Why SMEs fail to grow their business by outsourcing digital marketing
If you have the experience of running a company that is classified as a Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) or know someone who does, there is one thing you would definitely know – cost is the most important aspect and a significant amount of efforts are needed to control the cost. SMEs run on a limited budget and work in a highly competitive market. To stay profitable, they look for cost-efficient means to promote and market their business.
It is where SMEs fall into the trap of digital marketers that claim they will do wonders for the SMEs. I am not implying that all digital marketers work in this predatory method, but the fact of the matter is many of them do and make tall claims that are never materialised. The result, SMEs end up losing a huge chunk of their money trying to get more business when in reality all they suffer are more expenses and losses.
I will try to explain here how it happens and what you can do. It’ll give you a fair idea of how to deal with a digital marketer when outsourcing digital marketing for your SME, or whether you should outsource it at all. The final decision will be yours, but at the very least, you will be better prepared to take an informed decision.
These are some of the claims made by digital marketers, and I am going to refute them one by one!
Cost efficient and affordable
Nothing good comes for free and you only get what you pay for. Please understand when a digital marketer makes a claim of offering you a cost efficient service. Affordability is a relative aspect. For one particular business even $10,000 marketing budget wouldn’t be much and for other even $1,000 would feel burdensome. First, check if it’s really affordable. It’s possible that what you’ve been told as the service is just a part of it and if you want something better, the digital marketer will make you cough out more.
Now, these marketers make a case for themselves saying it’ll save your cost of hiring a fulltime employee. And, often SME owners see logic in this point and opt to outsource their work believing it’d actually reduce their cost. Okay, but does it actually reduces the cost? I am not so sure. How could hiring a digital marketing company be a cost efficient proposition? Aren’t they in the business to make money? It isn’t a charity organisation right that would volunteer to do your work?
So why waste your money at all? Check for their services, do some research and only if a digital marketer assures you of a specific ROI, deal with them by committing a certain percentage of your ROI instead of a fixed amount. It’d mean that if the digital marketing agency fails to deliver on its promise, the cost would be low and if it actually succeeds, then both you and the outsourced agency will benefit.
Expert Work
Now that’s another bluff! Digital marketing agencies make you believe they are experts in marketing and so you should hire them. But, just wait and minute and think. Yours is an SME with a limited area of operations confined to a specific region or regions. You understand your products and customers better than anyone else. So what “Expert Work” will the digital marketing agency do?
You are the “Expert” and not some outsourced agency that lacks even the basic knowledge of your products. You aren’t an established brand and unless people start trusting you, they won’t buy from you. Instead, engage with your customers directly. Try to build a community of users who will use and promote your products.
Also, these so called ‘Experts” lack sufficient manpower to support their own business, forget about contributing value to yours. Think carefully before you outsource.
It will save Time
So a digital marketing agency contacts you and tells you that outsourcing to them will save your time. But what about the time you’ll be spending to make the money equivalent to the fee you pay to such agencies? Think logically before you outsource.
What will the ROI from the digital marketing cost if you decide to outsource it? Will the returns be higher than what you’ll be paying to an outsourced agency? Will it actually save your time and how? Unless you get clear answers to these questions, think before you outsource.
Time is a precious commodity, but it’s only worth saving if you use it for some other purpose which delivers more value.
Allows you to focus on your Core Business
Really?! What’s you “Core Business”? Everything you do in an SME is your business. If you manufacture a product, not only the production but also its sales and after sales service is your core business. So think twice or thrice before you fall for this statement often made by outsourced digital marketers as their pitch.
Selling your product is you core function. Everything you do or make is done with the intent of selling it. And, it’s you who knows the product inside out. Don’t let a outsourced agency teach you how to sell a product you made.
So, what should you do?
Here’s a better solution, instead of outsourcing, learn few basics of digital marketing.
You’d think how I can even suggest this to someone like you who’s already too busy trying to get a company off the ground. But, my point is simple. If you really believe in your business and know it’s going to deliver value to the customers, which will in turn help your company grow, then try to get a hold of every activity right now when the company is small.
Once your company starts to grow, your need for digital marketing, just like any other function, will increase. If you learn the basics now, it’d save costs not just at the present moment but also in the future.
It is where SMEs fall into the trap of digital marketers that claim they will do wonders for the SMEs. I am not implying that all digital marketers work in this predatory method, but the fact of the matter is many of them do and make tall claims that are never materialised. The result, SMEs end up losing a huge chunk of their money trying to get more business when in reality all they suffer are more expenses and losses.
I will try to explain here how it happens and what you can do. It’ll give you a fair idea of how to deal with a digital marketer when outsourcing digital marketing for your SME, or whether you should outsource it at all. The final decision will be yours, but at the very least, you will be better prepared to take an informed decision.
These are some of the claims made by digital marketers, and I am going to refute them one by one!
Cost efficient and affordable
Nothing good comes for free and you only get what you pay for. Please understand when a digital marketer makes a claim of offering you a cost efficient service. Affordability is a relative aspect. For one particular business even $10,000 marketing budget wouldn’t be much and for other even $1,000 would feel burdensome. First, check if it’s really affordable. It’s possible that what you’ve been told as the service is just a part of it and if you want something better, the digital marketer will make you cough out more.
Now, these marketers make a case for themselves saying it’ll save your cost of hiring a fulltime employee. And, often SME owners see logic in this point and opt to outsource their work believing it’d actually reduce their cost. Okay, but does it actually reduces the cost? I am not so sure. How could hiring a digital marketing company be a cost efficient proposition? Aren’t they in the business to make money? It isn’t a charity organisation right that would volunteer to do your work?
So why waste your money at all? Check for their services, do some research and only if a digital marketer assures you of a specific ROI, deal with them by committing a certain percentage of your ROI instead of a fixed amount. It’d mean that if the digital marketing agency fails to deliver on its promise, the cost would be low and if it actually succeeds, then both you and the outsourced agency will benefit.
Expert Work
Now that’s another bluff! Digital marketing agencies make you believe they are experts in marketing and so you should hire them. But, just wait and minute and think. Yours is an SME with a limited area of operations confined to a specific region or regions. You understand your products and customers better than anyone else. So what “Expert Work” will the digital marketing agency do?
You are the “Expert” and not some outsourced agency that lacks even the basic knowledge of your products. You aren’t an established brand and unless people start trusting you, they won’t buy from you. Instead, engage with your customers directly. Try to build a community of users who will use and promote your products.
Also, these so called ‘Experts” lack sufficient manpower to support their own business, forget about contributing value to yours. Think carefully before you outsource.
It will save Time
So a digital marketing agency contacts you and tells you that outsourcing to them will save your time. But what about the time you’ll be spending to make the money equivalent to the fee you pay to such agencies? Think logically before you outsource.
What will the ROI from the digital marketing cost if you decide to outsource it? Will the returns be higher than what you’ll be paying to an outsourced agency? Will it actually save your time and how? Unless you get clear answers to these questions, think before you outsource.
Time is a precious commodity, but it’s only worth saving if you use it for some other purpose which delivers more value.
Allows you to focus on your Core Business
Really?! What’s you “Core Business”? Everything you do in an SME is your business. If you manufacture a product, not only the production but also its sales and after sales service is your core business. So think twice or thrice before you fall for this statement often made by outsourced digital marketers as their pitch.
Selling your product is you core function. Everything you do or make is done with the intent of selling it. And, it’s you who knows the product inside out. Don’t let a outsourced agency teach you how to sell a product you made.
So, what should you do?
Here’s a better solution, instead of outsourcing, learn few basics of digital marketing.
You’d think how I can even suggest this to someone like you who’s already too busy trying to get a company off the ground. But, my point is simple. If you really believe in your business and know it’s going to deliver value to the customers, which will in turn help your company grow, then try to get a hold of every activity right now when the company is small.
Once your company starts to grow, your need for digital marketing, just like any other function, will increase. If you learn the basics now, it’d save costs not just at the present moment but also in the future.