mean they have earned the AdWords certifications and have demonstrated client and company growth. So, you know they have the credentials to do the job well.

Your Social Media Plan Needs Attention

Social Media is an often overlooked marketing channel. While most businesses start with simply sharing offers or events, an effective social media strategy is more involved. Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn can increase brand awareness and serve as relationship-building tools with your audience.

Of all marketing platforms, social media is the most conversational space for your customers. A recent study shows that people spend an average of 3 hours scrolling through social media throughout their day. So posting the right content at the right time is crucial to your social marketing strategy. Outsourced marketing agencies have the experience and the tools to help excel at this interruption marketing.

Also, they may save you money in the long run with their expertise in paid social media marketing, which requires considerable knowledge for success. This will add a bang to your buck.

You Simply Need More Bandwidth

Almost every in-house marketing professional has multiple job responsibilities beyond developing and executing a marketing plan. They may also be involved in customer service, public relations, or any other number of roles in your business.

You might be the marketer, the salesman, the accountant, and the HR department all wrapped up into one! However you slice it, marketing has plenty of moving parts that need attention – and multitasking is not the ideal way to manage it all.

With outsourced marketing, specialization is key. Each contributor is focused on what they’re good at, just like the sports metaphor we used earlier.

Outsourced Marketing Will Boost Your Team

Remember, outsourced marketing is rarely an all-or-nothing deal. Many top marketing agencies have a selection of services you can choose from, depending on your business needs.

Occasionally, you may need a combination of services. If you hire an agency to design and build a new website, you’ll probably need some SEO work done as well so customers can find your new site quickly.

Whatever your current needs may be, outsourced marketing can surely deliver on saving time and money and gaining much-needed expertise for your team!

Lastly, we recommend properly vetting your agencies when choosing outsourced marketing. Here are some common questions to ask potential agency partners:

• How long have you been [insert skill set here]?
• How many people will be involved in my account?
• What will the feedback loop between the agency and us be like?
• Can you provide training?
• Can you provide samples/portfolios with work you’ve done for other clients?

If you’re looking for a partner to take your marketing efforts to the next level, great options are available. We’d love for you to consider White Peak. Please don’t hesitate to schedule a strategy session to see if we’re a good fit for you.