Business strategies and goals are typically all about numbers and math. In B2B Marketing, you ask how many opportunities should be expected from X campaigns. In Sales, the questions are, “How many opportunities do we need in the pipeline to generate X revenue?” Or, “How many touches will it take in order to get a meeting?” “How many reps do we need to hit the target revenue?” Simply put, numbers and math help enforce your business goals.

The question is, what happens when the math is interrupted? Let’s say an important person who’s managing several campaigns just gave their two weeks’ notice. Or a high performer just announced a baby is on the way, along with the ensuing maternity leave. Is this a threat to the math? You’re about to lose some significant resources you were counting on to reach a company goal. How do you make that up? Well, this is where freelance marketing services can be your insurance policy.

Freelance Marketing Services: The What

It seems obvious, right? You need Google ads, you call a specialist. You need to get emails segmented and out the door so you call an email specialist. But wait – what about preparing the workflow in Marketo or HubSpot? What about getting that image just right? And who’s going to fix that field that isn’t working on the form?

This is the argument for a generalist versus a specialist. Someone with deep experience across channels that you only have to make one call to in order to meet the ebbs and flows of your resource pool.

Typical Gaps in Worker Resources

Someone Leaves – The Bureau of Labor Statistics indicated that in 2018, workers aged 25-34 had a median tenure of only 2.8 years. A Gallup study also revealed that 60% of millennials say they are open to a different job opportunity, much higher than other age group. And, millennials are the most willing age group to act on better opportunities. As this age group matures into the workforce, the threat of losing valuable resources becomes an annual concern you need to plan for.

Speaking of maternity leave, increasingly, there is mounting legislation and interest among employers to offer paternity leave benefits. The International Foundation of Employee Benefits Plans published a study indicating 32% of employers are offering paternity leave – this is up 24% over 2 years. Whether it’s a job hop or life situation, worker resources are getting less predictable.

Campaigns Need More Hands – Some campaigns, like the annual global user conference tour, are so taxing that employees feel so stressed and burnt out they start having health issues. Do you really want to put your team through that? Sometimes it makes sense to bring on extra hands when there are abnormal spikes in resource requirements. A seasoned freelancer offers the flexibility to throttle support on-demand.

Missing Skillset – Maybe you lead a smaller business but have aggressive growth plans. You have a functioning marketing team but think a targeted account-based marketing (ABM) campaign would make the difference. This scenario could be a 6-month engagement but not something you want to commit an FTE to in the short term.  

Startup Mode – You have a small team with a product or service that’s ready to go but you don’t have a corporate voice or digital presence. You have at least a few quarters before you can find or fund a full-time marketer yet the angel investors are getting impatient and wondering when you’re going to launch. This is a good time to consider freelance marketing services.

Side Project – You just sealed that key partnership. Now what? They want to do some joint marketing to promote the new offering but you don’t have a specific person for that. And it’s a temporary need – an FTE isn’t in the budget and you really need a temporary expert that’s launched partnerships before. This is a perfect time to ping your trusted freelance marketing expert.

You can try to shift work around or hire quickly to replace the work hours needed but at what expense – worker burnout or hire misfire? The worst is having to tell executive management that you missed the number because someone left and you couldn’t execute to goal. An agency may offer the expertise but be prepared to pay 3 – 5 times the rate of a freelancer (aka On-Demand Marketing Director) and expect a longer on-boarding time. Go with an expert that can work closely with you and your team but doesn’t need much direction or ramp up time – and protect your business goals.

Let’s have a conversation if you’re experiencing any of these five or just want to connect for future reference …