In Forex brokerage, as in any other business endeavor, optimal performance depends on making all the elements tick as one. According to best-selling business author Josh Kaufman, every business has five vital parts: value creation, marketing, sales, value delivery, and finance.
While all are equally important to the success of a business, marketing is one of the most crucial and high-stakes parts. Even if you’ve created a product based on what people want, if you can’t market it properly, prepare to say goodbye to the remaining four elements.
Marketing takes on a lot of forms: it can be digital, inbound, direct, events-based, and others. The best approach is decided by the company’s marketing team.
But should your marketing team be in-house or should you outsource your marketing to an agency? Like any other choice, you should weigh the pros and cons of both options.
In-House Marketing: When You Should and When You Shouldn’t
If an organization is large enough to have individuals who are knowledgeable about and skilled at marketing, all you need to do is gather them into one team.
The advantage of selecting team members from within your company is that they have already embedded the culture of your business. This eliminates the need to orient or assimilate them.
“An in-house marketing team knows your brand – its goals, its mission and its vision”, says Maya Kenner-Fitoussi, Head of Marketing at Leverate.
“This means that they will likely be more effective in coming up with marketing strategies that best suit your organization. An outsourced marketing agency on the other hand, would take precious time and resources to become familiar with the values and direction of your business”.
Additionally, having your marketers within easy reach means you can collaborate with ease, helping propel progress. You’d be able to have more in-depth, face-to-face brainstorming, which can generate bigger and better ideas.
The downside of in-house marketing usually lies in the cost and process of assembling the right team. For large and established organizations, it may be easy to find and recruit the most talented people.
But smaller businesses or startups may not have enough manpower or marketing brains to form an effective team. But beyond that, if you decide to hire marketing employees, it can be quite costly.
Apart from the pension plans and other employee benefits, the salary of marketing managers can average $81,000 annually!
Outsourced Marketing: When You Should and When You Shouldn’t
Besides the obvious savings in costs and headache, contacting an outside agency for your marketing efforts can also make sense for established businesses. Let’s say you already have an in-house marketing team.
But what if the results of their efforts fall short of your goals? It could be that your marketing expectations and objectives are beyond the capacity of your in-house team. In this case, it might be time to consider outsourcing.
It is also important to remember that different marketing needs arise from time to time, and sometimes you might need a short-term project that doesn’t justify a long-term investment. These occurrences are ideal for outsourcing.
Unfortunately, outsourcing your marketing also means you may have difficulties relaying ideas regarding the projects you’re working on. There are also cultural implications to consider.
For instance, a freelance marketer or even a marketing office based in an Asian country may have an entirely different idea than a talent from New York. What’s more, it may take time—time that you’re paying for – before they grasp the intricacies and goals of your brand.
[more_in]
What is the Right Choice for You?
Ultimately, it comes down to your organization’s needs. If your goals require consistent marketing strategies, it pays to have an in-house team with you. If your campaigns are outside your team’s expertise, consider outsourced help as an option.
“There are plenty of marketing agencies out there”, says Ms. Kenner-Fitoussi, “and when you look for one, it’s crucial to make sure they can answer your specific demands and expectations. Whether it’s affiliation services, SEO or other forms of lead generation, our specialized team at Leverate can make the difference between a stumbling business and a profitable one”.
