If we had to rank some of the most in-demand skills, then marketing would certainly top the charts. The highly competitive business markets have left businesses with no choice but to maximize their marketing efforts. In simpler words, a business cannot thrive without solid and effective marketing.
Alright, now we know that marketing is as important as “paying your parking tickets.” The next question is, what options do you have? Here is a brief answer to your question.
- Hire a marketing manager or establish a marketing department in your organization.
- Hire a marketing agency.
What do you think is suitable for you? How can you make cost-benefit comparisons? What do you need to consider before making a decision?
Well, this article is about all these comparisons and why should you hire a marketing agency for your business. Let’s get into the act straightaway.
Table of Contents
What Is A Marketing Agency?
Starting with the basics, a marketing agency or a marketing company is an organization that helps its clients in achieving their business goals by implementing and managing their marketing strategies. Marketing agencies are independent bodies with expertise in different types of marketing. what service do these agencies offer? Let’s find out in next section.
Types of Services You can Expect for a Marketing Agency?
There can be a slight to major variations in services offered by different marketing agencies. Some of them may have their own additional services and working methods. However, here is a general list of types of services you can expect from a marketing agency.
- SEO/Keywords research
- Graphic designing tasks
- Web design and development
- Sponsorship
- Special events
- Public relationship management
- Print marketing
- Social media marketing
- Metrics and data analysis
- Social media advertising
- Paid advertising
- E-news letters
- Review management
- Broadcast marketing on radio or television
- Brand management
- Content creation and marketing
- Market research
- Targeted email campaigns
- Brochure development and production
- Mobile marketing integration
That seems a long list but a good marketing agency almost offers all these services. As a matter of fact, these elements are vital for any effective marketing strategy.
Should Hire a Marketer or Marketing Agency?
Alright, here is a very important question. Should you hire a marketing agency or hire a marketer (marketing specialist)?
Reason 1: Marketing Agencies Have Specialized Skills And Expertise
We will start with the diversification in the specialties. When you hire a marketer, even an expert one, it is highly unlikely that he/she has expertise in all the above mentioned skills. That is, a marketer should have professional skills in graphic designing, SEO, copywriting, market research, content creation, public relationship management, and so on. Is it possible that one person possesses all these skills? Honestly, that would be a rarity.
However, a marketing agency has experts in different fields. They have expert copywriters, graphic designers, public relationship managers, etc.
Reason 2: Marketing Agencies Are A Cost-Effective Option
Even if you get a “superman” who knows everything, the next problem you will be facing is the expenses you have to bear in both cases.
If you hire a marketing specialist, you will have to pay a monthly salary with additional benefits such as payroll taxes, vacation, retirement plans, health insurance contributions, etc. Furthermore, you have to pay for training and development costs. Also, don’t forget the recruitment costs.
The average salary of a marketing manager in USA is $126,165 per annum. On the contrary, on average, hiring a marketing agency will cost your $48000 per annum. Did you notice the difference between cost and benefits? Well, you can save a lot by hiring a marketing agency.
Why Should You Hire A Marketing Agency? [Benefits]
We have already discussed one of the major reasons of hiring a marketing agency. Apart from that, here are some other reasons why you should hire a marketing agency.
Devise And Implement Modern Marketing Strategies
Have you ever wonder why did business or marketing practices change over time? It is mainly due to customer awareness. Outbound marketing such as print ads, commercial ads, or yellow page advertisements, etc,. is not enough now. Consumers nowadays have constant access to the internet and they can look up for all the options and possibilities.
This means that companies have to attract customers by inbound marketing as well. Inbound marketing requires patience, efforts, and necessary skills. A good marketing agency knows how to integrate outbound and inbound marketing campaigns to draw leads and convert them into actual customers.
Marketing Agencies Help You Focus On Your Business
To be honest, DIY is not a good option for “everything” you do. As an entrepreneur, you have to run a business and look after multiple things. Marketing itself is a huge field and if you do it yourself, you will have to spend a lot of time and financial resources in learning things. Ultimately, you will have less time to look after other affairs of your business.
When you hire a marketing agency, you actually outsource one integral element of your business. This allows you to concentrate on other important matters.
Deeper Understanding and Knowledge
Another mentionable thing about marketing agencies is they generally have a better understanding and knowledge about marketing practices. A marketing agency deals with different clients at a same time and all those clients have different marketing needs. This means that marketing agencies have better understanding of different marketing practices and can utilize their knowledge to maximum effect.
Furthermore, marketing agencies actively participate in workshops, marketing seminars, conferences, brain storming sessions, etc. on the contrary, in-house marketers don’t get enough opportunities to expand their knowledge-base.
Reasons When Should You Hire A Marketing Agency?
Marketing is something that starts even before you launch your business. That means, you need someone to market your business. However, if you have in-house marketers or doing it yourself, but see these signs, then it is time to think about hiring a marketing agency.
You Realize You Are Not You Don’t Fit In The Digital Marketing Age
A lot of business owners try their luck in marketing department as well. But does everybody have the skills to do it? Not really. Although, you may have excellent leadership abilities and you know your business well, still is very much possible that you don’t have sufficient marketing skills.
Having insufficient marketing skills is not the problem, but not accepting this fact can be very costly for your business. If you realize you lack marketing capabilities, search for a marketing agency to do it for you.
Sales Graph Is Going Downward
An entrepreneur always targets a sellable product or service. If you know your product or service is good enough to give you estimated revenues, and your sales team and customer service are spot on, yet you see a downward slope in your sales, then it is time to look into your marketing strategy.
It is pretty obvious that if you don’t have a good marketing strategy, everything else won’t matter. You need to tell people why is your product or service better and why should people buy it.
What is Working and What is Not For You
One of the biggest signs of an ineffective marketing campaign is when you don’t know what is working for you and what not. For instance, if you see a sudden spike in your website traffic, phone calls, queries, or new leads, but you don’t know how this happening, then your marketing campaign is not good enough.
A good marketing campaign always provides you with enough information to analyze whether things are working as planned or not.
Your Ambitions Exceed Your Capability
We always describe our ambitions as “the sky is the limit”. But, is it possible that a business doesn’t have enough capabilities to turn those ambitions into reality? Yes, it is possible because lack of knowledge, manpower, or enough resources can be a hindrance in achieving your business goals. If you are facing these issues, a marketing agency can help you find those resources.
It Is Not Getting Done
If you are asked to teach 5 subjects at a time, what will happen? Generally, you won’t be able to do justice with a single one. Similarly, when you try your hands on everything in your business, it reduces your efficiency and you end up doing nothing.
Most importantly, marketing needs time and a sound strategy. If you don’t do it right, it will quickly move to the bottom of pile. Marketing may not be your interest or priority, but for a marketing agency, it is EVERYTHING. This is what they do and this is what they are paid for.
