I’ve gotten a lot of questions about subscription-based marketing companies, so I wanted to set the record straight here. Before I dig into things, we wanted to start off by saying this isn’t a hit piece and what might work for one business, might not work for another.
What Are Subscription-Based Marketing Companies?
These are smaller, usually niche companies that offer select services via a price tier list. Their prices tend to be on the lower side, often starting around $99/month.
Sounds tempting, right? Of course it does!
Unfortunately, price tags aren’t everything…
Digital Marketing Is An Investment
I’ll be completely upfront with you in saying we appreciate cutting costs just like any other business. But a lower price tag doesn’t necessarily mean a better deal.
Value is what you’re paying for vs what you’re getting in return.
So…
? If your entire business was in the hands of a single court case… would you hire the cheapest attorney you can find?
? How about getting mediocre flood insurance for a beach house? That doesn’t make much sense, does it?
? Would you put your brand new car in the hands of a cheap Craigslist mechanic? Probably not.
Now, with that in mind, you’ll want to ask yourself if you’re getting actual value, instead of the illusion of a bargain.
Analyze My Digital Marketing Strategy
Digital Marketing Isn’t One-Size-Fits-All
I won’t sugar coat this – you’ll be paying less for subscription-based Marketing companies, but you’ll also get a lot less in return.
In other words, you get what you pay for.
Subscription-based Marketing companies offer cookie-cutter solutions they position as “Marketing Strategies”. As an example, a Social Media Marketing company may offer things like…
✔️ “X” number of weekly content pieces created
✔️ “X” number of weekly posts
✔️ “X” number of profiles they’ll post to
The more you pay, the higher number they’ll offer as part of this “X” variable, like any subscription service.
Here’s where the real problem lies…
More pieces of content, weekly posts, or even unique ads won’t necessarily help your business grow. It just makes it look like they’re offering you more “value”.
So while say 10 Social Media posts per week may appear to be “of value”, you really should be asking how these posts are directly contributing to your short and long-term business objectives.
Are they designed to…
? Raise Brand Awareness?
? Capture Lead Info?
? Generate Sales?
How do these posts work with the rest of your Digital Marketing Strategy?
See, businesses get caught up in the idea that they should be doing “Social Media Marketing” or “Search Engine Optimization” because, well, that’s just what you do. Right?
Wrong.
You should have a larger, overarching Digital Marketing strategy, designed to directly accomplish at least one business objective. Things like Social Media Marketing should only be present to support certain parts of your strategy. Otherwise, you’re just arbitrarily posting content with no real direction.
That’s a waste of time and money. Plus, you could be confusing your customers with inconsistent branding. Totally counter-intuitive!
What I’m really saying is without a real, professional strategy, all of the cookie-cutter Social Media posts in the world won’t generate a healthy ROI…
And if you aren’t generating a healthy ROI, then why are you spending any money at all?!?
Working With A Full-Service Digital Marketing Agency
Now, I won’t sit here and tell you all Digital Marketing agencies are inherently great, as they are certainly not created equal. However, teaming up with the right kind of agency can deliver results that subscription-based Marketing companies couldn’t dream of.
Here’s what I mean…
Every business is unique with a unique set of goals. Therefore, they require a unique strategy tailored to their specific needs.
That’s exactly what we do here at Active Web Group.
When you consider the fact that your business really needs a tailored strategy, it should be clear that cookie-cutter subscription plans deliver little-to-no return on your investment. So if you aren’t yielding a healthy return… why would you pay these companies anything at all?
My advice? Don’t invest in Digital Marketing unless you’re going to do it right. Otherwise, you’ll be out a lot of time, money, and patience.
Active Web Group has been in the business of helping businesses thrive. For over 20 years we’ve delivered cutting-edge Website Design, Search Engine Optimization, Pay-Per-Click Advertising, Email Marketing, Social Media Marketing, and many other services to brands of all sizes and industries. Looking to take your business to the next level? Contact one of our experts today – and if you can’t wait, give us a call at (800) 978-3417!
