Every economic indicator points to a protracted slump. The message isn’t pleasant, but it’s the only one we have. Thus, if companies are going to stay in the game, their marketing requires innovation and new strategies.
Whenever innovation in business is mentioned, the first person that comes to mind is A.G. Lafley, Procter & Gamble’s chief executive officer. Innovation is his business strategy and what keeps the company the world’s consumer products leader. “We are never where we want to be,” is Lafley’s mantra for the company.
More than anything else, that means looking for new ideas wherever you can find them. As Larry Huston and Nabil Sakkab point out in a Harvard Business Review article, “Connect and Develop,” P&G uses the “connect and develop method” for innovation. By connecting with “external sources of new ideas,” they then use their resources to develop them.
While each company’s marketing strategy is unique, there are similarities in what companies look to achieve and the techniques used to do so. The common goals of growing market share, retention of existing customers, managing leads effectively and improving efficiency are relevant in good and bad times. However, the fundamental issue is that during an economic meltdown, companies lose their focus, act in an ad hoc, disjointed manner and miss marketing opportunities.
In fact, as companies have slashed payrolls, they have brought in marketing consultants on a project basis to chart the way out of the financial conundrum. Yet, while this may be a temporary fix, the result can be a narrow, tactical, rather than strategic, approach to marketing that will fail to deliver long-term results.
Faced with declining profits, a large regional agri-business downsized its home office staff, including its marketing vice president and support personnel. Its ad agency was let go about the same time.
In place of all this, it engaged the services of a marketing firm and charged it with the responsibility of developing, implementing and managing an integrated marketing program.
The marketing agency served as a valued resource, providing the head of marketing and sales with the broad range of business and marketing experience that helped him make sound decisions. At the same time, the agency’s implementation capabilities brought about an integrated marketing effort.
For any company looking to outsource marketing, here are some of the distinct benefits if done in a comprehensive manner.
• Focus remains on the customer. The most difficult task in business – and the one at which most companies fail – is keeping the customer on center stage. What starts out as customer-focused marketing shifts to one that is all about “us.” Organizations look at everything from their own perspective and view the world with what marketer Harry Beckwith calls “tunnel vision.”
What’s his solution? “Get out, climb out, have someone pull you out of the tunnel.”
• Effort covers the whole business. The goal should be an integrated marketing program, so that the overall impact becomes greater than the sum of the individual components. Unfortunately, this can be difficult to attain when tasks are parlayed out among various vendors that only understand one portion of the total program.
On the other hand, the single-source marketing agency can be charged with both a total picture of responsibility and implementation of duties.
• Hired firm stays on task. Marketing departments are often under fire, particularly from the sales department. That is not surprising, since in-house marketing people often find themselves inundated with time-draining tasks that are totally unrelated to their mission.
An outsourced marketing department is better positioned to stay properly focused on the agreed-upon responsibilities. Yet, it has the flexibility of bringing more staff to work on projects, if necessary.
• External talent offers integrated disciplines. The value of the single-source approach is having a variety of disciplines represented on a team that works together, shares the same marketing philosophy and focuses on a unified objective. Unfortunately, downsized in-house marketing departments or those that are minimally staffed inevitably become vendor dependent. Is it really too much of a stretch to think that vendor self-interest takes precedence over the best interests of the client?
• Staff may focus too much on pet interests. Like anyone else in a company, marketing managers have strengths and weaknesses. It shouldn’t be surprising that a company’s marketing activities tend to reflect that individual’s capabilities and interests.
A marketing agency developed a multi-faceted program for a fashion manufacturer that supported the company’s retail channel, sales organization and consumer awareness activities. When a new in-house marketing director was hired, the individual focused on a “vendor approach.” The results were a damaging loss of creativity, unity, consistency and quality in the marketing activities. Although in-house staff was added, everyone was spread so thin that the stress level was damaging.
On the other hand, the marketing firm was set up to be more fluid and flexible to adapt to changing needs on a consistent basis.
To put it as clearly as possible, outsourcing marketing to a marketing firm can help a company reach the objective of integrating all aspects of its marketing. •
John R. Graham is president of Graham Communications, a marketing and sales consulting firm. He can be reached at jgraham@grahamcomm.com.
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