When it comes to marketing your business, there are a lot of decisions that come to mind, such as trying paid advertising or making the choice to hire outside help. During the month of September, we will analyze some of the tougher decisions every marketer has to make as they promote their business. Each week in our “Versus” series, we will look at the pros and cons relating to each of these decisions to help you be better prepared to handle these decisions in your own business.
There are two decisions for you to make when it comes to marketing for your business. You can do it on your own or you can hire outside help. There are some obvious and not-so-obvious pros and cons to both for you to consider, which is why we’re going to go both in this blog.
More importantly, If you’re ready to start your marketing efforts for the first time, this article is for you! Let’s take a deep dive and help you weigh your options.
Doing it On Your Own
You’re probably thinking it will save time and money to do everything in-house. It’ll be effective in every way, and it’ll give you more control. It’ll be way easier, right?
Well, that depends.
There are many things for you to consider before making that decision. As always, Beacon Marketing is always here to help you answer these questions. Let’s breakdown those pros and cons of DIY marketing:
Pros
Saving Money – It’s no mystery that doing anything yourself will save you money. When money is tight or you’re just starting out, it could be beneficial to do it yourself. Not to mention, you won’t have to pay fees on top of fees for others to implement your own marketing objectives.
You Gain a New Skill – Trust us, marketing is a skill you will benefit from time and time again. You’ll get to learn the marketing lingo, strategy, and options open to you. Learning marketing will open up a whole new world for you and your business.
More Control – Nothing will be lost in translation if you do it yourself. Miscommunications can happen at every level of your business. Depending on what stage your business is in, you might not be able to afford it.
Cons
Time – As an entrepreneur, you wear a lot of hats. That means time isn’t always on your side. It’ll be hard for you to study and learn an entire subject that people spend years trying to master. Then you have to apply it while juggling other duties. If time is limited, doing it yourself just won’t be an option for you if you want to be successful.
Learning Curve – If you’ve followed our versus series closely, you’ll see there are a ton of options for marketing your business. Each option would require you to learn something new. This could be a platform, strategy, analytics tool, or even vocabulary.
Loss of Money – You could lose money doing it yourself. If you aren’t familiar with important aspects of a given option or platform, you could fail to fix or optimize your marketing efforts. If that message doesn’t reach or resonate with your audience, you’re wasting both time and money
Outside Help
You’ve heard it before: always ask for help when you need it. Marketing is no different. As an entrepreneur, there’s just too much to get done. Marketing is an enormous investment that requires skills and expertise. Like most investments, you’ll want it to perform well. With that said, let’s check out the pros and cons of outsourcing your marketing efforts.
Pros
Expertise – People spend years learning how to be good at marketing. These people perfect their marketing specialization in order to meet a demand in the market. Always take advantage of a person’s expertise and apply it to your own marketing goals. Trust us, you won’t regret it.
You Free Up Your Time – I know, we beat the time drum a lot. As an entrepreneur time is just as important of a currency as your income. Whether you’re a one-man-band or a leader of many, having extra time on your hands to build your business is something you’ll need eventually.
Higher Overall Quality – It’s not to say you won’t reach quality results by doing it yourself. However, by outsourcing your marketing you’ll get a professional person or persons that focus all their time on one task for you and your business. In contrast, marketing will be only one of many tasks you’ll be focusing your attention on throughout your already busy day.
Cons
A lot of Upfront Work and Communications – Outsourcing your marketing doesn’t mean you’re completely off the hook. You have to be ready to be transparent with your hired help. You need to be ready to answer surveys, questions, and go over and explain every aspect of your business. This will be an important step towards helping you prevent any misconceptions about what you do, and more importantly, what you need. This requires making sure both parties understand each other, and, more specifically, that your unique marketing needs are understood.
The Verdict
Self-reliance has benefits and so does letting someone else handle it for you. If you’re fortunate enough to be able to allocate resources without slowing down your day-to-day operations, it’ll definitely make a difference in your business. That’s not to say reaching out to a firm or
consultant won’t pay dividends also. Along with the ease on your bank account, you’ll be able to better choose experts who specialize in what your business needs.
It’s important for you to be flexible in your marketing journey. Entrepreneurship isn’t a one-size-fits and your marketing shouldn’t be either. Decisions can turn into compromise and could provide a unique remedy to problems in your marketing.
That’s why there isn’t anything wrong with seeking out a mix of both methods. After all, unique problems require unique solutions. Here at Beacon Marketing, we always explore a mix of methods for your business.
Does research reveal you need to add to your marketing mix? Does your in-house talent lack the skills you need to truly make your marketing stand out? In that case, hiring outside experts like Beacon Marketing to help add to your mix could be the best option.
