Do you ever think, "I might as well do it myself" when you are using a marketing agency and they are not delivering? Here we talk about how to ensure you get the most from your Marketing partner.
Communication is the Response you get, it’s really worth thinking about this sentence.
Communication is vital: If you had an internal marketing manager, you would give them all the information they needed to help them achieve results, so why not your external team?
I am sure you would include some or all of the following:
- You would signpost them to key specialists within your business to thoroughly understand your product or service,
- You would suggest a budget that you can afford to use to achieve the objectives
- You would ensure they understood the product/service and what it costs to develop and sell
- You would advise them of the profit margin for each product or service type
- You would provide them with all the necessary online sales info and numbers
- You would give them deadlines and objectives
- You would provide them with customers to talk to
I could go on.
My advice – really treat your outsourced team of choice as if they were employed IN your business. Keep expectations high, ensure they provide regular reports on activities, ask them to be proactive and generate new ideas and always give them everything you can to help them succeed.
External teams should have the same information as an internal team to allow them to become as effective as possible.
If this information is not readily available, a good outsourced team will ask all these questions and more before they devise a level of marketing activity that will achieve your objectives.
When it comes to the Marketing budget, if you really have no idea of what it all costs, ask them to suggest a budget. They will however, only be able to do this if you can give them that key financial information. Too many clients hold back information that they see as ‘sensitive’ because financial and particularly profit information is seen as only for internal personnel.
If we are being asked as an outsourced team to develop a cost effective Marketing plan of activities, how can we deliver without the financial basics?
- Average target transaction values
- Profit margins
- Target value of sales growth and what product/service mix this contains
Only with this information will we be able to generate quality leads. There is no point in doing £500 worth of pay per click adverts a week to generate 5 sales if the profit margin per sale is only £50!
If you are outsourcing your Marketing function, get a team you can talk to. You need to trust them with access to your business information to thoroughly understand your vision and objectives. Without key financial information they will not be able to ensure you get a return for your investment.
Essential Guide to Marketing
This guide will take you through the essentials of marketing. It will help you to think about your strategy, your plan and what to consider when setting a budget.
