The question will eventually come up as to whether your company should continue marketing from within or turn to an outside online marketing agency.
Do you know if your company should upgrade to an agency? Well, the decision is ultimately yours, but there are a few things you should consider prior to hiring an agency to handle your marketing.
Marketing Agency Pre-Hire Tips
#1: The Costs Associated with an Online Marketing Agency
There are going to be costs associated with marketing, plain and simple. You will either be paying someone to market your company that works within your company, and have to pay their salary and likely their benefits, or you will be paying someone else to do it. What you need to do is compare what you would be paying out to someone at your business, and the type of results you could expect, to the expense of a marketing agency and the results they would be able to offer. You also need to make sure you include the time savings that would come along with letting someone else handle this part of the business. It can help make your decision a bit easier if you look at it strictly based on the numbers.
#2: The Control You Will or Won’t Have with Marketing Agencies
Some people are very happy handing off control to those with more experience and knowledge about certain aspects of their business, while others fear this more than anything else in the world. Should you be one of the people who happen to be totally content with letting someone else take the wheel, then you will be fine hiring a marketing agency. However, if you prefer having total control, then you will want to set a clear approval process should you hire a marketing agency. You will be able to see the ads before they go out, control what is said and what is left out, and decide where those specific ads are marketed to. Not all marketing agencies leave these decisions up to the business owners, so this can be a bit difficult on some CEOs and owners.
#3: The Quality Between In-House Marketing and Marketing Agencies
This point can be a little tricky, especially if your current marketing techniques are working really well for you. However, typically you will get more exposure with higher returns when hiring a marketing agency than most small businesses are able to achieve on their own. You also need to make sure that you are checking the quality of the advertisements that a potential marketing agency puts forth. You may find a really inexpensive marketing agency, but it won’t do you any good if their quality is low.
You will need to look at how your current marketing campaign is working, and decide if you need and can afford an upgrade. If your business would benefit and you have the budget to cover your marketing desires with an agency, it may be the best thing for your company. Just make sure you are ready and willing to hand over the responsibility of at least some of the decision-making to the pros.
