Outsourced Marketing

Have you ever wandered by the cookie stand in the mall looking for samples?  Just one little bite that is virtually calorie-free is all you need!  After all, the first taste is the most powerful, tickling all of your taste buds and leaving you, for the most part, pretty satisfied.  Recently, the concept of Fractional CMO has come to my attention.  This blog post explores its value proposition and whether getting a piece of a senior marketing professional has the same effect as that “oh so wonderful” bite size morsel.

In the past few years, the word “outsourcing” has gotten a bad rap.  So much, that often I hesitate to use the word at networking events—or at least I’m quick to qualify it.  When you hear the term “outsourcing,” you imagine you are getting a lower cost, lower quality alternative (usually thinking international also).  Well, outsourced marketing is a bit different. To be successful, you need to be super connected to your client and develop close relationships, so “outsourced” is an odd term to describe Marketri, because at the end of the day we strive to be part of the client’s team.

In a previous post entitled, “Can Any Ol’Person Be a Marketing Provider,” I shared that the barriers to entry for marketing professionals are fairly low.  While there are some marketing certifications, they aren’t required and I would dare to say that most marketers, including me, don’t have them.  This becomes a challenge for buyers of third party marketing services to know who is qualified, what to look for and what are the most important factors to consider.

At a quick glance, the word "outsourcing" sounds icky to me.  But, it's actually a great thing for the right company.  Outsourcing, in many forms, gives small to mid-sized firms a level field to play with the big guys. 

How do you know when it's a good idea to outsource? 

As a marketer in a company that provides these services, you probably expect me to say outsourced marketing is the best idea ever and everyone should get on board.  The thing is, outsourced marketing is not necessarily for every firm.  As an outsourced provider, I would never want to push it on the wrong firm.  A client who is a wrong fit for outsourcing may not gain as much value from and that would not feel satisfying to me.

So what makes it a good fit?  There are many reasons aside from a company's size to base the decision on whether to outsource, such as: goals, management style, company culture and resources.   Through my experiences as the one-and-only marketer in a mid-sized firm, and later as an outsourced marketer for a handful of firms, this is what I've learned... 

The phones are ringing and the emails are flying – the market is coming back!  Lots of businesses have set their 2011 goals and are looking into how outsourced marketing can help.  Over the past few weeks, I have met and presented to a number of companies and noticed that many of Marketri’s prospects are asking the same questions.  There are some differences between advertising agencies, marketing consultants, publicists and outsourced marketing providers.  Perfect blog post material!

Well, the Eagles played football on Tuesday night, and ended up losing to a Minnesota team who was starting their third string Quarterback, so I guess anything is possible.

The answer to this query for small to mid-sized businesses is: Yes, Yes, and Yes!  Of course I have a huge vested interest as Marketri is a provider of outsourced marketing services but that is not the reason for my strong affirmative answer.  The rapidly changing marketing field and in particular, the growth of digital marketing, is driving companies to turn to outside specialists to strategize, plan, segment, implement and measure. 

The Essentials of an Internet Presence

Are you using email marketing tactics as part of your online marketing strategy for your B2B organization? E-Newsletters and other email marketing campaigns are a great way to educate your customers and prospects about your industry and your organization. There are not many better ways to convert prospects into customers and upsell existing customers then by having an expected, relevant, and personal email marketing campaign going out to your prospects and customers on a regular basis.