Are you a business owner looking to scale and grow your business? One of the key areas for focus is outsourcing marketing!
I meet a lot of people that have invested in marketing, but unfortunately marketing that is not delivering a return. They might have chosen the wrong channels, or the wrong offer, or not got the messaging quite right. Or they might be using the wrong agency.
So how can you avoid making mistakes and wasting time and money? By enlisting the help of an experienced business and marketing consultant like me!
I have seen clients waste so much time and money on marketing activities that never worked. In some cases that is hundreds of thousands of pounds. I did a business audit for a client recently and suggested that they pause all their marketing spend immediately as they were spending £200K a year on digital marketing and none of it was being measured properly (and didn’t seem to be working either).
Here are some reasons why it makes sense to outsource as much as you can to an experienced marketing consultant.
1. Access to relevant experience and expertise
You could spend months (if not years) learning about outsourcing marketing strategies and techniques on the internet. You can buy tons of books, go on courses and do all that. Or you can ask a Marketing Consultant to help you invest in what is going to work for your specific business?
Having access to the experience and expertise of a Marketing Consultant can stop you from wasting time and money. And time and money are your most precious resources! I always say to my clients we all have limited time and money and energy for marketing. Let’s use it wisely!
When you outsource your marketing strategy to an expert, you’ll automatically get access to their experience. Remember, they know what works and what doesn’t for your industry. And crucially, they know what works now (not 5 or 10 years ago). People might tell you that you have to be on Instagram, or you need to advertise on Facebook – the reality of it is, you need to focus on strategy first before deciding which tactics you are going to use. Businesses need to be where their customers are, and they need to make sure that they are solving their customers’ problems – that is the most important thing!
2. A tailored marketing strategy
While reading advice from the internet or books has its time and place, it can be a real waste of time if the strategies are too generalised and not relevant to you. Hiring a Marketing Consultant to create a clear and effective strategy for the business will allow you to focus your time, your resources, and your efforts on something that will actually work for your business at the stage you’re at.
Different strategies work for different stages of your business.
I look at it in 3 stages.
a) Prospects – these are people that could be your customer but have never heard about you or your business.
b) Leads – these are people that are familiar with what you do but haven’t yet become customers. You need to get them to know, like and trust you so that they are confident to buy from you.
c) Customers – these are people that are already buying from you and hopefully continuing to do so.
There will be different strategies to deal with people at each stage of the customer journey, and often people don’t think about that. They might just focus on customer acquisition (getting a customer in through the door). Or they might focus on customer retention (keeping the customer). We need to focus on the customer at every step in the customer journey.
Having an experienced marketing consultant by your side will stop you from going after the wrong strategies at the wrong time in your business. In addition to providing marketing advice I have set up, scaled and sold multiple businesses so I can also offer business strategy and make sure that the marketing plan fits in with the overall business goals and objectives.
3. You will get it done
I can tell you from experience that most people don’t have a marketing strategy in place. Most don’t even have a marketing plan.
There is a lot of confusion out there and often clients that I meet just don’t know where to start. Hiring a marketing consultant can quite simply mean the difference between having a marketing strategy in place and not having one at all.
As business owners, we know what it’s like. Running a business is no small feat, and no one seems to have enough hours in the day. Unless you have clear strategies and plans in place, promoting your business can become a bit of an afterthought.
If that’s how you’re running your marketing, you are probably finding it all a bit stressful. I know that posting on social media, creating regular content, or sending out a weekly newsletter can feel like additional tasks on our overflowing to-do lists. But they are important activities to help you keep your business afloat. And unless you have someone holding you accountable, you may not get round to doing them!
If it’s any consolation, you’re not alone – we all make the mistake of working IN our businesses more than we work ON our businesses! Try to remember that marketing isn’t just an activity you do ‘when you have time’. You need to promote your business on a regular basis.
4. You will get results a lot quicker
By using the right marketing tactics that work for your industry and your specific business, you will be able to get results a lot quicker. Being intentional, focused, and targeted with your marketing is obviously a lot more efficient than not.
An external marketing consultant will help you define and measure key metrics and KPIs. They will help you understand what to measure, and how and when to measure it.
So you will know what is working and what is not. Most importantly it will ensure that you are only spending the marketing budget on activities that are working. This is one of my favourite topic areas – I love looking at results and numbers and seeing what is working.
5. You get to focus on what you’re good at
Why did you start your business? I imagine it’s because you’re passionate about your business and making an impact.
So unless you have a marketing background, leave the marketing to someone who does. And while you (or anyone you may decide to outsource these tasks to) will be responsible for implementing the techniques we agree on as part of your marketing strategy, I will do the pre-work and research for you. Once we’ve created our plan, I’ll help you stay accountable. I will be there to hold your hand and support you with growing your business.
6. You get access to a large network of tried and trusted suppliers
Have you ever been in a room full of suppliers all promising the Earth? It’s easy for someone to say they can give you results with their social media marketing or their content marketing, for example.
But if you’re not in a position to be able to measure results and ROIs, how will you know if it’s worth investing in them? The truth is, some of these suppliers might not even be right for your business. They may not understand your industry or your ideal clients. This means you’re not their ideal clients as much as they’re not your ideal suppliers.
Having me by your side as your Marketing Consultant allows you to stop wasting valuable time and energy on screening suppliers. My clients have access to access to my little book of suppliers whom I’ve worked within the past and know are good.
Many of them work on my own business or work with my other clients. These are suppliers that are tried and tested, that you can trust. Many of my clients before working with me have been burned in the past – one spent £10K on a PR expert who got them no coverage, another had worked with numerous social media expert who has delivered absolutely no results (and had probably been ‘buying’ likes!)
7. You get access to me
What you get specifically by working with me as an outsourced Marketing Consultant is me! I’ve had 20 years in business and marketing – setting up, running, and growing multiple companies. So it’s fair to say that I understand a lot more than just marketing strategy. I have sat on the board of directors for multiple companies, and I bring a lot of business expertise to the table as well. I have secured investments for my companies and founded lean companies with no investment.
As you can see there are quite a few benefits of outsourcing marketing -if you’re looking to grow your business and take it to the next step then get in touch to find out how I can help you.
