The simplest concept to take from marketing is that successful companies have successful marketing teams—the only way for people to know a new brand is if there are people working continuously to get new customers and clients. In every industry, there are hundreds, if not thousands of players. Branding strategy and marketing plays a big part in getting a small business to stand out.
For example, in 2017 there were3,533 real estate brokers in Missouri, according to the state’s Real Estate Commission. Thousands of people all working in the same field, targeting the same customers, are bound to have plenty of similarities in their career description. Marketing helps you differentiate yourself and get your customers’ attention.
Plenty of real estate agencies have their own marketing teams, which develop content and strategies that position the company as the best source of information on properties in the area. Some agencies have an in-house Chief Marketing Officer, or CMO. For others, however, it’s a better option to outsource the CMO tasks to a marketing agency. Here are some reasons why your real estate agency should consider outsourcing CMO services.
1. They can start immediately
Hiring a CMO would mean training one—no matter how good of a background a person has in marketing and leadership, there will always be a learning curve when they’re just starting out at a role. Your new CMO needs to get to know the business for them to develop marketing strategies and make executive-level decisions.
If you hire an agency, they can start working right away. Since you have an entire team at your disposal, they can learn the ropes much faster than one person could. What’s more, they will likely have other clients from your industry, so they will be able to apply what they know from working with other people.
2. Collectively, they have more experience
CMOs have to do many tasks at once, and it is often too much for just one person. You have to deal with generally two types of executive—you might get the broad generalist, who has shallow knowledge in many areas of marketing, or a specialist who is great at one or two things but lacks expertise in many others.
You will not get into this situation with a marketing agency. Since you have a whole team at your disposal, you can tap into various strengths to help grow your business.
3. You do not have to do any recruitment
Hiring is expensive and tedious. It can be challenging sifting through resumes, reading portfolios, and conducting the interview process. You could end up getting a CMO who is awesome at their job—which is great—but if you would like to ramp up your marketing quickly, the recruitment phase takes away a significant number of weeks from your timeline.
Contrast this with hiring an agency. If you get an entire team, you will have essentially skipped this step. If you hire marketers with a good reputation, you could be sure that they will bring your results. This is also less risky since you will have an easier time terminating a contract with an outsourced agency that you would with ending an employee’s tenure at your office.
4. Agencies can scale with you
Marketing agencies are used to working with all kinds of businesses. If they have been around for a while, an agency would have experience dealing with companies at all stages of growth, so you can be certain that an agency will know how to deal with your specific growing pains.
CMOs are less likely to have worked with businesses of various sizes. It is also more probable that they have a background in only a handful of types of businesses. If you end up hiring a CMO who has no experience in real estate, they will need to learn the ropes quickly.
5. They know how to handle large campaigns
There are agencies that offer complete CMO services for their clients and can take on whatever type of campaign your real estate agency needs. Whether it is digital or print, traditional or out-of-the-box, an agency will know how to conceptualize and implement it.
Your outsourced agency will already have the tools needed to create a successful campaign. They would have marketing automation platforms, content management systems, and all sorts of resources you would not have in-house. Bringing a CMO onboard means having to purchase the tools they need to make your campaigns work.
6. They provide a long-term solution
Some owners worry that outsourcing their marketing means they will not have continuity in their promotional materials. They have the impression that once the marketing firm is done with the campaign, they will move on and leave further strategizing to the owners. Outsourcing does not mean having a one-time deal.
You can develop a partnership with an outsourced marketing team and get their support for many years. Marketing agencies rely on repeat business, and an outsourced company would benefit from staying with your real estate agency and formulating campaigns for the long term.
On the other hand, you also benefit from having an extended relationship with an agency—they would know your company more deeply and be familiar with your branding strategy and goals.
7. They are a more inexpensive solution
CMOs are executives, which means they come with executive-level salaries. What’s more, you have to provide benefits and overheads that are necessary for their job. This can be taxing on small business, and after a while, it might be difficult to justify why your company needs to retain the services of a CMO.
When you outsource your CMO functions, you can ‘rent’ the expertise you need. You get the talent and experience necessary for growing your business, at a more affordable price. Companies that outsource high-level positions can save a lot of money—you can spend anywhere from 40 to 65 percent less on marketing if you hire an outsourced agency.
Conclusion
Real estate agencies have a lot of legwork to do and are often faced with tough competition from other brokers in an area. If you want your business to stand out, you should get the services of a marketing agency experienced in working with your industry.
Framework Pros helps you get better marketing ROI for your real estate agency. We are a digital marketing agency in St. Louis with CMO packages designed to boost your visibility online, get the right audience to your website, and strengthen your marketing strategy. Get in touch with us today to schedule a consultation.