In-house, Outsource or Hybrid: What Digital Marketing Team to Hire

Choosing the right team for your digital marketing efforts is no easy task, especially if you have no substantive knowledge in promoting an online store. We have collected all the necessary information about possible team models and solutions which will help you find a suitable fit for your company’s marketing.

Digital marketing requires many professionals to accomplish your goals successfully. Also, there are three types of solutions you could hire: outsource, in-house, and a hybrid approach. As you would expect each option has its pros and cons, let’s review all angles of the question.

In-house marketing team

The main benefits of an in-house solution is a deep understanding of intricacies of the company, the product range, its values, goals, and needs. So, the engaged team will be interested in the overall success. Also, management has the chance to monitor quality and activities of the team at all times as well as full control of marketing budgets. Furthermore, staff members could solve your ecommerce platform issues on-site when needed.

An in-house marketing team is often considered as the most available and cost-effective variant for small businesses or start-ups, but this can be a far cry from reality. Hiring the qualified digital marketing specialists needed will be very expensive, while the inexperienced employees are open to making mistakes during their heavy learning curve, and often seen this can even become harmful to your business.Limited budgets lead to the necessity in working with experts that have the right mix of creativity and analytical skills, who are able to work with different tools and channels concurrently. These individuals can be hard to find. But if you have this resolved already please be prepared to invest in education and courses so team members can upgrade their skills in Digital Marketing due to the amount the niche changes every year. However, an in-house team can be an efficient way to keep your expenses under control.

Working with an internal marketing team also implies a lot of time and strengths for developing your full digital strategy, and guiding all team members in areas they should be focused on. Accordingly, there is a need to have at least one very experienced member within the team as an e-commerce marketer for distribution of responsibilities and daily tasks competently.

Outsource marketing team

Investing in a skilled marketing agency means the expectations of fast business growth and success which you have to be prepared for. The outsourced team will always be able to work within multiple channels and completely focus on each of them. The reason for this lies in the vast experience in solving regular marketing issues, ongoing analysis of all results, and evaluating your competitors. So with this, they would help take your business to the next level it needs to move too.

Another key advantage of outsource marketing agency is time-saving. Each member of a large team is responsible for their professional field only and ready to do their job from the very start. Thus, you can concentrate on the areas you already excel in and focus on the business itself, instead of taking days or even months searching and recruiting in-house specialists. Furthermore, a digital marketing agency will always work with you by setting strict deadlines.

Hiring a marketing agency can cost a lot of money depending on the project size and skills required, and it could become a problem for a business with a very limited budget. But on the other side of the coin, you pay once for an entire marketing team of experts who can ensure the best efficiency in advertising and software costs. There is no need for individual salaries, internal training course costs, and additional office space.  Also, an outsourced team will always produce a detailed account for their work.

Nevertheless, an outsourced marketing team has its obvious cons. First, it could be a problem to find a trustworthy agency which will meet your expectations. Looking for a quality agency also involves checking feedback, portfolio case studies and service ratings to avoid low quality and unreasonably high prices.

Second, your project will not be the only business they are working with. It could be a problem solving any small issues immediately depending on your agreement or ask for the performance reports whenever you need. They will have a clear plan of action and may not deviate from this.

Hybrid marketing team

A hybrid solution is another variant you may choose. It consists of a blend of both in-house and agency resources. An advantage of such a team is the ability to organize your dream workflow. For instance, you can hire an agency to bring expertise to specific channels or clients you wish to target. This would help your internal team focus on the big picture or tasks they do best. Also, you can invite marketing experts to help your staff research new technologies or tools, or setup and execute a new marketing strategy. Moreover, you can divide tasks among your in-house employees, agency, and freelancers according to goals and terms you need. In such a case, it is advisable to have a point person working internally who is able to collaborate with agencies to help them understand your brand objectives.

The main disadvantage of the hybrid marketing team is time-saving. In most cases, you must act as a project manager and have deep knowledge in e-commerce marketing. Also, it is not a cheap variant.

So, which team is best for your business?

Understanding what tasks must be completed, what aims must be reached, and what financial resources could be used is a critical first step you should start with.

In-house is a good solution when you have a limited budget, but enough time and knowledge in e-commerce marketing or you are a well-financed, larger organization which can afford to hire a full marketing department. Nevertheless, there is no point in expecting immediate results from your employees as they may become overwhelmed with the learning curve required.

The hybrid model also requires a lot of time and attention. However, the marketing agency engagement is a common variant to solve particular issues or fill the knowledge gaps of your internal team when necessary.

The outsourced team is the best investment for your business growth. The experts with an extensive experience in similar projects and can work with different marketing channels faster and more effectively. The cost of their services involves paying for platforms, tools, software, and ads creation. This option will also allow you to focus on your business in other areas to help its growth and stability.