It’s probably no secret to you as a business owner, but running your own digital marketing strategy is a lot of work and not much fun when it’s not your ‘zone of genius’.
You have to have your finger on the pulse continuously to keep an eye on new trends, third party updates, website maintenance, writing and scheduling content, planning, moderating, engaging…the list goes on and on, and it is NEVER done!
A cohesive, strategic digital marketing plan is hard for any one person to manage, and the larger your digital footprint grows, the more time, energy and brainpower is needed to cultivate it. It’s great to prepare in advance and plan ahead, but digital marketing is not a “plug-and-play” or “one size fits all” process.
The thing that I see many small to medium sized business owners struggling with is the continuous need to be up-to-speed on their digital marketing. Unless your company is big enough to have its own marketing department or full time marketing employees, your digital marketing probably gets endlessly pushed down your list of priorities.
To be frank, your digital marketing deserves to be prioritised.
You could split up tasks amongst your current team members, but there is a better option. Outsourcing your digital marketing to an agency (such as Energise!) can be beneficial for more than just the obvious reasons of convenience, time and the elimination of a full time marketer’s salary. We’ll be speaking more on the financial benefits of outsourcing next week, when we have chartered accountant Karen Woller from Thrive accounting services break down just how financially beneficial outsourcing such a role can be.
Top 5 Reasons to Outsource Your Marketing
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- Understanding your clients
Part of a marketer’s role, regardless of being in-house or out-sourced, is to have a clear understanding of who they’re talking to. There’s no point in just posting company updates on social out into the abyss – your messaging has to speak directly to your prospective client’s pain points. It’s part of our role to conduct the research and have a robust understanding of your ideal client. Another common mistake is that you will often write how you speak – which doesn’t always connect with your ideal client.
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- Content strategy
Similarly to messaging, there is an art form to content creation. The time of day, the day of the week, or even the specific month can all contribute to how well content is received and engaged with. A clear and strategic content marketing plan helps to project ahead to find the most advantageous time to publish new content – and when to re-use it! At Energise, we say “write once, and re-use and repurpose five times”.
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- Brand consistency
I have discussed this a lot in the past, but it’s as true as it’s ever been. If you want prospective clients to recognise your brand, consistency is key. This doesn’t mean whacking a company logo on any image you share. In fact, it’s not really about your logo at all. Your brand messaging, tone of voice, values and market position are all incredibly important. Any outsourced marketer worth their salt understands this and will ensure that your brand is kept consistent throughout.
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- Your competitive advantage
Why should your ideal client choose you over your competitors? If you don’t have a strong answer to this, it is likely that your website, social and advertising doesn’t either. An audience needs to be given a good reason why YOU are the best, and why they should choose your services over others. Your digital marketing plan and strategy should include these insights to ensure it is prioritised throughout your campaigns.
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- Goals and success
Have a website – check. Have a social media page – check. Post and publish content, albeit a little sporadically – check! All of these are great to have, and are imperative to an online presence. But it’s not enough to just have them. They have to work for you. So what are the goals of your online presence? Most will answer – leads! Ah yes, the marketing golden egg. In order to get digital leads, you need to have a distinctive, stand-out digital presence which generates consistent brand awareness for your company. That is comprised of things such as traffic to your website, engagement in your socials, or retargeting and ongoing ad campaigns that don’t necessarily convert straight off the bat, but keep your company front of mind.
Digital marketing isn’t a game that you can win overnight, especially in the B2B world. Slow and steady wins the race – and a digital marketer with the right skills to get you there. Right now, we understand it’s not always possible for businesses to invest in a full time marketer to execute your digital marketing. That’s why we have a range of pick-n-mix digital marketing options so you can prioritise what you need most right now, and we’ll grow with you. It’s also why I have created my online step-by-step marketing plan, which has been designed to help you grow your business effectively and strategically.
You can download your free copy of our step-by-step guide here.
View the full suite of Energise’s digital marketing services here.
