Just hearing the soundtrack of “Lean on Me,” probably takes you to another place. Maybe you swayed to it in a crowded gym as a teenager or dedicated it on the radio to your best friend. And maybe you hear it in every movie from that era in your head because really wasn’t it? (Not really — but we thought it was). Or maybe all you can think about when you hear it is, “It’s probably time to lean on someone for some marketing help.”
Bingo. You read our minds exactly.
By the time you finish reading this, you won’t be able to hear that tune without thinking about investing in social media marketing or a full digital campaign. You have to admit, the closing lyrics are just begging to be used in a solid call to action effort (“Call me … call me … call me”)
Let’s take a look at a few of the lyrics of “Lean on Me” and see if you don’t agree that this song is really a ballad about outsourcing your marketing.
When You’re Not Strong… It’s not so much that you aren’t strong but you are just so busy. Your team is overtaxed, and that doesn’t exactly set the stage for creative, outside-the-box strategic planning. Outsourcing your marketing gives you access to new ideas without piling more onto an already over-extended team.
In addition, marketing may simply be an area where your expertise isn’t as strong. It would be pretty challenging for any individual to be an expert at what you do, plus web development, videography, social media strategizing and search engine optimization (SEO). When you outsource you become really strong…in a lot of areas.
If I Have Things You Need to Borrow… Borrow, buy … whatever. The point is, when you outsource your marketing, you’re able to access that expertise at a rate that would be impossible to match with in-house help. That’s because when you outsource, you get the benefit of a full team of specialists.
A copywriter usually has a completely different set of skills than a web developer, and social media strategy is a whole different set of skills altogether. When you outsource your marketing to SJC Marketing, you get not only a copywriter, web developer and social media strategist, but brand specialists, content developers, videographers, photographers and more.
In addition, these specialists are experienced. There’s no trial and error or wasted time on trying to figure out how to analyze metrics in social media, how to integrate SEO into your website and content strategy or how to create a video that makes your brand shine.
I’ll Help You Carry On… Your core business requires your attention, with no more interruptions or tasks that aren’t related to your revenue-producing product or service. Hiring an outside marketing company helps you get freed up from additional work.
It’s hard to let go of certain aspects of your business, especially a strategy designed to help you grow. It’s a challenge that every small and mid-size business faces. But this is an opportunity to pull in experts that know how to work on a separate growth strategy while you plan the vision for your company and execute on it. When you join with a marketing team, you can do so much more.
I Just Might Have a Problem that You’ll Understand… Once you start talking with a marketing company about the potential for outsourcing, you’ll be surprised at how many times they have successfully maneuvered through challenges like the ones you’re facing. Before you choose an agency for outsourcing your marketing, learn more about the types of companies they have worked with, and the solutions they have developed for situations similar to yours.
We All Need Somebody to Lean On… You may feel like it’s risky to invest in marketing, but it’s definitely riskier to invest in marketing with a blindfold on. Too many small or mid-size businesses take a haphazard approach to marketing, dabbling in a few social media trends they saw their competitors trying or developing a blog that is inconsistent in both its posting frequency and topics.
To develop a marketing plan that minimizes risks, you need a strategic approach. That means understanding who your ideal customers are, what their challenges are and how you can address them. It means a careful evaluation of how to reach those audiences and a way to measure whether you’ve been successful in getting your messages out there and whether the activity translated to growth.
You need a strategic partner. Anything else is too big of a risk.
If you are in the early stages of considering whether to outsource your marketing, get in touch with us at SJC Marketing for an initial consultation. We can gain some insight into the path your business is on and what we might be able to do to help accelerate your growth. We might make some serious progress in a single meeting, but of course, we’ll have to get warmed up with a bit of a singalong. (Call me … Call me … Call me)