Today, it seems like more and more businesses are beginning to outsource their marketing campaigns to creative marketing teams. But how is it really like working with a team of marketing experts?
When your company outsources your marketing efforts to an agency, you basically give the marketing agency the power to create, recommend, and amend strategic, technical, and creative strategies.
So… where exactly does that leave you?
We all know that placing your company in the wrong hands can break your brand and do more harm than good. So before hiring a creative marketing team, make sure you check out our list of do’s and don’ts to ensure that you work harmoniously with them without making yourself redundant.
Let’s start with the “dos” when hiring a creative marketing team:
As tempting as it may seem to entrust everything to a marketing team and just chill, it’s wise to have a clear set of boundaries as far as accessing confidential company materials are concerned. You don’t want another person outside of your company accessing private information about your employees. Plus, it might get a bit intrusive when you have an outsider making those business decisions for you. Sure, it’s great to get some insight and constructive feedback, but you need to be aware of your own roles as well as that of the marketing team. Get creative with your marketing team! Use a company policy video to explain the do’s and don’t’s for your team.
The easiest way to create those boundaries is simply to plan ahead. Put together a marketing plan and mark out the agency’s processes and responsibilities that you intend to have done in-house. For example, you might want to have all display ad copies approved before they are published on Google.
You pay really good money to have a team of experts up your marketing game. So the last thing you would want is for the money to go to waste and the entire experience leave you with a headache or two. Sure, every rose has its thorns, and it is only human to err. But before you cough up the dough and start working with a marketing team, it’s a good idea to make sure they are credible enough.
Search the web and look for both positive and negative reviews. Observe how the agency handles the negative ones:
Keep these things in mind when looking for a creative marketing team.
It’s easy-peasy to send a text message thanks to platforms like Telegram and WhatsApp, and yet, it’s easy for important messages to get lost in the thread and inaccurate information to be conveyed. When it comes to working with a creative marketing team, you’d want to adhere to a professional method of communication to ensure all agreements, data, and conversations are comprehensively documented.
Since marketing is often the last thing on a busy business owner’s mind, it’s really helpful to schedule consistent marketing meetups. This often occurs on a recurring day so that it’s easy to plan ahead. This marketing meeting can be used to update the business owner on successes and campaign adjustments, finalize lingering projects, discuss new business milestones and goals, as well as plan for upcoming initiatives.
Working with a marketing team is all about collaboration. Sometimes, this means leaving it to the pros to handle tricking marketing campaigns. Sure, every business owner needs to have a say in their campaign. But it’s crucial to always consult your team of experts whenever you are about to make a big decision surrounding your marketing campaign. Always get some feedback from them prior to making any bold moves.
Okay, now for the “don’ts” when hiring a creative marketing team:
Any effective marketing campaign you develop works best when it has value propositions and proper messaging tailored to your specific audience. Marketing teams that you hire won’t necessarily know your marketing personas, customer needs, fears, and pain points right out of the gate. If your in-house marketing department already has developed personas, it’ll be really helpful to share those with the agency you hire.
Take the time to build out keywords and documentation sharing your audience personas, core values, mission statement, and what makes you different from your competitors. If you need help, the creative marketing agency you hire should offer branding and persona workshops, where they help you to develop your customer personas’ needs and pain points, as well as messaging that will appeal to those different audiences.
Your job definitely doesn’t end just because you have decided to seek help from a creative marketing team! The ideal marketing agency should give you regular updates about your campaigns, but remember to also do your due diligence just to ensure that everything is in line.
Try to set aside an hour or two each week just to do some checks. This will also help you to stay on top of all communications and tasks.
It’s not exactly happily ever after once your SEO tech comes up with a long and comprehensive list of keywords for your marketing campaign. You should assess if these keywords are in-line with your business strategy as well as your brand messages. Ultimately, You know your brand and company the best.
Take a little bit of time to go through all the work that is being presented to you before giving the final stamp of approval. If something seems amiss, not correct, or not in-line with your business’ brand, flag it to the marketing team and provide some feedback about what you envision for the campaign. This will help them to better understand your business goals and expectations.
There is absolutely no shame in not understanding certain marketing concepts. Even the most experienced marketing pros don’t know the internet inside and out! Don’t be scared to approach your marketing team whenever there are certain methods or processes that you don’t exactly grasp.
Not only will this help to broaden your understanding of the online marketing world, but taking the initiative to clarify your worries and doubts also helps your agency get a better idea of your personal perspective.
At the end of the day, it might be a wee bit nerve-wracking to let a group of strangers take the reins of your marketing campaigns. But trust the experts and keep in mind that marketing is what they do for a living. Let them do their job so you can focus on yours—running your business!
As a business owner, you can’t afford to pour thousands of your hard-earned dollars into a marketing strategy that doesn’t yield the results you’re after. Whether you are looking for better conversions, enhanced traffic, more followers/subscribers, or more engagement, the right marketing team can help.
Not sure where to find a killer creative marketing team that can take your business to unbelievable new heights? Check out MuteSix—an award-winning advertising company with years of marketing experience.
MuteSix works seamlessly to push through limitations and thinks not just about your brand, e-commerce, or your marketing—but also about how all of the digital elements of your business work together.
If you’re ready to grow your business, MuteSix can help!
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