According to a 2017 study reported on by Forbes, 70.8% of small businesses do their marketing in-house. Unfortunately, they don’t seem to be seeing much success. According to another study Forbes quoted, small businesses who keep marketing in-house are the least satisfied with their results.
Marketing is a specialized field that requires a specific skill set. But marketing is constantly changing. In fact, it changes as frequently as Google changes its algorithms.
Most small-to-medium-sized businesses don’t have the capacity to keep up with these trends. To stay relevant, they turn to a marketing consultant.
But what does a marketing consultant do? When it comes to marketing, they can do almost anything. Find out more below.
What Does a Marketing Consultant Do?
A marketing consultant may be part of a marketing agency. However, they often work alone or for a consulting firm. Some marketing consulting companies and agencies provide customers with a team of consultants rather than one person.
What is a marketing consultant? It’s an individual who lends their skills and experience in marketing to another business for a price. The business then applies the consultant’s input to their own marketing strategies to increase results.
Marketing Consultants don’t typically provide deliverables. For example, they may not write blog posts or manage your social media ads. However, they could do these things and more.
Some freelance marketing consultants act as a one-stop marketing shop for a small number of clients. Some others just provide advice.
Marketing Consultants usually play an outsourced but high-level role at your company. Some marketing consultants even serve as fractional CMOs. This way, your company gets CMO services without taking on the internal costs of a full-time officer.
But for the most part, consultants help you train your employees on marketing best practices. They’ll also advise you on marketing tactics and long-term marketing strategies. A marketing consultant acts as a go-to resource for all your company’s marketing needs.
What Skills Does a Marketing Consultant Have?
Marketing consultants will typically have an education in business or marketing. Some consultants may have degrees in other fields. They may have gained relevant skills during their career to reach the position of consultant.
A marketing consultant must think both analytically and creatively. They must have a mind for strategy. But most importantly, they should think in terms of ROI.
Fewer than one in five marketers are confident in their ability to measure their marketing performance. Furthermore, only 10% of marketers strongly agree they can measure ROI.
A marketing consultant must do more than provide their client with guidance and a plan. They must give them a positive return on their marketing investment.
Manage Your Marketing Strategy
So, what does a marketing consultant do? It depends on the needs of your business. If you need deliverables like web designs and blogging, your marketing consultant could play an essential role in the planning, execution, and measurement of your strategy.
To get the most out of your marketing, work with an agency that provides consulting on top of other services you need.
If you’re looking for custom website design and digital marketing, North Lake Digital can help. Check out our pricing page for more information.
