Each email is like the whir of shrapnel over your head. It’s 9 AM! Take cover! Edits from the rear!
The trench has been drawn at lunchtime, but it keeps getting pushed back. Regroup, recover!
A blast in the distance. Your meeting got pushed up. Another boom—it’s getting closer.
The cat on the couch stirs, seemingly oblivious. Don’t you know it’s wartime? More rations! (Hubby goes for the almonds, white flag waving, across the hot zone of kids home from school.)
D*mmit, where is my backup?!
If this is a familiar feeling, it’s about time you become acquainted with outsourced marketing. While it sounds like a taboo in a world where personal client relationships mean even more than your accolades, it is a tool used by pros everywhere to pull you out of the frontlines and put you back in the general’s seat—marshalling your time and talents for winning the war, not the battle. Outsourced Marketing is often the best strategy for continued growth without hiring additional in-house marketing staff.
What is Outsourced Marketing?
In many ways, hi! It’s me!
Marketing drives growth through strategies that widen your lead funnel and grow community interest in your product or services. While it is essential for growing your business, a balance must be struck between that growth and servicing your existing clients—optimally, it should land somewhere around the 50/50 mark.
When you’re falling behind on your present commitments or if your sales line is a little colder than you’d like, outsourcing your marketing means both time to dive into your to-do pile, as well as a refresh on your marketing.
How Does Outsourced Marketing Work?
Outsourced Marketing works with carving out some time to imagine the kind of marketing you would like to see for your business. Are you going for a professional tone first? Or are you off-the-wall and looking to showcase that? Once you’ve answered that question for yourself (and really, only you can answer it), you can get started on finding your perfect team.
Research different marketers who are recruiting new clients. Get a feel for who they are and the kind of content they create. When it comes to discussing with marketers, keep an eye out for how many questions they ask. A great marketing company will let you do the talking so they can understand your problem before offering solutions. The partnership goes both ways, but your vision should always come first.
Next, you and your marketing company will collaborate on a strategy that works for your goals. An effective strategy could be leveraging your social media following for more website hits or expanding your cold outreach through carefully constructed copy. The sky’s the limit!
Every company will have different strategies and packages available. In first locating the company identity you want to present to the world, you will have a clear idea of how these services could work to grow your unique business. Run with their services long enough to measure the results and modify or terminate as necessary. Communication at every step is vital to ensure everyone is on the same page and working towards the same goals.
Does This Make Me a Bad Marketer?
No way! In fact, using your resources appropriately through outsourced marketing shows a level of maturity in your business strategy. No one can be everywhere at once, nor do workflows match across all businesses. (Here’s a secret: I do it all the time to make sure my clients get what they need!)
A Twitter post may take you an hour and three coffees to craft, while a professional copywriter can pump out ten a minute. Your graphic design might look like botched sugar cookies while a junior editor puts out polished work before breakfast. Everyone has unique skills. Through outsourcing your marketing, you are ensuring that yours are going to projects where they are needed most.
In the end, it isn’t just for you. It’s for your clients, your reputation, and perhaps most of all, your sanity.
Now that you understand outsourced marketing and how it works, you can see how hiring an experienced team could be the most productive step you take this year for growing your business. Luckily, we know just the folks! Megan Killion Consulting services can send in the troops you need to turn the tides on your marketing strategy. Give me a shout to get started!