Don't Hire a Marketing Professional Because You Can Do It Yourself....Said No Successful Small Business Owner ever!

The times are changing my friends and with it, new tools, techniques and methods for everything business related are changing too!  Out with the old and in with the new, shiny, tech-savvy ways of reaching clients… and keeping them.

But for those small business owners that think they can do it themselves and save the money- you know for something that “really works”- we have news for you!  The marketing world is in full spin, completely revamping the way it performs for clients and how to show real time results with data to support it.  Leave the DIY mentality for your weekend projects and recycled pallets, because small business owners need effective marketing to pay the bills and keep customers coming back for more.

Here are 5 myths to avoid unless you want your business headed for No Man’s Land:

MARKETING IS ALL FLUFF

I almost can’t believe that I even have to say this, but nothing could be farther from the truth.  New age marketers are multi-dimensional, tech savvy and skillful in everything from press releases to social channels and email campaigns.  

Never before have businesses been so front and center of a potential customer, without ever leaving their house or opening their front door.  Access to immediate Internet results means small businesses need to have someone that can get their information, brand and message to millions of people before they are just a literal click away from losing them.

The amount of time it takes a marketing team alone to successfully promote, pull data, manage campaigns and seem authentic the whole way through, is an impossible undertaking for an already extremely busy business owner.

NO PROOF OF MARKETING IMPACT

A few years ago, I might have agreed with you that it is hard to see real-time, data driven results.  Thankfully, I no longer have to agree with you, because just as the ways of marketing has evolved and grown, so have the hard proof and data tracking systems.

Now, marketing teams and their clients can see up close and personal- almost to the second- the impact that they are having for a brand.  This data helps the team brainstorm new strategies, using what is clearly working- and adapting what is not.

AD CAMPAIGN BABYSITTERS

WRONG!  Marketers today go above and beyond the role of simply taking stock of a current ad being managed.  Instead, marketers are innovators and creative forces, using not only the current tools- but the trends themselves- to boost sales, build recognition and increase consumer awareness for their clients.

Utilizing social fads such as the “selfie” or a trending hashtag can help a marketing team generate revenue for their clients without ever spending a dime on digital ads or blank space.  The out-of-the-box thinking and modern day skill utilization of contemporary marketers is #SmallBusinessGoals if you ask me.

BUSINESS OWNERS CAN HANDLE IT THEMSELVES

Just thinking of everything a small business owner does on a day-in, day-out basis is exhausting.  The employee wrangling, paper pushing, bill paying and client comforting aspects that make up most days for a small business owner, leave them with very little energy or the bandwidth to tackle one more thing- and a major thing at that.

For owners that feel that the marketing world is nothing but tactics, and something they can easily learn to implement, I’m afraid that’s not the case.  The care and attention it takes to execute long-term visions for your company without being consumed by miniscule distractions every day is definitely a job all on its own.  Far too often, small business owners that try to juggle it all, usually end up dropping the marketing ball- and in turn limit their reach to their customers.

WHEN TO HIRE A MARKETING TEAM

The short answer: right away.  The long answer:  Right away, before anyone else… always.  In all seriousness, hiring a marketer or team from the onset of your business is one of the most positively consequential decisions you can make, as a small business owner.

Defining your brand, building its identity and following through on long- term strategy is something that should already be up and running while you figure out the kinks and add to your team.  While your business is still in the early stages- all the way through the hopeful growth of your company- your marketing team will be there keeping your message on track and discovering exactly what and when something is working for you!  

INSERT SHAMELESS PLUG HERE:

Did you ever stop to think about how much of your TV show airtime is actual show… and how much is really scattered commercials? Sure, it says it has a runtime of 60 minutes, but if you think you’re sitting there, soaking up all the sexy drama for a full hour, you my friend, have another thing coming. Ads are everywhere, from TV, to radio, to magazines- and definitely, more than ever, on our computer screens. The marketing industry is moving and shaking like never before and your business needs it NOW to stay toe-to-toe with your competitors. If it’s not YOUR ad that someone is reading- and sharing- it will be another business that is soaking up the glorified spotlight. But with the circus that is running a business, one more To-Do may simply be your breaking point. So pass the torch to 2Ten Marketing and let us help you get your business in front of current- and potential- customers today!