The answer is…Yes.
According to a soon-to-be-released research report from MarketingProfs/Junta42, 55% of b-to-b marketers outsource some portion of their content marketing. Larger companies (1,000 employees or more) are 60% more likely to outsource than micro-companies (less than 10 employees).
Makes sense, right? Smaller companies with smaller budgets doing more with less resources.
It may make sense, but business-wise, it’s not smart.
In my opinion, 100% of companies should be outsourcing at least part of their content marketing. Don’t get me wrong…it’s natural to want to do everything ourselves.
But get this…if we really want to position ourselves as the leading experts in our industry, we must outsource portions of our content marketing. Why?
- Someone out there has better ideas than you do (at least some of the time). What, you think you know everything? Find a content partner to help you develop the best content marketing in the world for your niche.
- You don’t have time to do everything. Content marketing is a complex beast. Don’t be arrogant to think that you can control it. Focus on driving revenue and get some partners in to drive your content marketing goals.
- Full-time concentration. What I really love about outsourcing to content marketing firms is that they spend 100% of their time telling stories for marketing success. Your full-time job is selling some product or service in your industry, probably not content marketing. Find a content marketing firm with expertise in your industry and content marketing and you’ve got a winner.
And let me make this point about investment. Many will point out that outsourcing costs more than in-sourcing. When I used to sell custom publishing for Penton Media, we used to go into meetings with charts showing that, ultimately, clients would be spending the same or less if they really looked at all the resources they were employing. Do the math yourself.
I’ll finish with a plug…if you are considering outsourcing, Junta42 is the leading provider of content marketing matching services for leading brands. Give us a try.
3 Comments
Besides time, clients usually lack knowledge, expertise in the field, as well. Marketing specialists have tested what works and what doesn’t work, while clients need to go through trial and error themselves. Costs? Let’s make the costs based on success – pay the outsourced expert with a percentage of sales / profit growth.
@Radu – the percentage of sales/growth is an interesting dilemma because not all (copywriting) clients will execute the provided material. Others will chop and change on delivery of final copy. Results vary beyond the copywriter’s “control”…
On the positive side, I’ve net clients/prospects who could write great copy for their own businesses because they know the stories and client ‘hot buttons better than anyone.
What holds them back is they lack the time and patience to create consistently coherent copy. As Joe says, it is a complex beast.
Totally agree with Joe. I deal primarily in the professional services space and can attest first-hand that most companies could benefit from outsourcing, and they know it – yet most don’t do it. In my experience the biggest obstacle is the time factor. The professionals I work with recognize they do not have the time or focus to work on a content strategy consistently. Too many other firms though just don’t get it.