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As a small to medium-sized business owner with ambitious goals, such as reaching seven-figure years and beyond, you’re likely faced with numerous decisions daily. One of the most critical choices you’ll make is selecting the right marketing professional to handle your branding, strategy, and projects. With countless marketers claiming expertise, it’s essential to choose a professional with a solid business acumen combined with a deep understanding of the overall functions of marketing. But how do you know if that’s what you’re getting? And when do you need that level of expertise?
There are tangible benefits of partnering with a marketing expert who has extensive experience in business and marketing, the drawbacks of working with a less experienced professional, and how our agency combines expertise with affordability to help you achieve your goals.
Many CEOs haven’t yet realized the need for a different level of marketing expertise, often due to a lack of awareness or understanding of the full scope of marketing and its impact on their overall business.
Some CEOs may assume that hiring someone who knows (only) slightly more than they do is sufficient, but this approach can lead to limited growth and missed opportunities.
CEOs may be preoccupied with immediate objectives and overlook the long-term impact of their marketing decisions. This can result in prioritizing cost savings and hiring less experienced professionals.
Some CEOs may not fully grasp the depth and complexity of marketing, believing that their own knowledge is enough to guide their marketing efforts. This can lead to underestimating the value of a marketing expert with in-depth business acumen.
It’s like that old saying … if the only tool in your toolbelt is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
And it’s like my own personal saying: you have a zone of genius in your business. An area of the business that can – and should – only be filled by you. Unless your business is marketing, that’s usually not where you need to be focusing your time and attention.
To determine the level of expertise of the marketers you’re considering, consider the following pointers:
Look for professionals with extensive experience in marketing and a solid educational background in business administration, marketing, or a related field.
Evaluate their past work and client testimonials to assess their ability to drive results and growth for businesses like yours.
A true marketing expert should possess a broad range of marketing skills, from strategic planning to execution and analysis. Look for professionals who can demonstrate expertise in various marketing disciplines.
It’s crucial to find the right level of marketing expertise for the stage your business is in and the one it’s growing towards. Your business stage should equate to the level of expertise they choose. While hiring someone with less expertise who focuses on only one area of marketing may work initially, it isn’t sustainable for growth.
Here are some indicators to watch for when evaluating your marketer’s suitability:
A marketer with only a few years of experience may lack the depth of knowledge required to handle the complexities of growing a business.
While the pricetag of service providers at this level may be more wallet-friendly to newer businesses, the irony is that they will be lacking the depth of experience that your business needs the most at this time.
Is everything in business about education and training? Of course not. Yet when you consider the marketing team that you bring on board to assist your business and how those skills, education and experiences mesh with your own … if you also don’t have the education and background in marketing, you’re missing that essential piece.
If your marketer doesn’t possess a degree in marketing, business administration, or a related field, they may not have the foundational understanding necessary to develop effective strategies.
A marketer who has worked with a limited number of clients or only within a single industry may not have the diverse experience needed to adapt to different business situations. While specializing in one niche can be valuable, and it’s what we always hear (incorrectly by the way – most businesses are getting their niche wrong), a marketer with experience across various industries is more likely to bring fresh perspectives and innovative ideas.
If your marketer is primarily skilled in only one area of marketing (e.g., social media or content) without a comprehensive understanding of other marketing functions, they may not be able to develop a holistic strategy for your business.
Marketing isn’t only one thing; it’s actually every piece of your entire sales process and more.
A marketer who places too much emphasis on strategies such as social media, without considering other marketing channels and tactics, may lack the necessary strategic thinking to drive growth.
If your marketer is not collaborating with other departments or professionals in your business, they may miss out on valuable insights and opportunities for synergy.
A marketer without a team may struggle to provide the necessary flexibility and sustainability for your growing business. A team of specialists can better accommodate fluctuations in your marketing needs and ensure consistent support.
If you’re experiencing any of the following, it may be time to pivot to a real marketing expert:
If your business is not growing at the pace you desire or experiencing a decline in sales, it could be a sign that your current marketing efforts are not effective.
If your marketing initiatives seem disjointed or lack cohesion, it may indicate that your current marketer lacks the necessary expertise to create a unified, strategic marketing plan.
If your marketing strategy is not evolving with changing consumer preferences or industry trends, it may be time to bring in a more experienced professional who can identify opportunities and adapt your marketing efforts accordingly.
Hiring a marketer who knows only marginally more than the CEO may seem like a cost-effective solution, but it can ultimately hinder your business’s growth.
This approach overlooks the value of a marketing expert who operates at a higher level, applying their extensive knowledge and experience to drive results and maximize your marketing ROI.
By investing in a true marketing expert with in-depth business acumen, you can ensure that your marketing efforts are strategically aligned with your overall business goals, positioning your company for long-term success.
As a CEO, it’s natural to feel drawn towards marketing strategies that you’re comfortable with or are widely discussed by others. However, relying on familiar tactics and trends can limit your business’s growth potential. Some of the most effective marketing strategies that drive exceptional results are often lesser-known – at least to you, but not to your expert – or may seem unconventional, which also means they might initially seem uncomfortable or unfamiliar.
That may make you question the advice, and this is the biggest mindset hurdle that we see entrepreneurs need to overcome on their road to 7-figures.
While the latest fads and trends can be enticing, they are not usually sustainable for long-term business growth. A solid marketing plan should not rely primarily on these fleeting tactics.
Just because many people are discussing a particular strategy doesn’t mean it’s the most effective approach for your specific business. For example, everyone thinks that you need to go dance on TikTok to be able to grow your business. But let’s examine that a moment. I dance, I teach ballroom dance, and I’ve danced all my life. I can go make a TikTok right now where I shake my ass on camera. Would that really entice you to follow my marketing advice, or hire me? Sure, it may make you think I’m fun, and by extension working with me could be fun. But honestly, not a single one of our clients who are close to, or already at, the million-dollar-year mark focus on how much fun anyone is having when they look at their marketing. Unless they’re in a fun industry. Fun does not equal sales, just like the number of likes and fans does not equal sales. Most entrepreneurs we work with have realized somewhere along their journey that they were focusing on the WRONG thing in their digital marketing, and wasted a lot of time, energy, money and resources in doing so.
While you may see some results from these “trends”, they might not be as significant as what you could achieve with a more tailored and robust marketing strategy.
It’s essential to recognize that, as a business owner, you don’t need to personally understand every aspect of marketing. Your focus should be on your zone of genius, which is running and growing your business. When trying to scale to million-dollar levels, you cannot rely on the same strategies that low-level marketers promote to those aiming for four-figure months.
When you encounter “quick and easy” advice online, take a step back and question its effectiveness. Is it truly the best approach for your business, or is it just comfortable and familiar? If you’re serious about reaching the seven-figure mark, consider partnering with a marketing expert who has experience working with businesses at your desired level.
By choosing a marketer with a higher level of expertise, you gain access to their knowledge of lesser-known, highly effective strategies that can drive substantial results. While it might be harder and take longer to reach the 7-figure level if you follow the advice of marketers catering to 5-figure businesses, a seasoned expert will guide you on a more efficient path to success. Embrace the unfamiliar and trust in the expertise of a marketing professional who understands the complexities and nuances of growing a business to new heights.
A marketing professional with a solid background in business administration can provide a holistic marketing approach that incorporates your company’s overall vision and objectives. They understand the importance of aligning marketing strategies with your business goals, ensuring that every marketing effort is geared towards your growth and success.
A marketing expert with business acumen can strategically allocate your marketing budget, ensuring you invest in the right channels and tactics for maximum ROI. They’re skilled in managing budgets and measuring the effectiveness of different marketing initiatives, enabling your company to thrive.
With a deep understanding of the larger overall functions of marketing, an experienced professional can make informed decisions based on comprehensive data analysis, industry trends, and consumer insights. This ensures that your marketing efforts remain relevant and effective, giving you a competitive edge.
A marketer with limited experience and no background in business administration may have a narrow view of marketing, focusing solely on one aspect (e.g., social media marketing) without understanding its relationship with the larger business vision. This can lead to disjointed marketing efforts and limited growth.
Less experienced marketers may lack the necessary skills to effectively allocate your marketing budget, potentially leading to wasted resources and missed opportunities.
Without a solid understanding of the overall business and marketing functions, a less experienced marketer may focus on short-term gains instead of long-term growth, which could hinder your company’s ability to reach seven-figure success.
Our agency provides a unique combination of high-level expertise, affordability, and flexibility to help your business reach its ambitious goals. By partnering with our agency, you’ll benefit from:
We have a team of marketing specialists, each skilled in their own area, ensuring that every aspect of your marketing is expertly managed.
Our agency offers the flexibility to scale up or down as your business needs change, ensuring that you always have the right level of support.
With decades of experience and a history of success working with diverse businesses, our agency has the expertise needed to help you achieve seven-figure years and beyond.
There is extreme value of making marketing decisions based on data and analytics, rather than relying solely on intuition or trendy tactics.
Having experience with both the traditional forms of marketing (before the internet) and digital marketing, I’m obsessed with the amount of data that we can gather, and how that can be used to continually hone to provide improving results.
A seasoned marketing expert will know how to gather, analyze, and use data to optimize marketing campaigns and maximize ROI.
It’s important to develop tailored marketing strategies that address your business’s unique needs, target audience, and industry landscape.
Your business isn’t cookie cutter, and your marketing shouldn’t be, either.
An experienced marketer can identify opportunities specific to your business, rather than applying a one-size-fits-all approach.
While not all of our clients are long-term — some only need one project, such as a website, or a marketing plan — there’s benefits to developing a long-term relationship with your marketer; someone who truly understands your business and its growth goals.
A lasting relationship with a skilled marketer can lead to greater consistency, brand cohesion, and strategic alignment over time.
I haven’t only used other marketer’s best practices, or only provide you or teach you the one strategy I learned from some other guru.
I am the guru. I’ve created best practices that have been used in more than one business and industry. I’ve designed marketing plans on different emerging platforms before most people even realized they existed. And still do.
It’s important to stay agile and embrace innovation in marketing. An experienced marketer will be able to recognize when a strategy is no longer effective and pivot to new, innovative approaches that keep your business ahead of the competition.
Choosing a seasoned marketing expert is an investment in your business’s long-term success. By allocating resources to a skilled marketer, you’re setting your business up for growth and prosperity, and ultimately, a better return on investment.
Don’t miss out on the opportunity to elevate your marketing and achieve your ambitious business goals.
Every client receives CMO-level services.
Schedule a consultation with our agency today and unlock possibilities you may never have even thought of. Let us help you navigate the path to seven-figure success by harnessing the power of a marketing expert with in-depth business acumen and the knowledge and experience to back it up.
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