Marketing encompasses countless business activities aimed at stimulating business growth. With a wide variety of tactics to implement and an increasing level of expertise required, it’s easy for marketing teams to go on overload. To accomplish goals and drive real results, it may be time to outsource. When organizations recognize the need for an outsourced partnership, they free up time for in-house teams to focus on their priorities, while bringing a fresh perspective and new skills to the table.
Most Frequently Marketing Activities to Outsource
Whether choosing to outsource for one campaign or create a long-term partnership, consider organizational and departmental goals, available budget and areas where your current marketing staff and efforts may fall short. We’ve identified the top areas to outsource for marketing and the benefits businesses can expect.
- Strategy
Every organization needs a strategic marketing plan that acts as due north for all marketing tactics. Strategy involves the “why” and “what” you plan to do. It represents the essential groundwork that includes establishing the company’s mission and vision, defining buyer personas and ongoing consideration of industry growth trends and challenges. An outsourced marketing partner can help organizations on an ongoing basis or via one-time strategy development to provide in-house marketing teams with a plan they can implement and revise on their own.
- Content Creation
Content creation involves wearing many hats. These include becoming a subject matter expert, understanding publishing and distribution, and writing, editing and graphic design skills. Outsourcing is a good solution for companies that need consistent content for varied mediums and channels. In 2020, 49 percent of B2B organizations outsourced at least one content marketing activity, 86 percent of which was content creation and 30 percent of which was content distribution. Organizations may outsource all content development. Or they can limit outsourcing to tactics requiring specific skill sets, such as video, podcasts, infographics, blogs or bylined articles.
- Lead Generation
Because lead generation is the link between marketing and sales, some might mistakenly think the efforts of those two teams are enough. Lead generation, however, requires its own dedicated focus. Outsourcing can be an effective way to establish a constant flow of viable prospects. A lead-generation expert balances omnichannel research with current marketing tactics and materials to identify, connect with and generate interest in viable prospects, guiding those prospects through the sales funnel.
- Analytics
According to Laura Patterson of VisionEdge Marketing, “We live in a data-driven customer-centric environment. Successful use of analytics enables meaningful customer-related decisions that positively affect profitability, targeting, loyalty and share of wallet.” Analytics require a big picture point of view. Analytics also require a specific set of skills that outsourced experts can bring to the table. This process involves establishing appropriate metrics and performance targets, accessing and organizing data and analyzing data’s value in alignment with business goals.
- Social Media
As of January 2022, there were 3.96 billion social media users across all platforms. Each social media platform has its own rules of content and engagement. Social media helps organizations share content and insights. It also allows them to engage directly with clients, prospects, partners, stakeholders and other industry leaders. An outsourced social media marketing team can tackle the trends of the fast-paced medium and ensure your organization’s insights are a part of the broader conversation.
- Email Marketing
Email still ranks high as a means of communication, content distribution, lead generation and sales acquisition. Part of this success lies in its high ROI. It is estimated that for every dollar spent on email marketing, companies can expect an average return of $42. Like social media, email marketing has a specific set of expectations and technologies that are constantly evolving. Best practices come down to small yet vital decisions that include personalization, subject lines, calls to action and design. This can make email marketing worth outsourcing to a dedicated expert.
- Advertising
Advertising is one of the most effective channels for building brand awareness, generating leads and landing sales. It also can be one of the most expensive and challenging tactics. To be effective, advertising must balance brand equity and transparency with concise and attention-grabbing calls to action across the mediums your target audiences are frequenting. To ensure advertising budgets are profitable, an outsourced partner can align advertising industry expertise with company goals.
Incorporate a New Perspective
Outsourcing can present a difficult decision for organizations. It’s important to understand that choosing to outsource isn’t an admission of incompetence. By outsourcing all or some of your marketing tactics, marketers can more effectively manage time, prioritize responsibilities and ensure that budget dollars are well spent. Most importantly, outsourcing can bring in a fresh perspective from experts dedicated to their field. Align this expertise with the foundational goals of your business to maximize marketing efforts.
