Your business is going well but you're worried about the uncertainty that having no solution to either Brexit or an impending recession brings. Surely, you need to play it safe and think about cutting costs on the non-essentials and perhaps the easiest area to do that would be your marketing, right? For a progressive business, it couldn’t be more WRONG... and for so many reasons.
The number of businesses I have encountered who have chosen this path have never come off well and in many ways, have taken major steps back by taking their foot off the marketing pedal. Marketing isn't just about placing your next advert or making your website a working shop window, it's the fly paper that sticks to every aspect of your business which is seen and experienced by your clients. It's how you look, it says who you are, how you do business, what you will charge, how you will deliver, what your clients will pay and most importantly, how you will make them feel. So to take your eye off the ball when market conditions are at their toughest, could be the start of the end.
So what would you gain from hiring a marketing consultant when incurring more costs are not on your agenda? Here are just a few reasons why it could be the best decision you ever make for your business;
See your business the way your clients do - Being entrenched in your business can often make it difficult to see what needs to change when you're focused on the day to day. Your brand might make complete sense to you, after all, you brought it into the world, but do those outside of your business get it or know enough about it to know if they need it? A marketing consultant can provide this unique perspective as an outsider and help you to communicate the right messages to the right people. Your target audience. And make it resonate with them so they want to buy into your brand or at least want to know more about it.
Affordability not headcount – Marketing skills and experience may not be affordable to smaller businesses as a full-time resource. Smaller businesses are rarely able to afford senior level experience but could gain an advantage by employing a junior assistant marketer for the day-to-day tasks and benefit from an external experienced marketing consultant to provide strategic guidance and expertise. Likewise, larger businesses may not have the budget for long-term headcount but interim support may be enough to provide the experience and direction needed to move projects on.
Recruiting the right team - Cash rich and time poor businesses may recognise they need marketing expertise but not know the skill set that would offer them the greatest advantage from a marketing specialist or team. Getting the right people for your business can make a huge difference and marketing consultants often have many years experience in recruiting and managing efficient and effective teams with the right skills and attributes.
Release time – using an experienced consultant to handle your marketing requirements will free up your time to concentrate on other parts of your business. You may not even like this aspect of your business even if you appreciate the necessity of it. A marketing professional is also likely to be more efficient and productive as it is their area of expertise, so you would get more bang for your buck with your marketing spend.
Tried, tested and measurable - an experienced marketing consultant should have the experience that provides them with an understanding of what works for your industry and what doesn’t. Tapping into this wealth of experience is a cost saver and can avoid wasting time and money on initiatives that won't have any positive impact on your business. It should also be measurable, so logistical data shows what is working and what isn't.
A safe and reliable critic - Effective consultants should be asking those questions that others in your business may not want to ask which may challenge your marketing and business decisions. "Because we've always done it that way" can be damaging to a business. After all, if you do what you've always done, you'll get what you've always got and that's what has lead you to need help in the first place. Your marketing consultant should always have the best interests of your business at heart and to help you see more positive and productive ways to profitability.
Access to a wider network of valuable expertise - Valuable consultants should have a wealth of expertise available to them in their wider network to benefit your business as and when you need it. Marketers are often fervent networkers and can offer the benefits that brings to their clients quickly and cost effectively without the need for trial and error.
A mentor or interim director - You may need support and guidance for your existing junior team to get them to a more advanced level or provide strategic direction without increasing your longer term business costs and headcount. Consultants can hit the ground running and add scale to your business as and when you need it. You can power up in times of need and scale back when you need to without the inflexibility that permanent staffing incurs.
Reduce your costs – are you really getting value from your current marketing expenditure and is it even working for you? Bringing a professional consultant in will allow a review of your activity, capability and costs and may be able to suggest alternatives which increase profitability, provider more measurable ROI and cost less.
A fresh pair of eyes with no office politics - a consultant brings a viewpoint not already integral to your organisation. There are no constraints by the internal politics or getting bogged down in the day-to-day and can focus entirely on your business and how to help. Your business should start to see the benefits almost very quickly.
Alison Woodhead is the founder and Managing Consultant at ClientsEye. A Consultancy focused on achieving results through strategic marketing, business development and brand strategy.