How to Outsource Digital Marketing and Work Better with Freelancers
Outsourcing specific digital skills and projects is a recurring part of digital project management or digital marketing. Digital marketers or experts are often used to working on multiple platforms like Google Ads, Meta, CMS, CRM, and across multiple fields, such as e-commerce, SEA, community management, paid social…
That being said, one expert cannot have specific expertise on all subjects, markets and fields combined (generalist vs specialist post coming soon). In that light, hiring freelancers for specific projects and platforms in a fast-paced digital job market is increasingly relevant.
When to outsource digital marketing
For example, you may have strong expertise in e-commerce, but less expertise in a specific market’s e-commerce that your company wants to conquer. China is an interesting example, as this LinkedIn post details, with specific regulations on keeping user data, integrated platforms such as WeChat, etc.
Sometimes, a company wants to fix a specific issue or start leveraging specific digital tools without a full-time hire or an agency, which requires more budget. In this scenario, working with a freelancer is an optimal solution.
Here are 5 aspects that you need to consider when outsourcing digital expertise through freelancers:
Business needs and goals
Clearly defined projects
Brand education & assets
Management
Feedback
Business needs and goals
As mentioned in my post on 5 e-commerce strategy tips, strategy and goal setting as a whole should begin from management such as the CEO, then trickle down and develop across various fields to make the brand and business grow as a whole.
Once you have set this up, it’s time to define what makes up your digital stratosphere, the platforms you use, and how they can be leveraged for your business growth. Or you could directly start from a problem that you would like to solve, for example:
Leveraging a social media platform where your business category is growing rapidly
Solving a data tracking problem
Optimize SEA
Hiring a digital specialist just for the sake of being present on a platform is not the optimal solution, you need to consider why, and as previously said, this comes from your business strategy as a whole.
If you don’t specifically know what direction to choose (e-commerce, SEA, social media…), stay tuned for my upcoming digital roadmap!
Once you have detailed what your company needs from a bird’s eye view, it’s time to define the outlines and specifics of your digital project.
2. Clearly defined projects
If it’s not clearly detailed in the contract, it does not exist.
Let’s say you want to outsource a specific social media platform management (like TikTok or WeChat) to a freelancer. When setting up the contract, map your needs. For example, when managing a social media platform, consider these specifics:
Visual assets: images & videos in the right format
Visual asset quantities according to an optimal posting frequency
Languages (for international markets)
SEO: captions, texts
Community Management (comments, DMs)
KPIs and performance monitoring
Will your platform manager be also in charge of creating visual assets if a platform requires more of them? Or will you need to hire an extra workforce to create more visual content you can then use across all your platforms (the latter being more optimal in my humble opinion)?
Take into account all those details and questions, and detail them with your potential freelancer as clearly as possible.
3. Brand education & assets
Providing your freelancer partner(s) with relevant assets to optimize workflow is of the essence. This includes:
Brand & product information : brand book'(s), best-seller products, upcoming campaigns, business goals…
Brand assets: campaign visuals, videos, product descriptions, PR information
Personae (actual & target): your customers’ demographic details and interests, and those of your target customers
The tone of voice: which words and adjectives to use or not to use, which colors and/or visuals are relevant and not, how to speak about the brand & product - counterexamples can also be a good starting point
If all of those assets are not yet defined, start with what you already have and work on developing missing assets in progress.
4. Management
Clear communication sounds and is a fundamental part of successful collaboration, however it is often easier said than done. In a fast-paced and growing company, finding a steady collaborative cruising rhythm is a constant work in progress. In that light, finding a flexible solution that works for you and your freelance partner is important.
In this regard, you should establish:
Preferred communication channels for general and urgent requests (e-mail and WhatsApp for example)
Communication schedules - what time frame works best for you and the freelancer
Regular check-ins - have a weekly or bi-weekly regular check-in when you go through
5. Positive & constructive feedback
Don’t forget to let your freelancer know when you like the work they are providing, that you appreciate their work, and what you appreciate about it in detail.
If you don’t like what your freelancer provides you with, say why and preferably what could be done instead. Remember that a freelancer does not have the detailed view you have as a company insider.
Conclusion
Progress is what matters, not perfection. If you are just getting started on a platform, it’s natural to learn by doing and in so, make a couple of mistakes in the way, as long as you learn from them . Digital platforms evolve quickly, and so do the job descriptions of the people working on them.
What were your favorite points of this article and which ones do you think should be added?