Many small business owners like to think about marketing.
They see their competition on page one of Google search results, and they think: I should be there.
They see a competitor celebrating a big win, and they think: that should be our company.
They see a competitors’ updated website, marketing material, or advertisement and they think: we should be doing that.
They see their customers and revenue begin to shrink and they think: we really should be doing some marketing.
When they have seen and thought enough, they often begin to act. They find a list of things left undone from the last “marketing effort” and begin to add to it.
The list usually contains things like updating the website, changing the sales collateral, calling those past customers they haven’t seen or talked to in a while and other top-of-mind marketing oriented actions.
They recall the last time they wanted to fix their marketing problems, and vow not to let everyday life and business demands derail their marketing plans.
Not this time – not now.
But then it happens: the you-know-what hits the fan. Customers demand their attention. Orders need managing. Production simply cannot fall behind. Or, a team leader has a sick family member and needs to be out a few days – requiring them to fill the void.
Does that sound like your business? If it does, you are certainly are not alone.
Most small business owners discount the time and effort it takes to build results-producing marketing systems.They underestimate the demands of their company and the difficulty of concentrating on sustaining a consistent and meaningful approach to their marketing.
Maybe you are better off thinking about how to get marketing done not concentrating on all the things that aren’t being done. Maybe hiring someone to do it for you is a much better approach.
How would you know?
Here are seven (7) signs it’s time to outsource your marketing.
- You don’t have a solid marketing strategy – You haven’t identified your ideal customer, your difference, your customer experience, and other strategic elements of marketing.
- You don’t have a plan – Without a plan, it’s hard to get anything accomplished. And when you are picking up a half-finished plan from months (or years) before it is even harder because you have to figure out what was done before and if it is still useful and valuable, or just needs to be thrown away.
- You don’t have a budget or calendar – A budget and calendar are your best tools to help you stay committed to your marketing plan. Without a calendar you are constantly wondering what to do next and when. Without a budget, you are free to wander the path of disappointment and wasted money.
- You are inconsistent – When you don’t have a plan, a calendar, or budget you are going to be inconsistent with your marketing approach. You don’t create content consistently, which means it harder for you to promote your content. You aren’t generating and nurturing leads. Some months it could be a flurry of marketing activity. Some months nothing at all.
- You are trying to manage opposing marketing resources – You may have a website developer, a social media expert, and a person that provides you with branded promotional products, but they all have isolated interested and competing priorities. Managing opposing priorities is exhausting.
- You do not see results – Results matter. And they should guide you in the development of your marketing system. Identified something that’s working, for example Facebook ads? Amplify and accelerate in that area. The problem with doing nothing or being inconsistent is you don’t have results to guide you. Without results you are going to be uncertain about where to spend your marketing time and money.
- Marketing does not get done – This is the bottom line. Your marketing, and the resulting new lead and customers, simply is not getting done. It’s not because of a lack of motivation or aspiration. It’s because you have a business to run, customers to delight, and staff to manage. And that’s just in your business life.
You may look at the list above and thinks it’s pretty close to your situation. You may argue that it is only partially correct. Or you may just ignore it and hope that the situation improves and marketing just gets done.
What you need is the right combination of strategy, action, and results.
Imagine what your business could be like if you had a marketing system in place that delivered consistent results.
You wouldn’t have to worry if things were getting done, what was planned for next week or month, or how to measure your marketing results.
You wouldn’t stress out about ignoring your marketing because of the demands of your business. You could concentrate on customers, staff, and have a life.
This could be your reality with done-for-you marketing.
So, what should you do?
Take this first small step: find out if done-for-you marketing makes sense for your business.
How? Start with this request for a marketing audit. You’ll discover what can be done, when, and what the impact of your investment will be.
Don’t waste another day, an hour of effort, or marketing dollar now that you know there is an alternative.
Click here to begin.