With the rapid evolution of digital and online marketing capabilities, companies are struggling to hire the breadth of talent necessary to master search engine optimization, online advertising, content marketing, and big data analytics, in addition to their traditional roles such as PR, events, and print or broadcast.
To meet this challenge companies are expanding their use of contract, freelance marketing professionals to fill the gaps on their team.
In the next 12-18 months, nearly 30% of companies are expecting to have a 50/50 split between permanent and contract workers in their Marketing Department, according to “The Future of Digital Marketing” report by Mondo. The growth of contractors is fueled both by employers looking to find the specialized skills to drive business growth and by a growing interest in marketing professionals looking to utilize their expertise across a wide variety of projects in a more flexible work environment.
The benefits to a business of incorporating freelance marketing professionals are numerous. Contracting is cost-effective for employers, it expands the talent pool to include these highly skilled freelance workers, and it provides flexible employment options.
Hiring Marketing Freelancers is Cost-Effective
For many companies, the high cost of hiring full-time marketing professionals often deters organizations from getting the talent they need to help their businesses grow. With contract marketing solutions, employers can hire for just what they need. For example, a company can hire a Chief Marketing Officer for two days a week to help develop marketing strategies and provide direction for junior staff, or it could bring on a copywriter for eight days per month to write blogs or other content necessary to generate traffic. Because contractors are generally hired for their specific expertise, these marketers are also more cost-effective since they don’t need a lot of on-the-job training or onboarding.
Access to Top Freelance Marketing Talent
Some of the best marketers in the business are leaving their corporate jobs to adopt a more flexible work-life by freelancing or working directly for in-house creative departments. It’s now possible for multiple companies to benefit from a talented marketer’s creative mind, instead of just one company. Contract marketing talent also tends to be more actively engaged in their work since they can pick and choose which projects they want to work on. If a contractor doesn’t feel passionate about a project, then they don’t take on the project.
Hiring Flexibility
Finally, companies using freelance marketing talent have a great amount of flexibility in the numbers and types of employees they keep on staff. For example, an organization can hire a Web Developer on a short-term project to build a new website, or a Graphic Designer for 6 weeks while their internal employee is out on maternity leave. Businesses can also quickly increase or decrease headcount based on business growth or seasonal needs.
Any size organization, from large Fortune 500 companies to growing small businesses, can benefit from hiring contract marketing talent. How could you use contractors to help grow your business?
Contact Naviga today to see how we can help your business tap into this dynamic, growing workforce.
