Do I Need a Marketing Consultant?

do i need a marketing consultant-1-1 Are you looking to boost the effectiveness of your marketing, but aren’t really sure where to begin?

It’s a common problem for growing companies and has become increasingly common with the rising importance of digital marketing.

Between your website, SEO, paid advertising, social media, content marketing, etc. — it can be difficult to make sure that you have all of your bases covered and have a coherent strategy in place.

It’s just a lot for small and mid-sized companies to navigate. Even if you have an in-house marketing team, the chances that you have talent with experience in all of the digital marketing disciplines is going to be slim.

In those situations, you may want to consider investing in a marketing consultant.

What Is a Marketing Consultant? What Do They Do?

A marketing consultant is a skilled professional who has an understanding of what motivates consumers to make purchases and how to put strategies into place that will help them to improve their business.

In short, a marketing consultant is an expert in their field that makes their expertise available to companies for a set cost — sometimes per hour, sometimes on a monthly retainer.

They use modern analytics, tools, and KPIs to monitor and optimize their activities to ensure that their clients are getting the best possible return on their marketing budget.

A marketing consultant should be able to be flexible in dealing with all situations. They may help companies to build their marketing strategy from the ground up.

They may have to work with existing in-house marketing teams and make their strategies mesh with your current setup.

In terms of digital marketing, a consultant should have a wide-ranging skill set across multiple channels.

They can also specialize in a channel or strategy but should have a deep understanding of how that channel will mesh with the other strategies that your company is currently employing.

In the past, consultants basically made recommendations, and it was agencies that handled all of the creative work and fulfillment.

The rise of digital marketing has made way for several different types of consultants. The type that you choose to work with will depend upon your company’s needs.

DIY vs. Done-With-You vs. Done-For-You

There are three main styles of engagements with consultants: do it yourself, done-with-you, and done-for-you consulting.

Here’s what we mean when we say this:

Do-It-Yourself. Usually a one-off engagement. The consultant takes a look at your marketing operations, identifies areas for improvement, and delivers recommendations based on their expertise.
Then it is up to the company to take those recommendations, make changes, and execute.
Done-With-You. Like “do it yourself” but with a little extra hand-holding on the part of the consultant.

They may help you to navigate relationships with vendors, keep an ongoing watchful eye over how you are executing their recommendations, and generally take the lead when the situation requires it.

In these types of consultant engagements, the consultant is half-in, half-out, but available for questions or confirmation when the client needs help.
Done-For-You. Not only does the consultant make recommendations for improving your marketing operations, but they execute the strategies for you.
They handle all of the outsourcing of the work and oversee execution from designing the strategy to launching new campaigns on your behalf.

The right type of engagement will depend on what you are looking for out of your relationship with a marketing consultant.

If you already have a team and strategies in place, the “do-it-yourself” option might be the most appealing.

If you are just getting started and don’t have prior experience in marketing, “done-for-you” engagements are probably the better option.

Source: Nathan Allotey

5 Signs You May Need a Marketing Consultant

If you’re not sure whether or not a marketing consultant is the right investment for your company, there are a few key signs that you should look for.

If you find these to be true, it may be time to look toward hiring one.

1. You Don't Have a Defined Strategy

If you feel like you are constantly floating from one strategy or tactic to another, with no connecting thread that holds your marketing operations together, you are a great candidate for a consultant.

A marketing consultant can help you take your ill-defined marketing tactics and bring them together into one cohesive strategy.

2. You Are Doing Everything By Hand

One area where modern marketing consultants shine is in their understanding of marketing automation. If you are still sending out emails to customers and clients by hand, it may be time for you to invest in a marketing consultant.

They can help you to refine your process and implement personalized marketing automation where it makes sense within your customer lifecycle, creating better customer experiences.

3. Your Growth Has Stalled

Maybe you have reached your ceiling. Your team might be great at what they do, but when growth stalls it may be time to spread out to new channels and take a broader approach to how you handle marketing.

If you haven’t seen significant growth for quite some time, even just a discussion with a consultant can help you to open your eyes to

Source: JustPositionIt

4. You Have Low Quality Leads

If you find that only low quality leads are entering your pipeline, it is probably time that you shake things up in the marketing department.

A marketing consultant not only identifies ways for your business to generate more leads, they also help you to improve the quality of the leads that you do bring in.

This leads to more sales, more growth, and a more reliable pipeline of consistent leads.

5. There Are Gaps in Your Strategy

Even if your marketing is effective, there may still be room for a consultant. They may specialize in a strategy that your team does not have experience in.

They might help you to expand the marketing channels that you include in your marketing strategy or identify complementary tactics that you can use to improve the effectiveness of your current strategies.