In today’s digital marketplace, it’s not just who sees your advertisement, but how the ad interacts, engages, and caters to a target audience. Every word (or picture), on every post, in every different social media platform, can make or break a brand. In the age of high speed, high tech internet and information overload, marketers look to find the cheapest way to reach out to their target audience that yields the highest return on investment. This is nothing new. This model has been going on since the birth of the ad agency and will continue to evolve as technology becomes more and more sophisticated.
ADAPTING TO THE NEW NORMAL
In 2020 everything that we considered to be normal was turned upside down. Due to the devastating Covid-19 pandemic, the world is now changing and we all must adapt. Businesses were forced to close their offices, thousands of people were laid off, and “work from home” and “zoom meetings” became the new norm. Day to day business encounters are less personal because we are instructed to stay 6 feet apart from one another. Those who lost their jobs are now expected to be a “jack of all trades” employee to get hired in their field, this is especially true in Marketing.
Today, it’s going to be hard to find that one candidate that is fluent in Google Ad Words, certified in Google Analytics, a professional in SEO and SEM, email marketing, lead generation, affiliate marketing, paid social media, creative/content marketing, public relations, and an Instagram influencer. In addition, that one person is expected to be highly advanced in Microsoft Excel, data analytics, and other data programs like Tableau. How can one person do all those jobs and get paid $60,000 a year, when we just listed 7 different types of job positions and hours upon hours of work? This is called “the churn and burn model” and any person working under these conditions will leave in a year for the next higher paying job. So instead of hiring one person who will quit, why not hire a team that will give your business the personal attention you deserve for years to come?
Innovation is key and integrity is what makes you stand out in a saturated market. Advertising agencies have the means to connect with a client on a more personal level, catering to their individual needs by providing a unique strategic plan that works with a client’s projected budget. Unlike the new “marketing manager” ad agencies work with many people that are skilled in their individual field and devote all their time and effort perfecting the client’s campaign to target their goals.
SAVE TIME AND MONEY
According to the Society for Human Resource Management, the average cost to hire an employee is $4,129 with around 42 days to fill a position. It can take 6 months for a company to break even on its investment of a new internal hire. Business employers put hours of time reading resumes and conducting interviews. Once someone is hired the business pays a new employee to come on board, train them, and on top of their salary the business must pay into health insurance, workers’ compensation, payroll taxes, benefits, federal and state tax, family medical leave, drug screening, background checks, cost of initial onboarding and training, and much more. Think of all the money that can be saved by hiring an agency for half the cost of are paying a new hire!
TAKEAWAY
Even with Covid-19 and the changing media landscape, advertising and marketing is here to stay. There are many advantages of hiring an agency. Advertising is a function- Consumers still need to buy things and advertisers will always need to persuade people to buy. If your business goal in 2021 is to surpass your competition, hire an agency that will care about your brand, make suggestions, and will create an outstanding successful campaign that will encourage your target audience to take action!
Here at Straight Forward Media, we pride ourselves on trust, leadership, talent, communication, and teamwork. We live up to our name (Straight Forward), as we are transparent and gladly share our data reports with our clients. We are a full-service agency; a mixture of traditional and digital strategies and our techniques are applauded by all our clients who continue to commit to our proven strategies year after year. We are here to solve your problems while providing the best value and have the ability and flexibility to operate at a lower cost to save you money. Share your goals with us today and we’ll put together a plan for you based on your budget and get you on your way to results.