Should I choose a marketing agency or freelancer (small business guide)

Small business owners need to wear a variety of hats. It's often overwhelming when you're constantly juggling different tasks and projects all at once. If you want to encourage growth and expand your business, but you're drowning in an ocean of to-do lists, it's hard to fully grow.

When you need help with marketing and growth, it can be difficult to decide where to turn. Would you choose a small business marketing agency or would you go with a freelancer?

Making the right choices for your business can be a life saver leading you to the top. Both options have advantages and disadvantages. In this article, we'll spotlight these so you can understand the differences.

Take a deep breath, start stepping on the water, and get ready to find land (in other words, growth). — Now is the time to find the best marketing solution for your small business.

The difference between a marketing agency and a freelancer

The biggest difference is that a small business marketing agency consists of a marketing team that performs marketing work on behalf of customers and offers a wide range of services. In the agency model, specific team members are usually assigned to work for your company, but often there isn't a single person dedicated to learning about you or your business.

A freelancer, on the other hand, is usually a single individual with one specific skill set. Although we have some level of expertise within the company at some point, we are the ones providing the service. Freelancing is on the rise. Three years ago, there were 57 million freelancers, Americans alone.

Pros and Cons of Choosing Between a Marketing Agency and a Freelancer

What's right for one small business may not be right for another. That's why it's important to evaluate the advantages and disadvantages you can get from both small business marketing agencies and freelancers.

Advantages of marketing agencies

• Broad range of skills: Agencies have teams made up of individuals who specialize in their work. In other words, each activity must be strategized and professionally executed.
• System development: Government agencies have structures relating to how work is carried out. This method was tried and tested, and worked for other clients.
• More resources: With more tools and resources at your disposal, you'll be able to deliver quality work while meeting deadlines.
• Reliability: You can know when agencies are open and get in touch with them easily.

Disadvantages of marketing agencies

• Stuck in the system: The same benefits that small business marketing agencies have proven structures and formulas can be an even bigger drawback. Agencies often speak in their own jargon, believing their models are the best. Their implementation experience often tries to push the “square bar” of the formula into the “round hole” of the business rather than adapting to unique needs or customers.
• No one individual is responsible and dedicated to your business: By having a dedicated team at your company, you don't often deal with the same people, and few people take the time to truly understand your business. And when it comes to accountability, “responsibility” isn't limited to just one person.
• Expensive: The average hourly rate at agencies can be close to $200 per hour. This could quickly become too expensive for most small business marketing.

Advantages of freelancers

• Affordable: Freelancers are often more affordable, especially since competition is high. (But try reading it. This is also a huge drawback!)
• Subject matter experts: Freelancers often have excellent expertise in one area of marketing, such as creating content or posting ads.
• Easy to find: There are countless website platforms to find the right freelancer for your business.

Disadvantages of freelancers

• Finding the right person for you is difficult: When there are lots of freelancers, cost savings can actually cost more in the long run. Finding someone who is committed, can actually meet your expectations, and stay for the long term can be very difficult.
• Limited skill set: No one individual can be an expert in every field. Freelancers have a limited amount of content to offer, so sometimes you need a team of freelancers to do all of the marketing (but you still need someone to manage the team and develop a big picture strategy for how it all fits together).
• Lack of strategy or lack of execution ability: Most freelancers are either really good at strategy or really good at execution, but not both.
• Unpredictable: The term “free” for freelancers is true. Freelancers may suddenly disappear or move to another job, leaving you and your business in a state of limbo.

What is a fractional marketing department?

What if there was an option that combined the best of both worlds? It has finally come true. That's why we created the fractional marketing department experience!

Like a digital marketing agency, the fractional marketing department has a wide range of specialized skills across the team. Like freelancers, fractional marketing departments are actually affordable for small businesses.

At the same time, the fractional marketing department is fully committed to learning the business and understanding the customer. You have a dedicated Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) who is immersed in your business and held accountable to you.

That CMO will be the main point of contact, and a team of specialists will complete the work. Gone are the days of having 5 people in charge just to answer a single question. Furthermore, the CMO will tailor the entire marketing strategy to the business rather than forcing the business into a system that might not suit them.

It combines the best of both worlds — the expertise, experience, and commitment of a full-time team — at an affordable price that's far closer to that of a freelancer. This means you can get partners rather than just vendors.

Think of a division of labor marketing department as a lifeguard who supports you so you can get down to business.

Which one is best for small businesses?

Small business marketing agencies are more focused and have a wider range of expertise, but they can be expensive. Plus, they're not necessarily that interested in getting to know your business.

Meanwhile, freelancers are a great place to start and are affordable for new small business owners. However, they aren't as dedicated as agencies, and they only have so many skills, so they'll need a lot of help.

In the fractional marketing department, you can get the advantages of both a marketing communication agency and a freelancer without any disadvantages. You'll get a complete and affordable marketing department and your own fractional CMO to help you build and oversee your strategy.

Want to learn more about what the fractional marketing department can do? Contact our team today and find out how we can help grow your business.