Outsourcing your marketing when you're running a small or medium sized business is often seen as an expensive option, one that can be done yourself. It might even be seen as something that's unnecessary.

Now, that could be true, depending on your business goals. But (isn't there always a but) if your goal is to scale up your business in our hi-tech existence then you'll at some point need to employ the services of an agency.

On a side note, businesses that advertise through hard times, such as recessions and financial depressions tend to have longevity. It's a common plan to cut back on marketing and advertising when times get tough, but keeping your sights on the bigger picture is crucial for survival.

And getting a good agency reaps its own rewards.

And good is expensive, right? Ok let's redefine good... and say choosing an agency that fits your business is the most important thing.

If for example you were to choose a therapist, you'd want someone you get on with, who works in the same direction as you. Others may be good, but being good and being a good fit are different beasts.

Celebration by Joanna Charczuk

Choosing an agency that's passionate about your business and passionate about their craft is a huge thing (would you want to employ a designer that didn't like art or design?). Because when someone's passionate about their craft they go the extra mile to improve their own understanding. And as a business you'll reap the rewards of this.

So rather than being seen as an expense, an agency should help bring about a positive return on your investment, in exchange for a fee.

Like the old adage that everyone should benefit from a sale, so to should everyone in the agency-client relationship.

How Can an Agency Make Business Life Better?

Some of the reasons as to why use a digital marketing agency include:

Expertise

Quite possibly the first thing that comes to mind when you consider hiring an agency is for them to do the things you don't understand. Everyone, including your competitors, are on social media, but you just don't get it. But you know you need to do something. Or you want to rank higher in Google, but it's a bit of a mystery.

The right agency will have the collective expertise, gleaned from experience and individual passion, to make marketing work for your business. The digital world is expansive and growing all the time, that no one person can know all of it.

Time to Grow

Running marketing campaigns takes time. As any business owner knows time is possibly the most precious resource in the company. Using an agency takes the time resource problems out of your hands, helping give your business the space to grow.

Tracking and measuring the effectiveness of your campaigns and optimising your marketing to bring you the best return takes time and resource. An agency will be well placed to manage these things more effectively than if it's done in house.

Cost Effective

By choosing a good agency your campaigns will be far more costs effective. Their expertise should save you from learning 'the hard-way' and focus your campaign energies on constant improvement.

Latest Technology and Tools

As we've already mentioned, the digital world has seen some of the fastest advances in marketing of recent times. Keeping up with these is no mean feat. AS a business owner you have a choice of either learning it or hiring someone who does – or leave it to an agency who may already have the expertise, or can bring it in.

It also helps your marketing to excel in niche areas, such as rich media for mobile – do you have the resource or time to employ a videographer and create a campaign on YouTube?

Measurement, Testing, Planning

The most important part of marketing is seeing what works and what doesn't. The digital age means the amount of data that is available is overwhelming, but in order to see a return on your investment you need to see which areas are effective when you're spending your budget.

The process of measuring results, testing what works and making adjustments is the most time-consuming part of a campaign and it's where an agency is worth its weight in gold.

Time to Get Online?

In this hi-tech world it's crucial to be where your customers are. And most are online. Having a robust digital marketing strategy, even if it's a social media presence to deliver messages that drive people into your store or business, could be the difference between success and failure.

A good agency will help your business succeed.