B2B is valued at $6.7 trillion. This is just the US. Globally, the B2B e-commerce market is expected to reach $18 Billion by 2027.

This growth will bring more opportunities to B2B startups but also more competition. How can they position themselves to succeed?

Marketing is key. Start-ups can’t be distinguished from the rest of the competition without great strategic marketing. They have two options when it comes to building brand awareness and bringing on relevant leads: either hiring a marketing agency, or an in-house team.

Kobe Digital will discuss the advantages and drawbacks of each option so that you can make informed decisions for your business.

These are the questions to ask yourself when you decide which option is right for you.

What is your time frame?

It is a fact that hiring in-house can take time. So does creating a brand, crafting the right messaging, and building marketing materials.

Let’s begin with hiring. You can go in-house if you want:

• Writing and disseminating job descriptions

• It can take weeks or months for resumes to arrive.

• Multiple rounds of interviews

• Simplifying the process and selecting someone

• Teach them the intricacies of your industry and company. 

• All the tools necessary to run your start-up’s advertising. Some in-house marketers specialize more in digital marketing than others. Others are more focused on content and brand management, while some are strategic-driven thinkers. It is difficult to find the “one that fits all” solution.

• A CMO in-house will usually need to hire vendors and team members to help with daily tasks and other skills

It is not difficult to hire in-house, but it can take a long time, especially if your goal is to find the perfect candidate. Months and months can pass before an in-house marketer is capable of setting up basic marketing needs, such as a website, CRM automation platform and content.

This might be the best option for you if you have a well-established start-up and can spare the time and money.

If you’re an early-stage company with investors constantly pressing you to return your investment and have a million other things on your list, it’s likely that you wouldn’t want to spend as much time on hiring for marketing.

Someone who can:

• Start ASAP

• Extensive experience in start-up marketing

• Are you familiar with the industry and best practices

• All the necessary marketing tools are already in place (along with a team of experts from other agencies to cover any gaps).

• A portfolio of success stories in start-up marketing and benchmarks that can be used to help you determine what best practices work for your company.

A marketing agency in New York may be the best choice if this is your situation. Within days of beginning, Phoenix marketing agencies can provide added value.

They are familiar with marketing in a variety of start-up industries. They also have relationships with vendors to help you with all your marketing needs, including graphic design, SEO, branding, content, messaging, social media, and PPC.

A marketing agency may be better suited to your needs if you are in urgent need of a marketing team that can get the message out quickly.

Have you ever hired marketing employees?

Next important question: Do you have any experience in hiring marketing professionals?

It’s possible to hire a marketer for the first time if you don’t have any experience.

It is easy to think that someone with excellent English and a strong resume is the right person for the job. These qualifications do not guarantee that someone will be able to manage your start-up’s marketing.

If you hire someone who isn’t fit for the job you will have to start the hiring process over.

Marketing agencies in Los Angeles are unique in that their portfolios speak for them.

Check any agency’s customer success stories and referrals to see what they can deliver and if it matches what you’re looking for. This will simplify the hiring process and increase your chances of finding the right person for the job.

Are You Confident in Your Marketing Strategies?

A second important question is: Do you know the top qualifications that your in-house marketing team should have? Do you know the best practices for marketing in your industry and start-ups?

Many start-ups believe they must do everything simultaneously to be successful. They end up focusing on too many things – Facebook, LinkedIn and content creation, lead generation, branding…

It’s better to focus on the most relevant and effective activities. While quality is more important than quantity in marketing, it’s essential to have the right activities for your business.

Marketing agencies are a great option because they are made up of experienced marketing professionals who have years of experience in a range of niches and can identify the most important activities to focus on right away.

Agents are familiar with all the marketing services that a start up needs in order to succeed. It is okay if you don’t know what you need, as your agency will be able to help you.

Let’s suppose your account manager thinks a particular marketing activity would benefit them even though they are not as experienced. They have an agency that can support them immediately, and a network of vendors and colleagues who can help.

A marketer in-house, however, must manage everything independently, and without the support of niche experts or other marketers.

They might also have difficulty identifying the best priorities for marketing activities, especially if their background is not start-up.

How does your budget look?

No matter the type of start-up, everyone faces the challenge of making the most of their limited budgets. A B2B marketing agency can help you find more talent for a lower price, especially if your budget is limited (which, let’s face it, almost all businesses have).

How? First, even though you are technically paying one marketer, in reality, you’re receiving a whole team of experts. This is a better deal than just paying one person a salary and getting one person’s work back.

A marketing agency will also help you save money by ensuring that you have all the tools and services you need. This saves you the hassle of trying to decide between different marketing tools.

You will have to pay for their salary if you hire them in-house. These subscriptions and software can quickly add up, from content creation to analytics to CRM systems.

Budgets are a tricky topic. Marketing agencies in Miami have years of experience in this area and can help you get the best value for your dollar.

How is your start-up evolving?

Is your start-up growing? Are things changing quickly? Is growth imminent?

A marketing company in Las Vegas can scale quickly. If you need to scale up your marketing efforts, an agency will always have employees available to help you.

You can also count on the fact they are all experienced marketers with a background in start-up marketing.

If you choose to scale up your business by going in-house, you will have to repeat the hiring process every time.

Now that You Have Asked…

There you have it. These are the questions Kobe Digital suggests you ask yourself before deciding on which route to follow in your start-up marketing journey.

If you have a limited budget and don’t know what marketing activities are necessary to help your company achieve its goals, the agency route may be better.

If you have the time and knowledge to hand-pick the best candidates, hiring in-house may be a better choice.

is a marketing partner that will help your startup reach its full potential. They are available to assist you in every step of the process.