The choice between an in-house marketer and an agency is not a question of price, but of what the company actually needs. One person will never cover performance campaigns, content, design, analytics and the website all at an expert level – either they are strong in one area and do the rest at an average level, or they are average at everything. An agency brings breadth and experience from dozens of companies, but it will never know your product and customers the way someone from inside the company does. When comparing costs, count the full price of an employee, including payroll contributions, tools, training and management time. In practice, the combination that works best is an internal person who holds the strategy, the brand and product knowledge, and who commissions the work, together with an external supplier for specialised disciplines. Without an internal owner, cooperation with an agency usually degenerates into just fulfilling orders.
See also: KPIs for a marketer, Contract with a marketing agency, Company marketing budget.
