Out-sourcing vs. in-house marketing: Pros and cons.

In-house marketing, much like outsourcing, has it’s benefits and drawbacks. With an in-house marketing team, you will be able to maintain constant contact and closer relationships with your marketing team — having more control over their projects. Working with an in-house marketing team also gives members of the team greater brand exposure than an outside employee from an agency, however, a team needs to be well staffed and paying extra salaries can be expensive.

When it comes to marketing, it can be hard to know what model is right for you. Should you hire your own in-house marketing team, or outsource to a professional agency? Ultimately, it comes down to your specific marketing needs and resources. However, we’ve looked into some of the pros and cons of both, to help you better understand and evaluate what’s right for you.

Outsourcing to an advertising agency comes with both benefits and drawbacks. While some corporations form lifelong relationships with their partnered agency, outside agencies are usually used for shorter-term projects, or on an as needed basis. For this reason, agencies excel under pressure and project based work. Additionally, agencies have the built-in infrastructure to launch a successful marketing campaign. Because they have a built in network through their industry, they have greater connections and it’s probable that they can generate more, and better, strategies and content. Additionally, agencies have greater marketing resources, and because they are equipped with more niche expertise and tactics, they may be able to provide a more comprehensive package. However, finding the right agency for your needs is very important. Some agencies specialize in different areas, so it’s important to know what exactly you’re after in an agency, so that you can find the right one. It’s also important to know that your expectations for working with an agency will be different than working in an in-house team. Agencies work across multiple projects, often at the same time. Some might find this frustrating. However, they are likely to be able to deliver more, higher quality, products, giving you more time to focus on running your business and saving you the cost of paying the full salary of an in-house marketing team. 

In-house marketing, much like outsourcing, has it’s benefits and drawbacks. With an in-house marketing team, you will be able to maintain constant contact and closer relationships with your marketing team — having more control over their projects. Working with an in-house marketing team also gives members of the team greater brand exposure than an outside employee from an agency. For some companies, this brand exposure and closeness is key. However, it can also be detrimental to your marketing efforts, because you can lose your messaging power if you become too close to the brand. While agencies are often viewed as a costly alternative to an in-house marketing team, it’s important to note that to have successful in-house marketing, you need a robust team, which will be costly. Finally, in-house marketing teams might be smaller than agency teams — meaning that there will be fewer mines to pull from a generally smaller network of experts, which can be to the detriment of your company. 

Ultimately, out-sourcing and in-house marketing really depend on your specific marketing needs and resources. They cannot be ranked because they are fundamentally different. It can be hard to know which one is right for you, but at D&S, we’re here to help. Contact us at info@dsagencyny.com.