It all depends on where your business stands

Every business that plans and implements a digital marketing strategy is at a different stage in its development. Some are just starting out, some have been running for years, and others are in the early planning stages. Some are in the slower part of their business cycles, laying low while planning their next moves. Others are in an expansive mode, ready to implement plans they’ve been quietly developing for months. When they are trying to decide on hiring a marketing agency or recruiting in-house marketing staff, the first question they need to ask themselves is, “Where you at?” That is to say, what stage of development, or what part of the business cycle is a company in? Getting clear about this and understanding their marketing requirements relative to their specific stages of development will help them answer the question, and decide on the right proportions and interactions between in-house and agency marketing. It also depends on where your industry stands as a whole, and where you stand in relation to your competitors.

Research is all-important in answering these questions. Before you think about hiring a digital marketing agency, drawing up a marketing budget, or making the decision to hire in-house marketers, carry out a thorough competitive analysis to see where you stand – or hire an agency specifically to do this task for you. Let this research drive your decision. Once you know where you are, you will have a better understanding of what you need – and your resourcing decisions will flow from there.