Maintaining an active and engaging successful digital marketing strategy is crucial for modern B2B marketing. However, it can be a demanding and time-consuming task that requires specialized expertise and constant attention. Therefore, about half of B2B marketers outsource some or all of their social media marketing efforts to outside agencies.
Although outsourcing can drive growth and conversions, it may not be the best solution for every business. Evaluating signs that indicate it is time to outsource your B2B social media marketing efforts and weighing the benefits and drawbacks of doing so is important.
One clear indication that outsourcing may be appropriate is when your in-house team struggles to attract potential customers and drive conversions on social media sites and niche social networks. In such cases, outside agencies can provide valuable expertise in creating visually compelling content such as infographics, managing promotional social media campaigns, and promoting blog posts across social media channels with appropriate hashtags.
However, outsourcing social media marketing or any digital marketing is not a one-size-fits-all solution. It is crucial to consider your target market, demographics, and branding when making this decision. The key to success is finding the right balance between your in-house team’s capabilities and the specialized expertise that outside agencies can provide.
By tracking the performance of your social media campaigns using metrics like Google Analytics and using a well-planned funnel to reach your Intended target audience, you can drive conversions and succeed on any social media platform. Therefore, whether you choose to outsource your brand’s content or B2B social media marketing or stick with your in-house team, make sure to approach the task with a clear understanding of your goals and a commitment to ongoing experimentation and improvement.
Is it time to outsource your B2B social media marketing? Here are 7 signs.
1) SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING STRATEGIES AND ONLINE PRESENCE FEEL MEH
According to research, 78% of consumers are more likely to purchase from a business they’ve had a positive experience with on social media. That’s why a company’s marketing strategy is essential.
Most B2Bs have their own social media strategy, focusing on goals such as likes, shares, saves, comments, branding or brand awareness, and lead generation. This allows businesses to avoid issues that can lead to lackluster including:
Inconsistent posting schedules
Lack of engagement
Inconsistent tone
Failure to reach the right audience or demographics
Low-quality content
Inability to measure results
How can an outsourced B2B marketing agency help?
For medium business owners, an outsourced marketing department has someone on staff with a current understanding of the algorithm and audience trends for the social media platforms you are targeting—and time to keep up with them—to develop your own strategy. Plus, a team of creatives and analysts to execute.
Today’s most effective social media platforms used for B2B marketers like LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube require more than the sort of set social media strategy you can find for free online.
The best digital marketing companies will spend time socially listening to consumers’ research and create a living marketing strategy that anticipates as well as reacts to your demographic target audience. They’ll have the analytical tools needed to test and improve over and over again to increase their chances of success.
When is outsourced marketing not an ideal choice?
If you have a very small audience or a very tight budget, it may not make sense to pay for agency-level research to develop a marketing strategy. However, it could make sense to hire a marketing partner to assist with content creation for inbound marketing, a content strategy, or a specific marketing campaign.
2) YOU NEED A FRESH PERSPECTIVE
It can be challenging to come up with fresh ideas and perspectives when you’re constantly dealing with the same products and services. This is where perspectives outside your particular business operation become critical.
How can an outsourced B2B marketing agency help?
An outsourced marketing agency isn’t just a melting pot of talent, it’s a kaleidoscope of perspectives. Having a partner that can help you or your business owner see your company’s whole online marketing strategy from an outside point of view can help break stagnant thinking.
When is outsourced marketing not an ideal choice?
Sometimes a fresh perspective can come from a different department within your company.
3) Your engagement & growth have cratered
There are several reasons why B2B brands may not be able to generate likes, shares, or online conversation.
Lack of relevant content
Difficulty in standing out
Limited social media budgets
Changes to social media algorithms
Lack of engagement with followers
Wrong audience
Poor search engine optimization
How can an outsourced B2B marketing agency help?
Lack of engagement can seem frustrating, especially if you have a strategy in place. Even if you have a team member who understands the algorithm and audience, they may not have the time to create the content needed to succeed.
An outsourced marketing agency can focus on increasing your key metrics as a goal and provide you with cutting-edge solutions at the fraction of the cost and time it would take to find an independent expert and onboard them. Agencies are always two steps ahead of the game and have a deep understanding of social media audiences.
When is outsourced marketing not an ideal choice?
Audit the above bullets internally with your social media manager first. It may turn out that all you needed is to make small tweaks, the help of an intern or a little more budget to turn the ship around.
4) You aren't sure how to handle negative reviews
Social media is as much a customer service tool as it is a device for content marketing. Just consider some of the problems that can arise from neglecting to treat it this way:
Not responding to reviews quickly enough
Coming across as rude or unhelpful
Highlight product or brand shortcomings
Inconsistent messaging
Failure to meet expectations or promises
How can an outsourced B2B marketing agency help?
94% of shoppers point to a bad review for reasons they avoid a business. Agencies can monitor your social media accounts and respond quickly to any negative comments. This shows your customers that you care about their feedback and are committed to providing excellent customer service.
It is important to consider not only customers’ queries immediately just the speed at which you respond, but the tone and messaging of your brand. If you want to maintain direct control over how your brand is presented online and ensure that responses to customer feedback are consistent with your brand voice, even a consultation can be of use.
An outsourced marketing agency can help you develop a voice, tone, and crisis management plan to handle negative comments. They’ll guide you on how to respond, who to involve in the process, and how to prevent any potential damage.
Outsourced partners may also be able to generate positive reviews and feedback on social media. Whether it’s through campaigns, incentivizing customers, or sharing customer success stories, you can offset negative comments and build a positive online community presence.
When is outsourced marketing not an ideal choice?
If your business has a dedicated social media team with experience in managing reviews and feedback, then it may make sense to keep the process in-house. Additionally, smaller brands with fewer customer interactions on social media may find it more cost-effective to take care of internally.
5) You don't have the time
By some estimates, you should be spending 25 hours per week on marketing. That’s a lot of time–and the truth is you’re probably spending more! Think about everything social media managers and their departments have to do almost every day and then think about all of the other marketing tasks you have. It’s a lot for one marketing manager to handle.
Manage a content calendar
Source photography, video, and other creative
Write and schedule posts
Conduct social listening
Marketing Plan and Analysis
Engage
Report
How can an outsourced B2B marketing agency help?
Saving time is one of the biggest reasons its time to outsource. Anything from writing a blog post to media buying takes time. Your own team may not have it.
When is outsourced marketing not an ideal choice?
One very important thing to consider here is that when you have an outside marketing department working on your own social media strategy, it will still require time investment on your part. Be realistic. Do you just need to delegate internally? Do you need to hire an internal social media manager first before going right to an agency?
6) You don't have the in-house expertise or resources
When companies seek out the services of top marketing agencies, it’s often because they’re looking for more expertise than a general marketing manager.
They want a specialized marketing team, who can speak to different marketing channels, do the media buying of professional ads managers, better content creation production value, creative ideas, and better results. But hiring an in-house marketing team is hard and mistakes are costly.
How can an outsourced B2B marketing agency help?
Social media takes a highly specialized set of skills to master. But not every business can afford the hiring and onboarding process. Some may also have limited social media needs, so don’t require a full-time manager.
Hiring professional ad managers in-house may not be in your marketing budget. Maybe your full-time marketing manager needs a little help with developing organic traffic, consumer research, or social media search engine rankings.
Social media video attracts new customers to 93% of brands. As video content continues to dominate the social media landscape, agencies with a full creative team can offer many more possibilities than one graphic designer. Think professional photo and video shoots, paid ads campaigns, email marketing, social marketing, and content marketing.
You gain the knowledge and skills of a team of content creation experts for a fraction of the cost.
When it comes to influencer marketing strategies, businesses may find that engaging a marketing agency provides greater flexibility, particularly when it comes to project-based or campaign-specific work. In fact, some companies opt to partner with agencies solely for influencer recruitment or management. By working with an agency, businesses can tap into specialized expertise and resources that can help them achieve their influencer marketing goals more effectively..
When is outsourced marketing not an ideal choice?
If you have the budget and time, it may make sense to add a social media manager to your staff first, before going the agency route.
7) You want to scale your business
If you’re looking to scale your business, outsourcing your social media and marketing efforts can be a game-changer.
How can an outsourced B2B marketing agency help?
A professional social media marketing agency can help you set a social media marketing strategy that aligns with your business goals and target audience. They can also encourage engagement and boost brand loyalty by creating compelling content and responding to customers’ queries immediately.
By having a separate social media marketing team assigned fully to your accounts, you can focus on your core business operations and let the experts handle your company’s online marketing presence.
When is outsourced marketing not an ideal choice?
While marketing efforts are a large part of scaling a business, be sure you are budgeting appropriately. Don’t spend so much on marketing that you can’t keep up with production.
How To Choose the Right Social Media Marketing Agency
When the time is right to seek an outsourced marketing team, it’s not always easy to find the right partner. Common issues include finding an agency with the right expertise who understands the audience, budget issues, communication, and lack of clear ROI.
Look for a social media marketing partner who sees themselves as community managers, one that has worked with businesses in your industry and has a track record of delivering results. An excellent digital marketing company should be able to provide you with a comprehensive plan of tactics that outlines multiple aspects of its approach
