You want content that finds the ideal audience and knows how to speak to them. Elite marketing teams can help make that happen. But how do you staff them? In this article, we take an in-depth look at what sort of people you need on your marketing team!

Lead Strategist

Consider this the team manager. They interact directly with the clients, getting a good idea of what their objectives are. Using this information, they are able to set the tone for the marketing campaign. Communication is a key element of their job, not just the ability to communicate with the consuming public, but also the ability to communicate with CEOs and team members.

You want someone who can represent everyone’s needs in a way that is clear, efficient, and friendly. The ideal candidate will know the ins and outs of marketing, but they will also have the ideal set of soft skills that allows them to work well with everyone involved in a project.

Operations Specialist

The operations specialist is the person who gauges the effectiveness of a campaign, mostly through their ability to interpret the relevant stats. They will know how to gauge key metrics relevant to the success of the campaign and make recommendations that can course correct where deficiencies are detected.

The stats may be derived from a wide variety of different locations, though modern operation specialists will have a particularly keen understanding of social media-based ad campaign performances.

Ideally, they will understand not just social media marketing as a concept, but also how key metrics apply to each unique social media platform.

SEO

Also on the digital marketing division of your marketing team, you need an SEO specialist. Search engine optimization helps tailor your online content so that it suits the key metrics algorithms look for when they are putting articles in front of viewers.

This can involve everything from the structure of an article to the words that are used within it. SEO is taught in digital marketing curriculums all across the country. The ideal candidate for this position will have an in-depth understanding of how search engines operate, but they will also have a willingness to continue learning. Algorithms change, daily. Most tweaks are small, but they can add up over the course of a year, which means SEO strategies need to be constantly evolving.

A Great Writer

The numbers and strategizing won’t do a lick of good without a skilled writer or two on the team. Be warned, however, that effective copy is about more than just having a way with words. Successful copywriters understand how to succinctly craft a marketing message that will either appeal to the widest possible number of people or will very specifically target a niche group.

It’s a very particular skill that not every writer can pull off. Find a few who can do it and your team will be in great shape.

A Visual Storyteller

Most marketing teams will also want someone who can tell a great story using images. Television ads aren’t what they used to be, but there are still lots of different ways people use visuals to get their information.

This includes everything from graphics and pictures, to videos, memes, GIFs, and cartoons. Ideally, you want a person or persons on your team who can be as versatile as possible when it comes to telling a visual story. Remember, knowing how to use a medium is only part of the battle. This team member also needs to know how to use these tools to strike the tone your clients are looking for.

Developer

Finally, you need someone who can work on the website end of the equation. Website developers will be able to provide online content for you and your clients. The ideal candidate will understand the ins and outs of code, both as it relates to creating a fine finished product, and optimizing a website for search engines.

The majority of marketing happens online these days, so your developer will stay plenty busy providing the content the rest of your team produces with a stable, healthy platform that will help the messages reach as many people as possible.

The post Essential Positions to Fill on an Elite Marketing Team appeared first on Modern Marketing Partners.

To assist in your consideration and decision making, following are definitions of Outsourcing and Insourcing, the pros and cons of both, some typical marketing organization structures, a Cost/Benefit Analysis, and finally recommended resources. But first, please consider some modern marketing realities.

Modern Marketing Realities

Marketing has changed rapidly, evolving to a digital marketing mix, and often employing marketing technology, or MarTech. The skill sets for managing a multitude of disparate marketing activities typically requires multiple individuals; skills rarely possessed by a single person.

Consider such marketing activities as copy writing, graphic design, website design and search engine optimization (SEO), email, event marketing, publicity, social media, paid search and traditional advertising, branding, and more. Also consider that depending on your organization marketing requirements and size, some skills might be required frequently, and other skills infrequently. Finally, consider that effective marketing has become mission critical, and the key differentiator to brands that achieve category leadership.

Organizations are realizing that in today’s competitive environment, marketing can the difference between success and failure. These realities have driven marketing salaries and outsource marketing fees to high and increasing levels.

Outsource and Insource Marketing Definitions

Outsource marketing or outsourcing is the practice of contracting an organization’s marketing functions to an outside firm, agency or consultant. Depending on organization size and frequency of a marketing requirement, firms might outsource projects, all marketing, or a combination thereof. Outsourcing is widely accepted for many business functions including accounting, customer service, programming/development, and yes, marketing.

Insource marketing or Insourcing refers to the process of having an employee of your organization complete a marketing project, or hiring staff for an ongoing marketing function. Insourcing or staffing is common for such business functions as product management, sales, engineering, and administration.

Please consider some key pros and cons for each.

Outsource Marketing Pros:

1. Access advanced marketing skills and expertise that can be cost prohibitive or difficult to recruit
2. Access specialized marketing skills and expertise for infrequent marketing requirements or singular projects (Ex. websites, branding)
3. Outsourcing allows management to focus on core business requirements
4. Speed: implement quickly without recruiting, training, supervision, etc.
5. Outsourcing potentially more cost efficient than staffing with multiple discipline skills, lower overhead including salary, benefits, equipment, etc.
6. More cost efficient and effective for small and startup organizations

Outsource Marketing Cons:

1. Lack of market or technical knowledge in certain categories vs. internal experts
2. Potentially less responsive than staff marketing for frequent marketing requirements
3. Potentially cost prohibitive with some marketing agencies
4. Complete or high percentage outsourcing not practical for large, complex enterprises

Insource Marketing Pros:

1. Potentially more cost efficient for frequent marketing requirements and functions
2. Potentially deeper technical knowledge and market expertise
3. Marketing staff required for large, complex enterprises
4. Some (larger) marketing agencies potentially cost prohibitive

Insource Marketing Cons:

1. Potentially cost prohibitive compared to outsourcing due to multi-discipline skills requiring multiple staff; higher overhead including salary, benefits, equipment, etc.
2. Cost inefficient for infrequent marketing requirements or singular projects
3. Speed: slower implementation with recruiting, training, supervision, etc.
4. Not cost efficient or effective for small and startup organizations

Typical Marketing Organization Structures

As mentioned, there are many considerations and variables when comparing the costs of Outsource vs. Insource Marketing including the frequency of marketing requirements, and whether the organization is small/startup, or a large and complex enterprise.

For small and startup, a typical, effective and cost-efficient organization structure is a single marketing executive (CMO/VP Marketing/Marketing Director), supervising outsourced agencies and consultants. Small organizations can sometimes bypass a staff marketing executive if another executive has the skill and interest to supervise an outsourced agency.

For large and complex enterprises, it is often more effective and cost efficient to have one or more marketing executives, and multiple marketing staff for frequent, ongoing marketing functions. Outsource marketing is used for infrequent projects, or for advanced expertise and complex marketing requirements. That said, the majority of large organizations employ a combination of staff while retaining agencies for creative development, media, digital, and new ideas.  

Outsource vs. Insource Cost/Benefit Analysis

To determine the Cost/Benefits of Outsourcing vs. Insourcing, marketing salaries and agency fees must be considered. Regarding marketing salaries, these will vary by title and experience, company size, geographic region, and industry category. Marketing salaries are typically much higher on the east and west coasts, and major cities (salaries lower in smaller cities and rural areas), and much higher in large companies. Following are average salary ranges by title/experience based on analysis from Salary.com. The lower range representing smaller cities and/or organizations, to higher range for larger cities and/or organizations.

Marketing Salaries by Title/Experience

• CMO/VP Marketing (7+ years): $150,000 – $300,000
• Marketing Director (5+ years): $110,000 – $200,000
• Marketing Manager (3-5 years):  $75,000 – $110,000
• Marketing Coordinator (1-3 years): $45,000 – $75,000

As you can see marketing staff salaries are very competitive, with corresponding employee benefits typically adding another 30% or more. In addition, specialized marketing investments in software and marketing technology must be considered for a total identification of Insource overhead.

In comparison, marketing agency and consultant fees are typically based on an hourly rate, and often a monthly retainer which varies greatly by agency size, geographic location, and industry specialization. Following are typical hourly rates based on geographic location and size.

Typical Marketing Agency Hourly Rates

• East/West Coast/Other Large Cities/Small Agency (<20 staff):  $125 – $200/hour
• East/West Coast/Other Large Cities/Mid-Size Agency (20-100 staff):  $150 – $250/hour
• East/West Coast/Other Large Cities/Large Agency (100+ staff):  $250 – $500/hour
• Small City/Small Agency (<20 staff):  $75 – $100/hour
• Small City/Mid-Size Agency (20-100 staff):  $100 – $200/hour
• Small City/Large Agency (100+ staff):  $150 – $250/hour

The other opportunity for organizations outsourcing to agencies are retainers, where a number of marketing activities and functions can be outsourced for a fixed monthly fee. Similar to hourly rates, such retainers vary widely by geographic location and agency size. Following are typical retainers for 100 hours of work in a month.

Typical Marketing Agency Retainer Fees (100 hours/month)

• East/West Coast/Other Large Cities/Small Agency (<20 staff):  $10,000 – $15,000
• East/West Coast/Other Large Cities/Mid-Size Agency (20-100 staff):  $20,000 – $30,000
• East/West Coast/Other Large Cities/Large Agency (100+ staff):  $40,000 – $60,000
• Small City/Small Agency (<20 staff):  $7,500 – $12,500
• Small City/Mid-Size Agency (20-100 staff):  $15,000 – $25,000
• Small City/Large Agency (100+ staff):  $25,000 – $35,000

Marketing Number Crunching

With average salaries for marketing talent at significant levels and rising, simple math identifies a 100-hour retainer with a small agency at $10,000 – 15,000 is equivalent to 2-3 marketing staff depending on level. Again, more detailed Cost/Benefit Analysis will be specific to each organization.

Outsource vs. Insource Marketing: A Mission Critical Decision

The decision to insource or outsource marketing is unique to every organization, and is based on company size, industry, marketing budget and objectives, and other factors. Often, a combination of staff and outsource is required.

Outsource Marketing Pros include access to advanced marketing skills and expertise that are cost prohibitive or difficult to recruit, and likely more cost efficient and effective for small and startup organizations. Outsource Marketing Cons include lack of market or technical knowledge in certain categories vs. internal experts. And a high percentage of outsourcing is not practical for large, complex enterprises

Insource Marketing Pros include potentially more cost efficient for frequent marketing requirements and functions, while large and complex enterprises will require some level of marketing staff. Insource Marketing Cons include potentially cost prohibitive compared to outsourcing due to multi-discipline skills requiring multiple staff. Also, Insourcing is by definition, higher overhead including salary, benefit, equipment, etc. Finally, Insource marketing may not be cost efficient or effective for small and startup organizations.

Whether Outsource or Insource, recruiting marketing talent or selecting effective marketing service providers can be difficult. References will assist either scenario. Industry experience should be considered. Thorough and extensive interviewing will be required. We recommend using a marketing expert to assess Insource and Outsource talent. In either case, the wrong decision can be costly.

Recommended Resources:

In-House vs. Outsourced Marketing 3 C’s (Forbes)

Insourcing vs. Outsourcing Digital Marketing (Search Engine Journal)

Leave It To The Experts: Should You Outsource Your Marketing? (Forbes)

The Definitive Marketing Agency Selection Guide (MMP)

The 7 Types of Marketing Organization Structures (MMP)

The post Outsource vs. Insource Marketing appeared first on Modern Marketing Partners.

In this article, we will share the top trends in organizing a marketing team, as defined by a recent HubSpot study, The CMO’s Guide to Marketing Organization Structures.  In this, we will share the key features of efficient marketing teams, the structures that leading organizations use, and quotes from the organization leaders.

We hope these generous contributions shed some light on the subject for marketing leaders who are rethinking how to organize their departments to take advantage of changes to all stages at the buying process. Please take a look at these varied structures, compare them to your own,  register for a marketing assessment, or check out our outsourced CMO services.

The Elastic Organization—Mindjet

Company Example: Mindjet

Company Headquarters: San Francisco, CA

Products or Services: Apps to help you brainstorm, plan, and manage projects.

Chief Marketing Officer: Jascha Kaykas-Wolff (@kaykas)

“As marketing continues to evolve, this organizational structure will adapt to whatever needs come about. Coupled with the adoption of new business processes like Agile Marketing, I believe functional depth expertise, coupled with cross-functional management of the work your team is focused on, will keep a steady stream of ideas flowing, more analytical decisions about which of those ideas to implement, and ultimately create predictability in the outcome of you and your team’s efforts.”

Structure of an Elastic Organization

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Features of an Elastic Organization

Marketing Operations professionals oversee the complexity of the marketing tech stack, IT integration, hypothesis testing, and optimizing customer experiences in the product.

• Flexible structure allows for adding headcount and/or functions seamlessly as the company’s product mix evolves.
• Much of the marketing org flows through Product Marketing Managers (PMMs).
• PMMs partner with functional experts in other sub-departments.

Source: Mindjet

Related: Emotional Marketing for B2B Companies

The TOFU Organization—Zendesk

Company: Zendesk

Company Headquarters: San Francisco, California

Products or Services: Helpdesk & Customer Support Software

Chief Marketing Officer: Bill Macaitis (@bmacaitis)

“I think future marketing org structures will put a much greater emphasis on post-lead metrics like Net Promoter Scores (NPS) as they attempt to maximize growth, minimize churn, and drive lifetime value.”

Structure of a TOFU Organization

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Features of a TOFU Organization

• This is a team built to scale top-of-funnel (“ToFu”) growth, with content marketing as the largest group, followed by advertising and product marketing.
• Tight alignment with the creative team is key – the head of the creative team reports to the CEO, and the department straddles both marketing and product.

Source: Zendesk

The Inbound Organization: HubSpot

Company: HubSpot

Company Headquarters: Cambridge, Massachusetts

Products or Services: B2B Marketing and Sales Software and Apps

Chief Marketing Officer: Mike Volpe (@mvolpe)

“I threw my old org chart in the trash when I joined HubSpot and started from the beginning. We built our entire company for the inbound era, from marketing to sales to service, because the buyer has all the power today and you need to realign your company for that. I think our org chart is the future of the marketing org because of that – we focus on an inbound experience that the buyer drives, with us providing value along each stage.”

Structure of an Inbound Organization

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Features of an Inbound Organization

• Focused on providing a buyer-driven inbound experience.
• Adds value through content and contextual marketing (e.g., dynamic, smart site pages and content based on a prospect’s relationship to the company).
• Steeped in buyer personas and delivering experiences tailored to those personas.
• Content as a dedicated function allows it to serve multiple internal “clients” (demand generation, PR, sales enablement).

Source: HubSpot

Related: 3 Ways to Align Marketing & Sales

The Funnel Focused Organization: Forrester

Company: Forrester

Company Headquarters: Cambridge, Massachusetts

Products or Services: Proprietary market research, consulting, events, and peer-to-peer executive programs.

VP of Marketing: Jeff Ernst Forrester VP of Marketing (@JeffErnst)

“I try to rationalize this structure by saying that team 1 is above the funnel, team 2 is top and middle of the funnel, and team 3 creates materials for the bottom of the funnel and acts as a service bureau to the rest.”

Structure of a Funnel-Focused Organization

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Features of a Funnel-Focused Organization

• Team 1 manages relationships with the top 50 publications and places Forrester analysts to speak at industry events.
• Team 2 focuses primarily on demand.
• Team 3 manages product collateral for the sales team and the production of anything that carries the Forrester brand.

Source: Forrester

Related: Is Your Marketing Modern?

The Culture Organization: GitHub

Company: GitHub

Company Headquarters: San Francisco, California

Products or Services: Hosted Git repository and social network for programmers, allowing members to collaborate on and monitor project development.

VP of Marketing: Brian Doll (@briandoll)

“I like to think of marketing as the intentional transfer of culture. It is an essential element to just about everything. Building great product is marketing. The way we talk to our customers is marketing. With that definition, I do see everyone participating in marketing to various degrees.”

Structure of a Culture Organization

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Features of a Culture Organization

• In this flat organization, everything is based on merit. Very few titles exist – only team names.
• The goal of marketing in this org is to transfer the culture everywhere, in the product that’s built, the marketing assets used to drive awareness and adoption… even internally.
• In this org, more than just defined “marketers” take part in marketing. The entire company is expected to uphold the culture of the company, whether through offline events, social media, or one-to-one user interactions.

Source: GitHub

Related: CMO vs. CIO: Clash in the Cubicle

The Customer Organization: Atlassian

Company: Atlassian

Company Headquarters: Sydney, Australia

Products or Services: Software that helps teams track, collaborate, code, and ship products.

Structure of a Customer Organization

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Features of a Customer Organization

• Built with a focus on the marketing funnel, from awareness-based branding to lead generation and nurturing, to customer retention.
• The bottom of the funnel receives a great deal of attention, as the “Customer 4 Life” team exists specifically to nurture and retain existing customers. The team’s goal is to improve customer success on existing products (i.e. retention) while upselling new features.
• Marketing Ops supports the rest of the organization.

Source: Atlassian

The Creative Organization: Rue La La

Company: Rue La La

Company Headquarters: Boston, Massachusetts

Products or Services: Members-only shopping site featuring some of the most sought-after brands in fashion, accessories, footwear, home, travel, and more.

Chief Marketing Officer: Robin Domeniconi (@RobindNYC)

“The future of marketing is truly dependent on the ability to integrate compelling content and commerce into a seamless experience. Creating that added value will keep customers loyal and coming back to your brand. That’s why all teams must be aligned and working together to deliver the most personal and enriching experience for our customers.”

Structure of a Creative Organization

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Features of a Creative Organization

• Marketing, merchandising, and creative align to provide Rue La La members with a fully integrated, seamless shopping experience.
• Marketing is organized by disciplines (such as acquisition, PR, or social) across each business category (e.g. fashion, home, travel). The GM of each business line sets the overall objective.

Source: Rue La La

Related: CMO Predictions for 2014

Redefine Your Marketing Organization

We welcome you to look into other marketing structures and tell us what you believe is the most effective.

At Modern Marketing Partners, we believe and recognize the value that each structure provides to each organization.  We welcome you to share your opinions in the content section; and please bookmark and share this with your CMO.

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