The digital marketing landscape is growing more competitive and saturated by the day.
So, businesses of all sizes need to find ways to stand out.
Enter: marketing!
Small businesses may feel like they don’t have the budget or bandwidth to hire an outside marketing team. But as a business grows and revenue increases, so will competition. For SMBs to stay ahead of the game, it’s essential to invest in growth marketing from the get-go.
A growth marketing agency has a wide range of services that are beneficial for small businesses looking to grow their brand and revenue streams. These agencies understand how to work with small businesses because their sole focus is on working with these types of companies and giving them the visibility they need in order to grow their business.
It can be hard for business leaders to decide whether to hire a growth marketing agency versus establish an in-house team. Keep reading to discover why marketing is a necessity for all businesses, and what SMBs can do to make sure marketing is working in their favor from day one.
Marketing: A Necessity, Not a Luxury
As marketplaces continue to expand, consumers have more options than ever before when it comes to the majority of products and services. Business leaders need to find ways to stand out and to make their service the one consumers will choose. Customers don’t grow on trees – businesses need to actively put in effort to build their client base.
That’s where marketing comes in. While marketing isn’t always thought of as a need, it’s a crucial investment from day one. Marketers can optimize activities, create sustainable growth, help build brand awareness, and directly impact revenue. They’re the ones who can educate, attract, convert, and keep customers.
As long as a marketing team can prove their ROI (and the good ones will!), having marketing is a must. Still, the question arises: should start-ups and small- to mid-sized businesses (SMBs), who have limited resources, hire a marketing agency?
What Growth Marketing Agencies Can Do For SMBs
Larger companies usually have the budget to maintain an in-house marketing team. Still, a growth marketing agency is also a great option for larger-sized organizations because an agency can run campaigns and move leads through a funnel without any additional burden on internal resources. They can act as an extended arm of the in-house team.
For SMBs, the budget might be slightly tighter than for large companies. 64% of small to mid-sized businesses still do marketing in-house despite how costly that can get. Many smaller companies don’t yet have the revenue to sustain a full-time in-house team of marketers who typically receive $50,000-$100,000/year. Hiring a growth marketing agency is a great way to generate and nurture leads while spending a monthly in-budget fee.
Before hiring a marketing agency, SMBs should establish their long and short-term goals and find an agency that’s proven to help meet those goals. Most marketing agencies will also design their service packages to be flexible so that regardless of budget, there’s an agency and a plan for every business. Agencies can assist SMBs in:
- Lead Generation – One of the key responsibilities of any marketing agency is to help you generate leads for your business. A growth marketing agency can help you create lead magnets and offers that are attractive to your target audience.
- Lead Nurturing – Once a lead has shown interest, it’s important to nurture that relationship so they feel comfortable continuing the buyer’s journey. A growth marketing agency can help you create consistent messaging that drives sales to your business.
- Marketing Strategy – If you’re an entrepreneur or SMB leader, you’re probably wearing many hats. You might be the CEO, marketing team, product developer, and more, all in one! Since you are wearing so many different hats, it’s easy to lose focus on the most important aspects of growing your business. A marketing agency can do the heavy lifting and help develop a strategy that actually aligns with business objectives.
Conclusion
The leaders of SMBs have a lot going on, to say the least. A growth marketing agency can do so much for a business, from strategy to lead generation to revenue contribution. If you want to stay ahead of the game and continuously scale, it’s essential that you invest in a growth marketing agency from the get-go.
Want to Know More?
Ready to talk to a growth marketing agency that will help you reach your business goals? Get in touch today!